Heroes of the Space Age
Incredible Stories of the Famous and Forgotten Men and Women Who Took Humanity to the Stars
Amherst, New York : Prometheus Books, 2019.
Format: Book
Description: 299 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 23 cm
Award-winning science writer Rod Pyle profiles the remarkable pilots, scientists, and engineers whose work was instrumental in space missions to every corner of our solar system and beyond. Besides heralded names like Neil Armstrong, John Glenn, and Gene Kranz, the author highlights some of the "hidden figures" who played crucial roles in the success of NASA, Soviet, and international space exploration. For example, Joe Engle, was a daring test pilot who set multiple records in the dangerous X-15 rocket plane and later commanded the space shuttle three times. John Houbolt was an engineer who convinced NASA leadership that the most effective way to land on the moon was to use a seemingly risky technique called "Lunar Orbit Rendezvous," which worried NASA planners but was the only way to make the landing possible by 1969. Margaret Hamilton was an accomplished mathematician and one of the first female software engineers to design programs for spaceflight software that proved critical to the success of the moon landing. John Casani was a brash young engineer who took over the struggling Voyager program to reconnoiter the outer planets at a time when success was far from certain. And Valentina Tereshkova was the first woman to travel into space aboard Soviet spacecraft Vostok 6. Complemented by many rarely-seen photos and illustrations, these stories of the highly talented and dedicated people, many of whom worked tirelessly behind the scenes, will fascinate and inspire.
Contents:
Yuri Gagarin : the first starman -- John Glenn : the clean marine -- Valentina Tereshkova : flight of the Seagull -- Gene Kranz : stars and stripes forever -- Margaret Hamilton : the first software engineer -- Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin : "first men" -- Pete Conrad : salty sailor of the skies.
Subjects:
Gagarin, Yuri Alekseyevich, 1934-1968.
Glenn, John, 1921-2016.
Nikolaeva-Tereshkova, Valentina Vladimirovna, 1937-
Kranz, Gene.
Hamilton, Margaret Heafield, 1936-
Armstrong, Neil, 1930-2012.
Aldrin, Buzz.
Conrad, Pete, 1930-1999.
United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration -- Officials and employees -- Biography.
Astronauts -- United States -- Biography.
Astronauts -- Soviet Union -- Biography.
Gagarin, Yuri Alekseyevich, 1934-1968.
Glenn, John, 1921-2016.
Nikolaeva-Tereshkova, Valentina Vladimirovna, 1937-
Kranz, Gene.
Hamilton, Margaret Heafield, 1936-
Armstrong, Neil, 1930-2012.
Aldrin, Buzz.
Conrad, Pete, 1930-1999.
United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration -- Officials and employees -- Biography.
Astronauts -- United States -- Biography.
Astronauts -- Soviet Union -- Biography.
ISBN:
9781633885240
Availability | |||
---|---|---|---|
Call Number | Location | Shelf Location | Status |
SCIENCE Space Pyl | Main (Downtown) | Third Level, Nonfiction | In |
Includes bibliographical references.