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

86 ASTRONAUTICAL AND AERONAUTICAL EVENTS OF 1 Q 6 2
through top of capsule and climbed on inflated raft awaiting
rescue, to be joined by two USAF paramedics, Airman John T.
Heitsch and S/Sgt. Ray E. McClure, who inflated Stulken col-
lar to prevent capsule from sinking. After three hours on
water, Astronaut Carpenter was picked up by a helicopter from
U.S.S. Intrepid, and his capsule was retrieved by the destroyer
Pierce. Astronaut Carpenter was reported in good physical
condition, and flown to Grank Turk Island in the Bahamas for 48-
hour debriefings and medical examinations.
May 24: President Kennedy personally congratulatcd Astronaut M.
Scott Car enter by telephone shortly after the AURORA 7 pilot arrived
by l! elicopter aboard the carrier Intrrpid, saying: ‘(. . . 1
wanted to tell you ‘we are relieved and very proud of your trip.
I am glad that you got picked up in good shape and we want
to tell you that we are all for you and send you the very best of
luck to you and your wife.”
Carpenter said: “My apologies for not having aimed B little
bit better on re-entry.”
President Kennedy: “Oh, fine and good. We want to congratulate
you and I look forward to seeing you in Washington
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sometime soon . . . .
Saturn SA-3 launch vehicle was static test-fired at MSFC for 119
seconds, producting near 1.3 million pounds of thrust.
The House of Representatives (342-0) approved the NASA authorization
for FY 1963 of $3.67 billion. This was almost three
times the NASA budget for BY 1962.
Research Center for Celestial Mechanics at Yale University announced
by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research and the
Office of Naval Research, to be headed by Dr. Dirk Brouwer,
Director of the Yale Observatory. The facility, to be opened
on July 1, will seek new approaches for problems involving earth
satellites, lunar and interplanetary probes, and the predetermination
of trajectories for interplanetary vehicles.
X-1.5 flight postponed so that radar tracking systems would not
interfere with the flight of AURORA 7.
In speech at Cleveland, Miss., General Bernard A. Schriever said:
‘(As long as the Soviets remain committed to their goal of world
domination, their accomplisl~ments in space can be a potential
source of danger to free men everywhere. In their efforts to
bring about the complete victory of their system, they have not
hesitated to use any means. There is no reason to believe that
space will be an exception. . . .
“Xational defense missions in space have certain unique
requirements, but in many ways they are closely related to other
aspects of the national space program. There has been and
continues to be close cooperation between the Air Force and
NASA.
“The rate of progress in our space program will be determined
by two factors. The first of these is research. Development of
space technology urgently calls for new knowledge. . . .
“Research alone IS not enough. The knowledge we acquire
must be applied in timely fashion. The key to this application
?J
is management. . . .
USAF Titan ICBM destroyed in fueling test at Chico, Calif.