On Feb. 5. 1971, the Apollo 14 crew module landed on the moon. The crew members were Captain Alan Bartlett Shepard, Jr. (USN), commander; Major Stuart Allen Roosa (USAF), command module pilot; and Commander Edgar Dean Mitchell (USN), lunar module pilot. (Photo : NASA)
The "Father of the Space Shuttle", NASA engineer, George Mueller died on Monday October 12, who was considered to be the space agency's leader when it comes to pioneering space flight efforts, particularly the historic landing on the moon. He was 97 years old.
His NASA term spanned from 1963 to 1969 as Associate Administrator for Manned Space Flight as he first introduced a breakthrough approach that made it possible for humans to carry out a moon landing by 1969.
Apart from this, he also played a crucial role by designing the first space station in the United States where he pushed for a reusable space transport system that is later on developed to become the Space Shuttle.
In 1963, Mueller realized that the test flights for the Saturn V launch can hinder plans for the Apollo mission program of a moon landing by the end of the decade, in which President John F. Kennedy dictated this lunar mission deadline.
Mueller then changed the management system and initiated an "all-up" test approach that involves launching and flying complete space vehicles as opposed to individual rocket stages.
Mueller reveals on a 1998 interview how it did not make sense to fly the first stage of the rocket and then launch the second stage of the rocket separately. He says that, a space vehicle can be lost at any stage so might as well go as far and take risks by launching everything all at once to pinpoint the problems.
This proposal of Mueller sounds just as reckless and risky during that time however, this calculated strategy is certainly crucial for making it possible for humans to land on the moon by the end of the decade.
NASA says in retrospect, without trying this all-up testing for the first manned lunar landing, it is clear that this would not have happened as early as 1969 which is a milestone for humankind.
Mueller was born in St. Louis, Missouri on July 16, 1918 and continued to support NASA even after his term such as his advocacy for Skylab and most especially the Space Shuttle.
