Astronautical and Aeronautical Events of 1962 - NASA's History Office

ASTRONAUTICAL AND AERONAUTICAL EVENTS OF 1862 197
“The United States is dedicated as a matter of national policy
to the eaceful exploitation of the space medium. The United
States i oes not intend to extend the arms race into space.
“We are, however, taking the step to enable us to protect our-
selves in the event the Soviets or any other nation were to
undertake missions in space that would endanger our security. . . .
“The dual-vehicle orbital experiment of the Soviets, when
coupled with their previous claims, seems to indicate that the
need for protection against possible threats to our security will
be in the near orbital stage of space, rather than farther out.
One possible instrument of security that might be useful at this
level in space may be found in extending the X-15 and X-20
technology, leading to craft which could operate from surface to
orbit and back, and perform defense missions at the edge of the
atmosphere. Another might be the permanently manned orbital
space station designed for military purposes. Progress toward
utilization of such a vehicle for security and protection would be
speeded by capitalizing upon the NASA program to acquire
knowledge and competence in manned orbital flight. . . .
“These are the principles on which Air Force space program
must be based: (a) Ample preparation to utilize the space
medium; (b) Ample preparation to defend ourselves in case
others choose to extend the threat of aggression to outer space;
(c) Concentration on the really important tasks, including
today’s job and not just tomorrow’s, and finally, (d) An organ-
izationally disciplined space program-well planned and spe-
cific-which fits into overall national plans and objectives.
“We in America have no choice but to extend our defenses as
far as they need to be extended to save freedom on earth. . . .”
September 22: Four-stage Journeyman rocket carried 145-lb. payload
to 1,058-mi. altitude, from NASA Wallops Station. Primary ex-
periment was measurement of the intensity of RF energy at
medium frequencies; secondary experiment was measurement of
electron densities in the upper ionosphere and investigation of
possibility of using ionosphere as a focusing medium in future
radio astronomy mapping experiments. Payload landed about
1,323 mi. from launch site in the Atlantic Ocean.
0 NASA launched three-stage, solid-fuel Ram-B (Radio Attenuation
Measurement) rocket from Wallops Station, Va., all contact with
the vehicle lost 11 sec. after second-stage ignition. Project Ram
was designed to provide information on communications blackout
during space vehicle re-entry.
0 Aerobee 150A launched from NASA Wallops Station, the rocket
reaching 117-mi. altitude in experiment to measure absolute
intensity of the spectrum of stars with 50 angstrom resolution
and to measure ultraviolet fluxes. No usable data were received
because rocket failed to despin as planned.
0 Faulty valve in MA-8 spacecraft was replaced by technicians, a
repair which required removal of Mercury capsule from the Atlas
booster. Astronaut Walter M. Schirra’s orbital space flight was
planned for October 3.
NASA announced it would launch Canadian spacecraft Alouette
(S-27) from Point Arguello, Calif., no earlier than September 26.
Named for high-3ying songbird of Canada, Alouette was first