An Illustrated Chronology of the NASA Marshall Center and MSFC ...

NOVEMBER- DECfiMBER 1960
On November :21 the first Mereuw-Redstone (MR-I) failed to launclt at Cape Canaveral
because of improper separation of electric_ connectors between tile lau_ching table and
the vehicle [28].
On December19 at 11:15 a.m. EST, MSFC's LaunchOperationsDirectoratelaunche'd
Mercury-Redstone(MR-IA) at CapeCanaveral.The Mercury-Redstoneboosterlaunched
the unmannedMercury spacecraft135 miles high and 235 miles down the Atlantic
MissileRange.The I-ton spacecraft landedby parachuteand wasrecoveredby helicopter.
Thirty-two minutesafter landing,the spacecraftwason the deck of the U55 Valley
Forge. The spacecraftwasrecoveredIn excellentcondition[291.
1oiDecember MSFC published the Historical Origins of the Gt,orse C. Marshall Space
bTlght Center, highlightingeventsImportant in the Center'sformation.This tint MSFC
history includedbackgroundeventssuchas the March 1945formvtlonIn the Pentagonof
Project Papercllp to recruit German missilescientists.Project Paperclip resultedin
approximately100 V-2 ballisticmissilesbeing shippedfrom Germanyto White Sords
ProvingGround In the United Statesin August 1945. On September20, 1945, MSFC's
future directorWernhervan Braunand six other key Germanrocketscientistsarrivedin
the United Statesas a result of ProjectPapercllp.On December10, 1945, 55 German
specialistsarrivedat Fort Bliss,Texas, and White SandsProvingGround,Texas,where
they werejoined by the first sevenspecialistsheadedby Wernhervan Braun.The first
V-2 rocket wasstatic-firedat White SandsProvingGround,March 15, 1946. On March
21, 1950, the U. S. Army Adjutant Generalorderedtransferof the missilepersomlel
headedby Wernheryah Braunfrom White Sandsto RedstoneArsez|al,Alabama.On April
l, 1950, the Germanmissilepersonnelheadedby Dr. van Braunweremovedfrom White
SandsProvingGround to RedstoneArsenal,Alabama.O!1February I, 1956, the Army
activatedthe Army BallisticMissileAgency(ABMA), whiclt grew out of the Redstone
Arsenal'sGuidedMissile DevelopmentDivision. Russiainspiredthe U. S. to new spa_e
efforts when It launchedSputnik l, the first earth satellite,on October 4, 1957. The
United Statesfoflowedwith ExplorerI, the Free World'sfirst earth satellite,orbitedon
January31, 1958. The successof Explorer i whettedU. S. spaceappetite,andon April
2, 1959, NASA selectedse_,enastronautsfor projectMercury, after a seriesof the most
flgorousphydcaland mentaltestsevergivento U. S. test pilots.On October21, 1959,
President Eisenhower anttouncedhis decisioz, to transfera portion of ABMA'spersonnel,
facilities, and missions to NASA. The next month, on November 2, President Elsenhower
announced his httentiort to transfer the Saturn project from the ArmY to NASA
monitorship. On November 18, 1959, NASA assumed technical direction of the Saturn
project pending its formal transfer from the Army. On January 14, 1960, President
Eisenhower directed the transfer of ABMA's Development Opera'lons Division and Its
space-related missions to NASA. The George C. MarshallSpace Flight Center, NASA's"
HuntsvtlqeFqclllty, was so named by Executive Order of President Eisenhower on March
15, 1960. Furmal transfer ceremonies at Huntsville officially opened NASA's George C.
MarshallSpace Flight Center, July I, 1960 [30, 31].
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