The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copyrighted by BookRags, Inc.
Aeronautical Engineer, Physicist, and Author 1917-1984
Krafft A. Ehricke was a rocket pioneer and visionary who made significant contributions to the technology and philosophical basis of space development. Ehricke was born in 1917 in Berlin, Germany. At the age of twelve he founded a rocket society, and he later studied celestial mechanics and nuclear physics at Berlin Technical University. During World War II, Ehricke became a key member of the Peenemuende rocket development team, specializing in the propulsion system for the V-2 rocket. At Peenemuende, he also worked on future space projects and developed theories on human space operations and nuclear propulsion.
After immigrating to the United States in 1947, Ehricke worked for the U.S. Army Ordnance Department, where he pursued the development of ballistic missiles and space vehicles. In the 1950s he joined the General Dynamics Astronautics Division, where he helped develop the Atlas rocket and the Centaur upper stage. Many early U.S. planetary probes were launched using the Centaur, which was the first liquid hydrogen-propelled vehicle. In the 1970s Ehricke led advanced studies at Rockwell International on the use of space for the benefit of humankind and refined ideas for interplanetary travel, manufacturing facilities in space, and mining on the Moon and the other planets. He is remembered for saying, "If God meant us to explore space, he would have given us a moon."
Ehricke died in 1984. He was survived by his wife and three daughters, who founded the nonprofit Krafft A. Ehricke Institute for Space Development in 1985.
Careers in Rocketry (Volume 1);; Moon (Volume 2);; Rockets (Volume 3);; Vehicles (Volume 4);; Von Braun, Wernher (Volume 3).
Ordway, Frederick I., and Mitchell R. Sharpe. The Rocket Team. New York: Crowell,1979.