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  German rocket pioneer Konrad Dannenberg (1912-2009) (Page 1)

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Author Topic:   German rocket pioneer Konrad Dannenberg (1912-2009)
Robert Pearlman
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posted 02-16-2009 10:53 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
German-American rocket pioneer Konrad Dannenberg, who was among the engineers from Peenemünde chosen to travel to the U.S. to work on the American rocket program under the project name of "Operation Paperclip", passed away this morning, shares U.S. Space & Rocket Center curator Irene Willhite. He was 96.

Konrad Dannenberg in 2007 (Credit: The New York Times)

A 2006 NASA profile briefly described Dannenberg's role in space history:

Born in 1912 in Weissenfels, Germany, Dannenberg moved with his family to Hannover, Germany, where he earned his Master of Science degree in mechanical engineering from the Hannover Technical University.

Inspired by Austrian amateur rocketeer Max Valier, who advocated the use of rockets for space flight, and automobile engineer Fritz Von Opel, who built the world's first rocket-powered automobile engine in 1928, Dannenberg and his colleagues began building their own rockets.

Drafted by the German Army in the 1930s as a horseman, Dannenberg was eventually released from military duty because he was deemed unsuitable to ride horses. Because of his engineering background, Dannenberg was chosen to work at Peenemünde, which would become Germany's premier rocket development and test site.

His first job there was studying the injection system of rocket motors. In those days, igniting rocket engines posed a big problem because most blew up at the time of ignition. Dannenberg became a specialist and ultimately designed the mixing nozzles of a working combustion chamber.

Dannenberg worked alongside some of the rocketry greats like Wernher von Braun and Kurt Debus. In the closing days of World War II, Dannenberg was one of over one hundred engineers from Peenemünde chosen to travel to the U.S. to work on the American rocket program under the project name of "Operation Paperclip."

In January of 1947, Dannenberg and the other rocket engineers worked tirelessly at Fort Bliss, Texas, designing, building and testing rocketry systems. The test launches took place at the White Sands Proving Ground in New Mexico. Two of the last missiles were taken to Florida, where they were launched from an area now known as Cape Canaveral.

The Army relocated Dannenberg and a group of scientists to the Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, where they designed and developed the first large U.S. ballistic missile, the Redstone.

By 1960, Dannenberg was transferred to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville as deputy manager of the Saturn program. With President John F. Kennedy's pronouncement in 1961 to land a man on the moon before the end of the decade, Dannenberg developed the largest rocket ever built. He was ultimately awarded NASA's Exceptional Service Medal for his contributions.

Dannenberg retired from Marshall Space Flight Center in 1973 as deputy director of the Program Development Mission and Payload Planning Office and as International Space Station program manager for the then-fledgling project.

The U.S. Space & Rocket Center will host a memorial service for Dannenberg on Friday, February 20 at 2:00 p.m. at the Davidson Center for Space Exploration.

A moment of silence can be signified by an entry with no words and only a period.

Moonmichael
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Mr Meek
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SPACEFACTS
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Delta7
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bruce
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tegwilym
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posted 02-16-2009 11:49 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for tegwilym   Click Here to Email tegwilym     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Glad I had a chance to meet him at KSC in 2007.

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dom
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E2M Lem Man
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posted 02-16-2009 12:23 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for E2M Lem Man   Click Here to Email E2M Lem Man     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I had the honor of meeting Konrad at the SpaceShipOne X Prize flights in Mojave a few years ago, and again later in his beloved Huntsville, Alabama.

Always a gentleman - he talked with anyone about what he saw as Man's greatest accomplishment and what he believed in: Space Exploration.

Our hearts go out to his lovely wife.

J.M. Busby
Aerospace Legacy Foundation

Henk Boshuijer
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eurospace
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sikotic19
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Dot Cunningham
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Rest in Peace Konrad. Hugs and oodles of love Jackie. We're thinking of you.

Dot & Walt Cunningham

Moonwalker1954
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Daniel Lazecky
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Whizzospace
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posted 02-16-2009 03:15 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Whizzospace   Click Here to Email Whizzospace     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Jackie & family, our prayers are with you.

I had the honor of meeting him just two summers ago in Huntsville.

RIP.

KSCartist
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tncmaxq
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posted 02-16-2009 03:59 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for tncmaxq   Click Here to Email tncmaxq     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I met him at a gathering of NSS members prior to the launch of STS-83, which carried his friend Don Thomas. I am so sorry to hear of his passing.

Lou Chinal
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posted 02-16-2009 05:13 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Lou Chinal   Click Here to Email Lou Chinal     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I meet him several times, a true gentleman.

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Ken Havekotte
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posted 02-16-2009 05:42 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Ken Havekotte   Click Here to Email Ken Havekotte     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
To Jackie and family --

I am so sorry to hear of Konrad's passing! May he forever rest in peace high above all of us in space-heaven, so-to-speak!

I'll always remember with much admiration, great respect, and cherish the special friendship we had during our many visits together here on Florida's Space Coast, in my home, seeing the Cape together (especially in visiting some of the old launch pads), and the last lunch we had together at Kennedy Space Center with Art and Guenter near the VAB. Those are only a few of many more wonderful memories that I'll never forget in having the opportunity and unique privilege in knowing Konrad (and Jackie).

He will be missed very much.

ejectr
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jasonelam
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dss65
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Kevin Carrico
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posted 02-16-2009 09:01 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Kevin Carrico   Click Here to Email Kevin Carrico     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Godspeed.

Richard Easton
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bcrussell
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Obviousman
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asdert
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Atlantis
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posted 02-17-2009 08:15 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Atlantis   Click Here to Email Atlantis     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Rest in peace Herr Danennberg.

I met him the Davidson Center last summer at the Apollo Saturn Reunion.

Robert Pearlman
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posted 02-17-2009 08:50 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Robert Pearlman   Click Here to Email Robert Pearlman     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Huntsville Times: Dannenberg a true space ambassador
Yes, Konrad Dannenberg played a huge role in creating the rocket that took man to the moon.

But he served an equally important function in motivating future engineers and astronauts as a lecturer at Space Camp for years after his retirement from NASA.

Dannenberg, who died Monday morning at the age of 96, gave immediate credibility to the program at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center when he signed on as an educator. He didn't just stand in a classroom and give children lessons on propulsion.

sts205cdr
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Rick Mulheirn
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ea757grrl
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lb206
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posted 02-17-2009 01:33 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for lb206   Click Here to Email lb206     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I am proud to have called Jackie and Konrad friends. Konrad will truly be missed. I was honored and lucky to have dinner with Konrad and his wife as well as the widows of several other VonBraun team members last July the day before the Apollo Saturn Reunion in Huntsville. It is a memory I will always treasure. God Speed Konrad.

lb206
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tncmaxq
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posted 02-17-2009 02:59 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for tncmaxq   Click Here to Email tncmaxq     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
If anyone has a mailing address for Jackie and can e-mail it to me, I would like to send her a card. Thanks.

Lunar rock nut
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saturn1b
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