Astronautics and Aeronautics, 1967 - NASA's History Office

May 4 ASTRONAUTICS AND AERONAUTICS, 1967
observation business.” It was difficult to ascertain the status of the Soviet
manned space program, he said, but U.S.S.R. might feel ready to attempt
a manned orbit of the moon within the next year. Concerning reports that
several cosmonauts had died during space flights, Dr. Sheldon said
U.S.S.R. had definitely not lost any men in orbit and probably had not
lost any men in the space program before the April 24 death of Cos-
monaut Vladimir Komarov. He acknowledged the death of a man in a
parachute accident and the death of a Soviet test pilot, but said he was
not certain these deaths were involved in the space program. (AP, B Sun,
5/5/67)
* NASA Nike-Cajun sounding rocket launched from Wallops Station carried
GSFC-instrumented grenade payload to 72-mi (115-km) altitude to ob-
tain data on temperature, pressure, density, and wind between 22-59
mi (35-95 km) at transition from winter-time westerly to summer-time
easterly circulation. Rocket and instrumentation performed satisfac-
torily. (NASA Rpt SRL)
0 NASA Aerobee 150 sounding rocket launched from WSMR carried GSFC-
instrumented payload to 109-mi (176-km) altitude to study special uv
radiation of star Zeta Ophiuchi. Rocket and instrumentation perform-
ance was satisfactory; no spectra were obtained because a thin film of
oil-like substance covered grating and mirrors. Source of substance
was under investigation. (NASA Rpt SRL)
* Total estimated cost for USAF’S Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) had
risen to $2.2 billion, according to March testimony by Secretary of
Defense Robert S. McNamara released by House Armed Services’
Appropriations Subcommittee. Estimate represented $700-million in-
crease over total cost of $1.5 billion predicted by President Johnson
in his Aug. 25, 1965, announcement approving DOD development of
MOL. (Text; Getler, Tech Wk, 5/8/67,14)
May 5: U.K.’s Ariel ZZZ (UK-E) scientific satellite was successfully launched
from WTR by NASA four-stage Scout booster into orbit with 373-mi
(600-km) apogee, 306-mi (492-km) perigee, 95.6-min period, and 80”
inclination. The 198-lb satellite, which had a one-year design lifetime,
carried five experiments for the investigation of earth’s atmosphere;
four were operating at liftoff and the fifth was turned on after third
orbit. All five were functioning normally.
Third in a series of US.-U.K. cooperative space projects, Ariel 111
was designed to supplement and extend atmospheric and ionospheric
investigations conducted by Ariel Z (launched April 26, 1962) and
Ariel ZZ (launched March 27, 1964). Primary NASA mission objectives
were to place satellite into planned orbit and provide tracking and
telemetry support. NASA supplied Scout booster, conducted launch, and
provided tracking and data acquisition services with STADAN facilities,
under overall management of GSFC. Major portion of the technical effort
on Ariel 111, including design and fabrication of spacecraft and five
experiments, was accomplished in U.K. under management of Science
Research Council’s Space Research Management Unit ( SRMU) . (NASA
Proj Off; NASA Releases 67-96,67-115)
US. should measure its return on space technology in terms of such
things as the development of communications, meteorological, and
simulation systems, rather than in dollars, NASA Administrator James E.
Webb said in the Second Annual Cortez A. M. Ewing Lecture at the
Oklahoma Center for Continuing Education in Norman. “The marginal
14Q