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Astronomy Picture of the Day - Robert Goddard and Nell
NASA ^ | 28 Mar, 2026 | Image Credit: Esther Goddard, from the Clark University archive

Posted on 03/28/2026 12:32:41 PM PDT by MtnClimber

Explanation: Robert H. Goddard, considered the father of modern rocketry, was born in Worcester Massachusetts in 1882. As a 16 year old, Goddard read H.G. Wells' science fiction classic "War Of The Worlds" and dreamed of space flight. By 1926 he had designed, built, and flown the world's first liquid fuel rocket. Launched 100 years ago on March 16, 1926 from his aunt Effie's farm in Auburn Massachusetts, the rocket, dubbed "Nell," rose to an altitude of 41 feet in a flight that lasted about 2 1/2 seconds. In this posed photo, Goddard stands next to the 10 foot tall rocket, holding the launch stand frame. To achieve a stable flight without the need for fins, the rocket's heavy motor was located at the top, fed by lines from liquid oxygen and gasoline fuel tanks at the bottom. Widely recognized as a gifted experimenter and engineering genius, his rockets were many years ahead of their time. Goddard was awarded over 200 patents in rocket technology, most of them after his death in 1945. A liquid fuel rocket constructed on principles developed by Goddard landed humans on the Moon in 1969.


TOPICS: Astronomy; Astronomy Picture of the Day; Science
KEYWORDS: apod; nasa
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1 posted on 03/28/2026 12:32:41 PM PDT by MtnClimber
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To: MtnClimber

2 posted on 03/28/2026 12:33:04 PM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: 21stCenturion; 21twelve; 4everontheRight; A Navy Vet; A_perfect_lady; abb; AFB-XYZ; AFPhys; ...
Pinging the APOD list

🪐 🌟 🌌 🍔

3 posted on 03/28/2026 12:34:07 PM PDT by MtnClimber (For photos of scenery, wildlife and climbing, click on my screen name for my FR home page.)
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To: MtnClimber

I wanted to know if Goddard and vonBraun knew each other, and yes, they were friends.

https://www.famousscientists.org/robert-goddard/


4 posted on 03/28/2026 12:40:53 PM PDT by ryderann
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To: MtnClimber

Robert Goddard is about as clear an example of the scriptural snippet as you can get - A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, among his relatives, and in his own household. If Uncle Sugar had funded him, the US would have had ballistic missiles long before Germany. Of course, a missile program would have been a huge load for an already underfunded defense budget (1% of GDP) to carry.


5 posted on 03/28/2026 12:53:35 PM PDT by Zhang Fei (My dad had a Delta 88. That was a car. It was like driving your living room)
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To: MtnClimber

Goddard an Billy Mitchell are the fathers of modern warfare. The ballistic missile (Goddard), strategic bombing and the aircraft carrier (Mitchell) collectively obliterated the safety and security of international borders.


6 posted on 03/28/2026 1:07:15 PM PDT by Paal Gulli
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