Timeline: The Road to Grumman's Lunar Module
Grumman engineers observe test astronaut entering the M-5 mock-up in October 1964. One of the astronaut's major concerns was that they had great difficulty getting their square backpacks in and out of the round hatch. Credit: Cradle of Aviation Museum
October 1957: The Soviet Union startles the world by rocketing Sputnik 1, the first manmade satellite, into orbit
January 1958: The United States sends its first satellite, Explorer 1, into orbit
July 1958: President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs legislation creating the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
October 1960: Fourteen companies, including Bethpage-based Grumman and Farmingdale-based Republic Aviation Corp., submit proposals for NASA’s Apollo program
December 1960: Grumman begins a company-funded feasibility study of a lunar-orbit rendezvous, one of three proposed techniques for executing a moon mission
January 1961: At a Langley Research Center conference in Maryland, NASA researcher John C. Houbolt explains the weight savings of a lunar rendezvous technique as opposed to a direct ascent from the earth to the moon
January 1961: NASA launches Ham, a chimpanzee, aboard a Mercury-Redstone rocket and recovers him safely after a suborbital flight
April 1961: The launch of Yuri Gagarin, the first human in orbit, makes clear the Soviets remain ahead in the nascent space race
May 1961: Astronaut Alan B. Shepard Jr. makes a suborbital flight in Freedom 7, the first manned U.S. space flight
May 1961: President John F. Kennedy, in a speech before Congress, calls for a manned lunar landing before the end of the decade
November 1961: Houbolt breaks protocol and writes to a top NASA administrator, protesting the exclusion of the lunar orbital rendezvous technique from serious consideration
January-June 1962: Grumman works on a company study of the lunar orbit rendezvous technique compared to the direct ascent and earth orbit rendezvous options
February 1962: Astronaut John Glenn Jr. is the first American to reach orbit aboard Mercury spacecraft Friendship 7
February 1962: In planning for upcoming NASA budgets, Wernher von Braun, director of the Marshall Space Flight Center, designates earth orbit rendezvous as the primary mode for a lunar landing, dealing a blow to Grumman’s chances of building the lunar module.
April 1962: NASA officials review the lunar orbit rendezvous technique
June 1962: Von Braun reverses course and recommends lunar orbit rendezvous be used for manned moon missions; top NASA officials adopt the recommendation
September 1962: Nine companies, including Grumman and Republic, submit proposals for the lunar module
November 1962: NASA selects Grumman
March 1963: Grumman signs a contract to build the lunar module for $387.9 million
Ken Schachter covers corporate news, including technology and aerospace, and other business topics for Newsday. He has also worked at The Miami Herald and The Jerusalem Post.
Sarra Sounds Off Ep 36: Champs crowned in lax and flag football On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Gregg talks with Michael Sicoli and Tess Ferguson about county champs crowned in boys and girls lacrosse, and Jared Valuzzi reports on the Long Island flag football championship.
Sarra Sounds Off Ep 36: Champs crowned in lax and flag football On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Gregg talks with Michael Sicoli and Tess Ferguson about county champs crowned in boys and girls lacrosse, and Jared Valuzzi reports on the Long Island flag football championship.
