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33-458: The center is named after George M. Low , who was an administrator at NASA and President of the institute. With the support of Eastman Kodak , IBM , Colt Industries and General Electric , a proposal was made to New York Governor Hugh Carey to jointly sponsor a research and teaching center to promote industrial innovation. In July 1982, the State of New York agreed to use Rensselaer as the site for

66-561: A Christmas tree. On 29 March 2007, RPI graduate Anson Tripp committed suicide by jumping from the top of one of the stairwells after traveling to RPI from Massachusetts. Because of uncertainties surrounding the death, there was a full evacuation of the building and shutdown of all campus activities after his body was found. In August 2008, metal cables were installed in the center of the two main stairwells to prevent objects from falling, most likely in response to this event. Starting in early 2008, planning began on an exterior overhaul, replacing

99-711: A critical role in advocating for a lunar landing as NASA's long-term goal. He testified before Congress, spoke to the media, and presented at industry conferences on behalf of NASA. Low also formed the Low Committee in 1960, which produced a lunar landing feasibility study that played a role in John F. Kennedy 's decision to set a goal of landing humans on the Moon by the end of the 1960s. In February 1964, Low transferred to NASA's Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston, Texas , (now

132-794: A mathematician in an aerodynamics group. Low returned to RPI late in 1948 and received his Master of Science degree in aeronautical engineering in 1950. After completing his M.S. degree, Low joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) as an engineer at the Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory in Cleveland, Ohio , (later the Lewis Research Center and now the Glenn Research Center ). He worked as

165-552: A maximum of 853. Though development of this aircraft began in 1988 as a competitor to the 747, the A380 made its first test flight in April 2005. Some of the elements of aerospace engineering are: The basis of most of these elements lies in theoretical physics , such as fluid dynamics for aerodynamics or the equations of motion for flight dynamics . There is also a large empirical component. Historically, this empirical component

198-609: A significant part in the development of the Space Shuttle program, the Skylab program, and the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project . Rocket engineer Wernher von Braun blamed Low for what he felt was shabby treatment in the early 1970s while he was at NASA Headquarters. According to Bob Ward's 2005 biography, von Braun believed Low was jealous of his fame and that Low helped force von Braun's unhappy departure from

231-449: Is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft . It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is similar, but deals with the electronics side of aerospace engineering. "Aeronautical engineering" was the original term for the field. As flight technology advanced to include vehicles operating in outer space ,

264-625: The Antonov An-225 Mriya cargo aircraft commenced its first flight. It holds the records for the world's heaviest aircraft, heaviest airlifted cargo, and longest airlifted cargo of any aircraft in operational service. On October 25, 2007, the Airbus A380 made its maiden commercial flight from Singapore to Sydney, Australia. This aircraft was the first passenger plane to surpass the Boeing 747 in terms of passenger capacity, with

297-559: The Boeing 747 made its first commercial flight from New York to London. This aircraft made history and became known as the "Jumbo Jet" or "Whale" due to its ability to hold up to 480 passengers. Another significant development came in 1976, with the development of the first passenger supersonic aircraft, the Concorde . The development of this aircraft was agreed upon by the French and British on November 29, 1962. On December 21, 1988,

330-594: The Curtiss JN 4 , Farman F.60 Goliath , and Fokker Trimotor . Notable military airplanes of this period include the Mitsubishi A6M Zero , Supermarine Spitfire and Messerschmitt Bf 109 from Japan, United Kingdom, and Germany respectively. A significant development came with the first operational Jet engine -powered airplane, the Messerschmitt Me 262 which entered service in 1944 towards

363-724: The Johnson Space Center ) and served as Deputy Center Director. In April 1967, following the Apollo 1 fire, he was named manager of the Apollo Spacecraft Program Office (ASPO), where he was responsible for directing the changes to the Apollo spacecraft necessary to make it flightworthy. In this role he led the use of FMEA, or failure mode and effects analysis , to rigorously define the possible risks in human space flight. Low also created and chaired

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396-556: The Rensselaer Technology Park . The New York State Center for Industrial Innovation was renamed the George M. Low Center for Industrial Innovation by RPI shortly after his death. In 1949, Low married Mary Ruth McNamara of Troy, New York . Between 1952 and 1963, they had five children: Mark S., Diane E., George David , John M., and Nancy A. His son David became an astronaut for NASA in 1985, flew three times on

429-636: The first American satellite on January 31, 1958. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration was founded in 1958 after the Sputnik crisis . In 1969, Apollo 11 , the first human space mission to the Moon , took place. It saw three astronauts enter orbit around the Moon, with two, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin , visiting the lunar surface. The third astronaut, Michael Collins , stayed in orbit to rendezvous with Armstrong and Aldrin after their visit. An important innovation came on January 30, 1970, when

462-735: The Configuration Control Board, which had as its purpose to monitor technical changes that could inadvertently affect some other part of the complex Apollo system, thereby helping assure future mission safety. Flight Director Glynn Lunney praised Low's leadership, and his contributions helped return the Apollo project schedule to the promised date for the Moon landing. George Low became NASA deputy administrator in December 1969, serving with Administrators Thomas O. Paine and James C. Fletcher . He served as acting administrator after Paine's resignation. In these roles, Low played

495-731: The Low family bequeathed all of Low's awards and memorabilia to the institute, where they are housed in the George M. Low Gallery, a museum on the fourth floor, which is a tribute to George Low, NASA, and the engineers of the Apollo program . It is designed to appear like outer space; darkness contrasts with the lit exhibits, and pictures of astronauts and space are backlit from the outside. 42°43′45″N 73°40′43″W  /  42.72917°N 73.67861°W  / 42.72917; -73.67861 George M. Low George Michael Low (born Georg Michael Löw , June 10, 1926 – July 17, 1984)

528-625: The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, or NACA. It was the first government-sponsored organization to support aviation research. Though intended as an advisory board upon inception, the Langley Aeronautical Laboratory became its first sponsored research and testing facility in 1920. Between World Wars I and II, great leaps were made in the field, accelerated by the advent of mainstream civil aviation. Notable airplanes of this era include

561-677: The Space Shuttle, and died in 2008. On April 8, 1985, the White House announced that Low had been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his contributions to the fields of education and science. In the 1996 TV movie, Apollo 11 Low was played by Dennis Lipscomb . In the 1998 miniseries From the Earth to the Moon he was played by Holmes Osborne . Aeronautical engineering Aerospace engineering

594-1011: The United States. In 1943, Low graduated from Forest Hills High School in Forest Hills, New York , and entered Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), where he joined the Delta Phi fraternity . His college education was interrupted by the Second World War and from 1944 to 1946, he served in the United States Army . During his military service, he became a naturalized American citizen and legally changed his name to George Michael Low. After military service, Low returned to RPI and received his Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering in 1948. He then worked at Convair in Fort Worth, Texas , as

627-407: The aerospace industry. A background in chemistry, physics, computer science and mathematics is important for students pursuing an aerospace engineering degree. The term " rocket scientist " is sometimes used to describe a person of great intelligence since rocket science is seen as a practice requiring great mental ability, especially technically and mathematically. The term is used ironically in

660-456: The aviation pioneers around the late 19th to early 20th centuries, although the work of Sir George Cayley dates from the last decade of the 18th to the mid-19th century. One of the most important people in the history of aeronautics and a pioneer in aeronautical engineering, Cayley is credited as the first person to separate the forces of lift and drag , which affect any atmospheric flight vehicle. Early knowledge of aeronautical engineering

693-402: The broader term " aerospace engineering" has come into use. Aerospace engineering, particularly the astronautics branch, is often colloquially referred to as "rocket science". Flight vehicles are subjected to demanding conditions such as those caused by changes in atmospheric pressure and temperature , with structural loads applied upon vehicle components. Consequently, they are usually

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726-411: The design of World War I military aircraft. In 1914, Robert Goddard was granted two U.S. patents for rockets using solid fuel, liquid fuel, multiple propellant charges, and multi-stage designs. This would set the stage for future applications in multi-stage propulsion systems for outer space. On March 3, 1915, the U.S. Congress established the first aeronautical research administration, known then as

759-596: The end of the Second World War. The first definition of aerospace engineering appeared in February 1958, considering the Earth's atmosphere and outer space as a single realm, thereby encompassing both aircraft ( aero ) and spacecraft ( space ) under the newly coined term aerospace . In response to the USSR launching the first satellite, Sputnik , into space on October 4, 1957, U.S. aerospace engineers launched

792-615: The formation of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Low worked on a planning team to organize the new aerospace agency. Soon after NASA's formal organization in October 1958, Low transferred to the agency's headquarters in Washington, D.C., where he served as Chief of Manned Space Flight. In this capacity, he was closely involved in the planning of Projects Mercury , Gemini , and Apollo . Low played

825-573: The head of the Fluid Mechanics Section (1954–1956) and chief of the Special Projects Branch (1956–1958). Low specialized in experimental and theoretical research in the fields of heat transfer, boundary layer flows, and internal aerodynamics. In addition, he worked on such space technology problems as orbit calculations, reentry paths, and space rendezvous techniques. During the summer and autumn of 1958, preceding

858-725: The integration of all components that constitute an aerospace vehicle (subsystems including power, aerospace bearings , communications, thermal control , life support system , etc.) and its life cycle (design, temperature, pressure, radiation , velocity , lifetime ). Aerospace engineering may be studied at the advanced diploma , bachelor's , master's , and Ph.D. levels in aerospace engineering departments at many universities, and in mechanical engineering departments at others. A few departments offer degrees in space-focused astronautical engineering. Some institutions differentiate between aeronautical and astronautical engineering. Graduate degrees are offered in advanced or specialty areas for

891-445: The new center. Construction began during the summer of 1984, and the center was dedicated on May 14, 1987. The CII building is notorious for its tall, hollow center stairwells. In 1992 the self-declared Rensselaer Drop Squad spent most of a semester dropping a series of ever more bizarre items down the 7-story stairwell before they were eventually apprehended. The items included typewriters, 150 McDonald's hamburgers, tennis balls and

924-499: The products of various technological and engineering disciplines including aerodynamics , air propulsion , avionics , materials science , structural analysis and manufacturing . The interaction between these technologies is known as aerospace engineering. Because of the complexity and number of disciplines involved, aerospace engineering is carried out by teams of engineers, each having their own specialized area of expertise. The origin of aerospace engineering can be traced back to

957-470: The space agency. However, another biography by space historian Michael J. Neufeld disputed Low's involvement in von Braun's resignation. Low's biography by Richard Jurek also disputes this account, indicating Low's efforts to try to retain and engage von Braun in strategic planning in the early 1970s and being pleased with von Braun's work. Retiring from NASA in 1976, Low became president of RPI. He held that position until his death in 1984. He initiated

990-553: The vast network of faulty bricks that encase the building. Black tarp was placed around part of the building to prevent falling bricks from injuring people below. As of February 2011, work on the north wall of the central tower has been completed, with work beginning on the northern annex section of the building. The nine-story, 200,000 sq ft (19,000 m). building contains an underground high-bay, 10,000-square-foot (930 m) class 100 clean room , ninety laboratories, ten conference rooms and many offices. Upon his death,

1023-718: Was an administrator at NASA and the 14th president of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute . Low was one of the senior NASA officials who made decisions as manager of the Apollo Spacecraft Program Office in the Apollo program of crewed missions to the Moon. Low was born near Vienna , Austria , to Artur and Gertrude Löw (née Burger), who had a prosperous manufacturing business, and was educated in private schools in Switzerland and England . His father died in 1934. When Nazi Germany occupied Austria in 1938, Low's family—being Jewish —emigrated to

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1056-441: Was derived from testing of scale models and prototypes, either in wind tunnels or in the free atmosphere. More recently, advances in computing have enabled the use of computational fluid dynamics to simulate the behavior of the fluid, reducing time and expense spent on wind-tunnel testing. Those studying hydrodynamics or hydroacoustics often obtain degrees in aerospace engineering. Additionally, aerospace engineering addresses

1089-467: Was largely empirical, with some concepts and skills imported from other branches of engineering. Some key elements, like fluid dynamics , were understood by 18th-century scientists. In December 1903, the Wright Brothers performed the first sustained, controlled flight of a powered, heavier-than-air aircraft, lasting 12 seconds. The 1910s saw the development of aeronautical engineering through

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