Konrad Dannenberg
Konrad Dannenberg (born August 5, 1912 in Weißenfels , Province of Saxony , German Empire ; † February 16, 2009 in Huntsville (Alabama) , United States ) was a rocket pioneer. He was an employee of Walter Thiel at the Peenemünde Army Research Institute . In 1945 he came to the USA with Wernher von Braun and later became deputy head of the development program for the Saturn V rocket at NASA .
Life
Konrad Dannenberg's interest in space travel was stimulated in his youth by a lecture by Max Valier . After graduating from Lutherschule , he studied mechanical engineering at the Technical University of Hanover , where he dealt with drive technology, among other things .
In 1931 Dannenberg became a member of the Society for Rocket Research - Group Hanover (GEFRA) under Albert Püllenberg . He built diesel-powered rocket engines from bicycle frames.
Dannenberg joined the NSDAP as early as 1932 . From 1939 to 1940 he was a soldier, first with a horse artillery unit in the Czech Republic. Before the start of the western campaign , he was transferred to the Franco-German border.
In the spring of 1940, thanks to Püllenberg's mediation, he was brought to Walter Thiel's engine team at the Army Research Institute in Peenemünde. There he worked in particular on the propulsion of the A4 rocket . On the photo you can see the injection nozzle he helped develop (18 pieces in total) of the "25 t rocket furnace" ( rocket engine with 25 t thrust).
After Thiel's death in the air raid on the night of August 17-18, 1943 ( Operation Hydra ), all further developments were stopped. Dannenberg became Walther Riedel's (Riedel III) deputy.
As part of Operation Overcast , he moved to the USA in 1945 together with Wernher von Braun and 117 other employees, first to Fort Bliss, Texas , and later to Huntsville . In the USA, the first task of the scientists for the US Army was to develop the Redstone rocket. Dannenberg was responsible for sourcing the rocket motors for the Redstone and Jupiter medium-range missiles .
He received US citizenship in 1954 . In 1958 NASA was founded, and Dannenberg now worked for NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville. In 1960 von Braun appointed him deputy head of development for the Saturn rocket program. He was involved in the construction of the "moon rocket" Saturn V for the Apollo program .
He retired in 1973 and received the NASA Extraordinary Medal of Merit. But even in retirement he remained connected to space travel and became an associate professor for space technology at the Space Institute of the University of Tennessee in Tullahoma.
Dannenberg played a key role in setting up the "Space Camp" in Huntsville. It is a space technology educational institution primarily intended for students and teachers.
His big dream, which according to his own statements was the actual goal of the entire Peenemünde group around Wernher von Braun, to experience a manned flight to Mars , no longer came true.
Konrad Dannenberg was honored as follows on the occasion of his death:
"As mayor, and on behalf of the City of Huntsville, I'd like to express our sadness at the loss of a true pioneer. Konrad Dannenberg's leadership and vision lifted our city, our state and our country to heights that had never before been achieved. We will be forever reminded of his accomplishments every time we look to the sky and see the moon. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. "
Web links
- NASA: Biography (English)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Dannenberg, Konrad |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German-American engine specialist for the German missile weapons program |
| DATE OF BIRTH | August 5, 1912 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Weißenfels , Germany |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 16, 2009 |
| Place of death | Huntsville (Alabama) , Alabama, USA |