Today in History – July 29, 1958 – NASA is established. Before the launch of Sputnik, the United States felt confident in its position on space technology. The modern liquid fueled rocket had been invented in America by Robert Goddard. In addition Wernher von Braun, the developer of the successful German V2 rocket was working for the US Army’s rocket program. The view in Washington was that the government should only develop purely military rockets and leave the rest to the private sector. Wernher von Braun was even discouraged from developing rockets that could carry satellites. That all changed when the Soviet Union launch Sputnik on October 4, 1957. The United States had clearly lost its edge in space technology and it was decided that a new federal agency should be established for non-military space programs.

On July 29, 1958 President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act, establishing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Eilene Galloway was instrumental in drafting the legislation and and making the case for its emphasis on international collaboration and peaceful exploration.

Many parts of the Naval Research Laboratory and the Army Ballistic Missile Agency were incorporated into NASA at its start, including the participation of Wernher von Braun. NASA quickly ramped up its human space flight program resulting in the launch of the first American in space on May 5, 1961, and the first American in orbit on February 20, 1962. One of NASA’s largest accomplishments was just seven years later with the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969. During this short amount of time NASA helped America regain its confidence as a leader in space flight.

For more information, see the Engineering Pathway’s related resources on NASA. Or visit the Aerospace Engineering Education community site.

Today in History – July 20, 1969 – Armstrong and Aldrin walked on the moon, fulfilling President Kennedy’s challenge to put a “man” on the moon before the end of the decade. With a tight development and execution schedule, any number of things could have gone wrong. Instead, the major flaw, from the public’s knowledge,  was when there was some question about Armstrong’s historic words. At 10:56 p.m. EDT, with more than half a billion people watching on television, Armstrong takes the first step on the moon. Armstrong maintains that he said:  “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.” The press heard and quoted: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Listen and decide for yourself.  Aldrin joined him soon after and collected rocks that are still of value today. He described the lunar surface as “magnificent desolation“.

The moon walk and the Apollo mission accomplishments validated to the nation the importance of U.S. leadership in space exploration and the formation of NASA as a separate agency to head these efforts. Before the launch of Sputnik, the United States felt confident in its position on space technology. The modern liquid fueled rocket had been invented in America by Robert Goddard. In addition Wernher von Braun, the developer of the successful German V2 rocket was working for the US Army’s rocket program. The view in Washington was that the government should only develop purely military rockets and leave the rest to the private sector. Wernher von Braun was even discouraged from developing rockets that could carry satellites. That all changed when the Soviet Union launch Sputnik on October 4, 1957. The United States had clearly lost its edge in space technology and it was decided that a new federal agency should be established for non-military space programs.

On July 29, 1958 President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act, establishing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Eilene Galloway was instrumental in drafting the legislation and and making the case for its emphasis on international collaboration and peaceful exploration.

Many parts of the Naval Research Laboratory and the Army Ballistic Missile Agency were incorporated into NASA at its start, including the participation of Wernher von Braun. NASA quickly ramped up its human space flight program resulting in the launch of the first American in space on May 5, 1961, and the first American in orbit on February 20, 1962. One of NASA’s largest accomplishments was just seven years later with the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969. During this short amount of time NASA helped America regain its confidence as a leader in space flight.

For more information, see the Engineering Pathway’s related resources on NASA. Or visit the Aerospace Engineering Education community site.

Today in history – July 12, 1872 -  Elijah McCoy created an invention that has made him arguably the most notable African American inventor ever. His birth date is still unknown although the date is speculated by many sources ranging from March 27, 1843 to May 2, 1844. His story would not have been possible if not for his parents. They were former slaves who fled from Kentucky to Canada by way of the Underground Railroad. Elijah one of 12 children would then be born in Colchester, Canada (interesting fact most the slaves that escaped via the Underground Railroad escaped to Canada). His father, George McCoy, enrolled in the British forces to help stop the Canadian leader Louis Riel’s launched rebellion in 1837. In appreciation of his military services, George McCoy was given 160 acres of land by the British. As a result of his father’s ties to Britain, at the age of 16 Elijah McCoy he was offered and accepted an apprenticeship in Mechanical Engineering in Edinburgh, Scotland. At the time he was awarded the apprenticeship, slavery in America had not yet been abolished. Thus, this opportunity wouldn’t have been possible if his family hadn’t escaped slavery in America. One can’t help but wonder how many other McCoy’s were unable to mature intellectually because of slavery?

In the story of Elijah McCoy it is important to remember the opportunities given to him were basically unheard of as far as African American’s had been concerned; he took full advantage of them. He earned credentials in Scotland being recognized as a master mechanic and engineer. Despite the accolades he received in Scotland, when he returned to the U.S post Civil War (slavery abolished) he was not able to receive a job in his field. Instead he became a locomotive fireman and oiler for the Michigan Central Railroad”. Although this was not in his field, this was seen as a responsible job and one of the highest an African American could receive at the time. The position required that he be responsible for “fueling the steam engine and [as] the oiler [he] lubricated the engine’s moving parts as well as the train’s axles and bearings.” . What his employers did not plan on was the fact that his credentials would help him see and solve problems that neither his co-workers nor superiors could. At that time trains needed to be periodically stopped in order to be lubricated. McCoy developed a lubricator for steam engines that allowed the train to be lubricated without stopping. This lubricator was duplicated by many but never matched the proficiency of McCoy’s invention. This is why he is referred to as the originator for his invention deemed the “The Real McCoy” a phrase that is still used today. He patented the invention on July 12, 1872 the “Locomotive Lubricator”. When we think about the importance of his invention we have to remember that there was no successful plane flight until 20 years later. So, the train was the only means for extensive travel within the Unites States and his lubricating system increased the distance trains could run without requiring stops.

McCoy didn’t stop at the “Locomotive Lubricator”; he obtained 58 patents in his life time, the most of any African American at that time. His hard work made substantial advancements in mechanical engineering and that is why he is being acknowledged today in history.

Interested readers are encouraged to visit the Engineering Pathway’s resources on African American scientists, engineers & inventors and our engineering diversity or our computing diversity websites.

Readers interested in inventions by African Americans may want to view the following blogs: Ice cream scoop invented (February 2), Birth of first self-made millionairess (December 23), John Hopkins hospital performs first open heart surgery (November 29), and Howard University founded in 1866 (November 20).

Today in History – July 6, 1997 – the Sojourner Rover (above), carried by the Pathfinder spacecraft, rolled onto the Mars’ surface. Click on the image above right to see a video of its initial positioning. Sojourner was designed as a six-wheeler that used a rocker-bogie suspension system; each wheel having its own drive motor, and the corner wheels also have independent steering motors.

Launched on December 4, 1996, Pathfinder impacted the surface of Mars earlier on July 4, 1997 at a velocity of  18 m/s (40 mph) and then bounced into the air 15 times at a maximum height of  15 meters (50 feet), before rolling and coming to rest  1 km from the initial impact site. The lander and landing site was named the Carl Sagan Memorial Station.  Pathfinder was designed, built and operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for NASA.

The project ended on March 10, 1998 when the lander failed to respond to communicate with controllers at JPL. The mission operated three times longer than its original 30-day planned lifetime.

The images from Pathfinder-Sojourner are spectacular, ranging from videos of Martian sunsets (click on image above left to see movie), data on the composition of the Martian rocks and the role of water on Mars. Quoting from a NASA press release of June 29, 1998:

The current assessment of data from this instrument suggests that all of the rocks studied by the rover resemble a type of volcanic rock with a high silicon content known on Earth as andesite, covered with a fine layer of dust. All of the rocks appear to be chemically far different from meteorites discovered. on Earth that are believed to have come from Mars.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s  currently active Mars rovers – twin rovers called Spirit and Opportunity – landed on January 4, 2004 and January 25, 2004, respectively. They were originally scheduled to operate for three months, but are now in their sixth year of hard work.  The rovers have set the longevity record for broadcasting to Earth from a distant planet.   Although  Spirit got stuck in sand, Opportunity has been traveling towards the Endeavour crater on Mars since August 2008.

The next Mars rover Curiosity is planned to launch in 2011 and will be a six-wheeler much like  Spirit, Opportunity and Sojourner. Unlike these earlier Mars rovers, however, Curiosity will also use its mobility system as a landing gear when rocket-powered down to the Martian surface on a tether in August 2012.

I was honored to have served on the Advisory Board for the Engineering Division at JPL and was impressed with their “faster, better, cheaper” approach to space exploration.

For more information, see the Engineering Pathway‘s resources on the Pathfinder mission, Mars rovers and space exploration. For related educational resources, visit the Aerospace Engineering Education, Engineering Mechanics Engineering Education, Computer Engineering Education or the Mechatronics Engineering Education Community sites.

Also on this date in 1885, Pasteur first tests rabies vaccination. See our related resources on viruses and vaccines. or visit our Biomedical Engineering Education community site.

Today in History – July 4, 1997 – Launched on December 4, 1996, Pathfinder impacted the surface of Mars on July 4, 1997 at a velocity of  18 m/s (40 mph) and then bounced into the air 15 times at a maximum height of  15 meters (50 feet), before rolling and coming to rest  1 km from the initial impact site. The lander and landing site was named the Carl Sagan Memorial Station.  Pathfinder was designed, built and operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for NASA. 

The Sojourner Rover (above left) carried by Pathfinder rolled onto the Mars’ surface two days later on July 6. Click on the image above right to see a video of its initial positioning.

The project ended on March 10, 1998 when the lander failed to respond to communicate with controllers at JPL. The mission operated three times longer than its original 30-day planned lifetime. I was honored to have served on the Advisory Board for the Engineering Division at JPL and was impressed with their “faster, better, cheaper” approach to space exploration.

The images from Pathfinder-Sojourner are spectacular, ranging from videos of Martian sunsets (click on image above left to see movie), data on the composition of the Martian rocks and the role of water on Mars. Quoting from a NASA press release of June 29, 1998:

The current assessment of data from this instrument suggests that all of the rocks studied by the rover resemble a type of volcanic rock with a high silicon content known on Earth as andesite, covered with a fine layer of dust. All of the rocks appear to be chemically far different from meteorites discovered. on Earth that are believed to have come from Mars.

Now take the quiz: What happened to the Pathfinder on Mars?  http://bit.ly/Pathfinderquiz

For more information, see the Engineering Pathway‘s resources on the Pathfinder mission and space exploration. For related educational resources, visit the Aerospace Engineering Education, Engineering Mechanics Engineering Education, Computer Engineering Education or the Mechatronics Engineering Education Community sites.

Today in History – June 29, 2007 -The first Apple iPhone is sold. The initial price tag of $600 limited sales to early adapters and Apple fans, of which there were many  (photo of waiting line upper left). The price was reduced to $400 soon afterwards and in 2008 the iPhone 3G at $200  released the flood gates of demand. Apple sold over 10 million iPhone 3G units worldwide within five months of its release.

Three years later there is competition from other vendors, but the release of Apple’s iPhone 4 sales still topped 1.7 million in a few days after its launch on June 24, 2010. “This is the most successful product launch in Apple’s history,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “Even so, we apologize to those customers who were turned away because we did not have enough supply.”

Photo caption (upper right): “Wearing iPhone placards on their heads, two Japanese customers show off their iPhone 4 at a mobile phone store in Tokyo on June 24. Hundreds of Apple fans braved sweltering humidity to form giant queues in an upscale Tokyo district in a race to be among the first in the world to get their hands on the latest iPhone.”

I do have an older iPhone and am still learning the features on this one. I think I’ll wait for more before I get an upgrade. I am reminded though of HP’s first pocket calculator, the HP35 released on February 1, 1972. I was an undergraduate engineering student and my parents bought me the next version, the HP45. I still carried both it and my slide rule around on my belt – really. Primates love our gadgets. Did you know that the the first ball point pen went on sale in 1945 at a price tag equivalent to $150 in today’s money? 8,000 people are reported to have swarmed a New York Department story to by them on the first day of sale.

For more information, see the Engineering Pathway’s resources on iPhones, smart phones and cell phones. For related educational resources, visit the Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Design, and Engineering Management education disciplinary communities.

Also on this date in 1995, the US Shuttle docks with the Russian Space Station. This is the first time in 20 years that American and Russian spacecraft have successfully docked in orbit.

Today in History – June 27, 1954 – First nuclear power plant begins operation. In the mid-1950′s, both the Soviet Union and western countries were exploring the non-military uses of the atom. However, even this non-military work was done in secret and not much was known about it in the West at the time. The Obninsk Power Plant in the USSR, was the world’s first nuclear power plant to generate electricity at 5 megawatts. Ordered by Stalin for nonmilitary purposes, this graphite-moderated and water-cooled reactor could be switched to plutonium production if needed.

Two years later in Calder Hall (England) and three years later in Shippingport two other power plants started operation.

On April 29, 2002, the Obninsk Nuclear Power Plant was decommissioned after 48 years of commercial operation.

See the Engineering Pathway’s educational resources on nuclear power. Or visit the Nuclear Engineering Education community site for more information.

Today in History – June 24, 1963 – First television video recorder is demonstrated. The Telcan was the first domestic “TV recorder”. The Nottingham Electric Valve Company developed a simple reel-to-reel system, using ordinary 1/4 inch audio tape that recorded linearly with stationary heads. It could only manage a maximum of 20 minutes of low-resolution black and white recordings, though the tape could be turned over to get about 40 minutes per spool.

The Telcan went on sale in 1963 and was mainly sold as a kit, for $60 [2005: $840]. Unfortunately, the kits only appealed to technically competant buyers with money. It never captured the imagination of the general buyer and low sales caused the product to fail in the market. It is reported that only two Telcan machines are known to exist today – one in San Francisco, the other in the Wollaton Hall industrial museum in Nottingham.

Another factor in the Telcan’s demise might have been that it was restricted to black and white for programs of any length. A decade earlier the color television was catching the public’s attention and was being sold at a reasonable price and didn’t require putting it together as a kit. If you had the money, which new technology innovation would you pick?

On March 25, 1954, RCA began mass production of the model CT-100 color television. The cost of the set was $1,000 – not much less than a new car! Unsurprisingly, it took some time for color television to catch on. Not until 1966 did a network (NBC) broadcast all of its programming in color, and color television sales did not exceed black and white sales until 1972.

Initial quality of color television receivers was low: the picture was small (the CT-100 had a 12-inch screen) and the images were not very bright. Advances in technology such as the transistor and integrated circuits led to improvements in size, power consumption, and image quality. In recent years, the very standard underlying color television has been subject to intense debate, as high-definition digital television comes to the fore.

For additional information on the history of television see: FCC website, IEEE History Center or view my earlier March 25th blog on RCA’s production of the first color television set.

Check out the Engineering Pathway’s educational resources on the television. For more educational resources, see our electrical engineering education and computer engineering education community pages. The Engineering Pathway also hosts Engineering Education communities in all ABET-accredited disciplines.

Also on this date in 2009 was the launch of the first hybrid solar/natural gas power station. Check out the Engineering Pathway’s educational resources on solar power.

Today in History – June 12, 1979 -NASA’s Gossamer Albatross crosses the English Channel. The Gossamer Albatross aircraft was designed by Jack MacCready to fly long distances with a human pedaling pilot as the only source of power.  The historic June 12, 1979 flight across the English Channel was piloted by Bryan Allen, covering a distance of 22.25 statute miles (35.6 km) in 2 hours and 49 minutes.

A century earlier, John J. Montgomery makes first controlled “heavier than air” glider flight at Wheeler Hill, California. He sails a distance of 603 feet at an altitude of about fifteen feet. He continued to perfect the design by making and testing modifications. In 1894, he published a summary of this work in Octave Chanute’s “Progress in Flying”; a book that the Wright Brothers are reported to have read. Montgomery was the first person to use the term “aeroplane” and was granted the first “aeroplane” patent in 1906. Montgomery died  testing one of his powered designs for Vicor Loughead (later Lockheed) in 1911. Norman Ward reconstructed the 1883 Montgomery Glider shown in the photograph above right.

In 1977, Paul MacCready’s Gossamer Condor was the first human powered flight around a figure eight. MacCready and his team won the $50,000 Kremer Prize and captured the world’s attention. Bryan Allen maintained a head-height during the 7 1/2 minute figure eight flight.

British millionaire Henry Kremer and the Royal Aeronautical Society offered the Kremer Prize to the “designer who could create a human-powered flying machine”. After 18 years of no winners,  MacCready’s Gossamer Condor made history in 1977 when it became the first human-powered vehicle to achieve a sustained flight, performing a complex maneuver.

The Gossamer Condor is now on display at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum. MacCready went on to win a number of other flight firsts and also developed the solar-powered Sunraycer that competed in a race across Australia. His 1990 electric car, built in collaboration with General Motors, resulted in the Impact electric car that could accelerate from zero to 60 mph in eight seconds.

For more information, see the Engineering Pathway’s resources on John Montgomery, Paul MacCready, Gossamer Condor and gliders. Or view curricular resources at the Aerospace Engineering Education Community site.

Today in History – May 30, 1932 – Amelia Earhart is first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. She was one of the most famous women aviators in history. Earhart worked as a nurse’s aide in a military hospital in Canada during WWI and became a social worker after attending college. She took her first flying lesson on January 3, 1921, and managed to save enough money to buy her first plane soon afterwards. Although not an engineer, Amelia Earhart inspired many of us to go into engineering and to appreciate cutting-edge technologies. Although Amelia Earhart lived in a time when women were rarely associated with technology, she distinguished herself by bettering both women’s and men’s aviation records.

Check out the Engineering Pathway‘s many educational resources on women in engineering, women in information technology, women inventors and gender equity. One of my favorite resources is FairerScience, with practical advice on how to develop gender equitable classrooms and practices in math, science and engineering.

For a more indepth analysis of the issues associated with gender equity in our faculties and recommended solutions, read our “most commented” resource – the National Academies’ Beyond Bias and Barriers report. My editorial on the report was published in ASEE Prism, November 2006, vol. 16 (3). We’d love to hear your comments and suggestions as well.

Also on this date in history in 1898, Krypton is discovered.