Authors:
- Offers a detailed and informative account of the final NASA pilot selections of the 1960s, who bridged the years from Apollo to Shuttle and beyond
- Places the early years and career achievements of astronauts in the context of a changing U. S. space program
- Contributes to the general understanding of the little-known Air Force’s MOL/Gemini classified project, which was canceled before flying a single mission
Part of the book series: Springer Praxis Books (PRAXIS)
Part of the book sub series: Space Exploration (SPACEE)
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Table of contents (11 chapters)
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Front Matter
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Back Matter
About this book
Resulting from the authors’ deep research into these two pre-Shuttle astronaut groups, many intriguing and untold stories behind the selection process are revealed in the book. The often extraordinary backgrounds and personal ambitions of these skilled pilots, chosen to continue NASA’s exploration and knowledge of the space frontier, are also examined.
In April 1966 NASA selected 19 pilot astronauts whose training was specifically targeted to the Apollo lunar landing missions and the Earth-orbiting Skylab space station. Three years later, following the sudden cancellation of the USAF’s highly classified Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) project, seven military astronauts were also co-opted into NASA’s space program.
This book represents the final chapter by the authors in the story of American astronaut selections prior to the era of the Space Shuttle. Through personal interviews and original NASA documentation, readers will also gain a true insight into a remarkable age of space travel as it unfolded in the late 1960s, and the men who flew those historic missions.
Authors and Affiliations
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Astronautical Historian, Astro Info Service Ltd, Halesowen, West Midlands, UK
David J. Shayler
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Bangor, Australia
Colin Burgess
About the authors
Colin Burgess’s first book, “The Diggers of Colditz” was published simultaneously in the U.K. and Australia in 1985. His next few books were on the Australian prisoner-of–war experience and then he turned his efforts to writing about his principal interest: human space exploration. Burgess has written a number of books on the subject for the University of Nebraska Press and Springer-Praxis. The books he has written or co-authored for Springer-Praxis are “NASA’s Scientist-Astronauts,” “Animals in Space,” “The First Soviet Cosmonaut Team,” and “Selecting the Mercury Seven.” His latest book for Springer-Praxis is “Moon Bound: Choosing and Preparing NASA’s Lunar Astronauts.” In the interim he has also worked as series editor and sometimes author for the Outward Odyssey set of 12 books on the social history of space exploration for the University of Nebraska Press.
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: The Last of NASA's Original Pilot Astronauts
Book Subtitle: Expanding the Space Frontier in the Late Sixties
Authors: David J. Shayler, Colin Burgess
Series Title: Springer Praxis Books
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51014-9
Publisher: Springer Cham
eBook Packages: Physics and Astronomy, Physics and Astronomy (R0)
Copyright Information: Springer International Publishing AG 2017
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-319-51012-5Published: 30 June 2017
eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-51014-9Published: 19 June 2017
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XXVIII, 427
Number of Illustrations: 29 b/w illustrations, 45 illustrations in colour
Topics: Aerospace Technology and Astronautics, Space Sciences (including Extraterrestrial Physics, Space Exploration and Astronautics)