Wan Hu-the first man to fly by rocket.
Rockets are modern vehicles for launching satellites and spaceships, which were first invented by our ancestors. At first, it was only used to set off fireworks during the Spring Festival. By the13rd century, rockets were used as weapons of war and later introduced to Europe. The first person who thought of flying with rockets was the clever China people-ten thousand yuan households in the Ming Dynasty. /kloc-At the end of 0/4th century, 47 homemade rockets were tied to chairs by Ming literati, and they sat in chairs with big kites in their hands. Imagine using the thrust of a rocket and the power of a kite to fly. Unfortunately, the rocket exploded and thousands of families gave their lives for it. At present, only rockets can send people into space. According to this standard, the earliest manned space flight should be about 600 years ago. Western scholars research, Wan Hu is "the first person in the world who wants to fly by rocket", and thousands of families fly forward with the rising power of kites, which few people can think of. To commemorate thousands of families, a crater on the moon was named after this ancient China man.
After that, real rockets began to be developed.
Robert Doddard, the earliest inventor of rocket engine in the United States, is recognized as the father of modern rocket technology.
Goddard was born in Massachusetts, USA. He started the theoretical study of rocket dynamics from 1909. Three years later, he ignited a solid fuel rocket in a vacuum glass container, which proved that the rocket could work in a vacuum. He began to study liquid rockets from 1920, and successfully launched the world's first liquid rocket at Ward Farm in Massachusetts in March 16.
American Goddard yearned for a trip to Mars when 17 years old. Ten years later, Goddard realized that the only means of transportation that could achieve this goal was the rocket. From then on, he decided to devote himself to the rocket cause. As a child, Goddard showed his special interest and ability in science fiction and machinery. At that time, he was often fascinated by Welsh science fiction, such as Star Wars, and Verne's From the Earth to the Moon. In his autobiography, he admitted that these novels greatly stimulated his enthusiasm and imagination. He thought these novels "completely captured my imagination. The wonderful and true psychological description of Wales makes things very vivid, and the possible ways it proposes to face miracles have always made me think. " After graduating from Worcester Institute of Technology at the age of 24, he entered Clark University to pursue a doctorate. Both institutions are in his hometown of Massachusetts. 19 1 1 year after receiving his doctorate, he stayed in school to teach. During this period, he realized that liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen were ideal rocket propellants, and in the following years, he was further convinced that his method would definitely send people into space. He proved for the first time in the laboratory that thrust can exist in a vacuum, and mathematically discussed the ratio of energy and thrust of various fuels, including liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, to their weight for the first time. Published a classic paper on 19 19:>, which initiated the era of space flight and human flight to other planets. He was the first person to use liquid fuels (liquid oxygen and gasoline) to develop rocket engines. 1925, a static test of liquid propellant rocket engine was carried out in a cabin next to his laboratory. 1926 successfully made the first flight of liquid rocket engine in the world. Goddard launched the first liquid rocket in human history on the snow-covered grassland in Auburn, Massachusetts. The rocket is about 3.4 meters long, weighs 4.6 kilograms when it is launched and weighs 2.6 kilograms in the air. The flight duration is about 2.5 seconds, the maximum altitude is 12.5 meters, and the flight distance is 56 meters. This is a great success, and its significance is just as Goddard said: "Yesterday's dream is indeed today's hope and will be tomorrow's reality."
Goddard launched another larger rocket in 1929. This rocket flies faster and higher than the first one. More importantly, it has a barometer, a thermometer and a camera to photograph the whole flight. This is the first rocket with instruments.
A liquid rocket launched by 1935 exceeded the speed of sound for the first time; In addition, we have also obtained the patent of the orbit changing device of rocket aircraft and the use of multi-stage rockets to improve the launch height, and developed rocket engine fuel pump, self-cooling rocket engine and other components. The small thrust rocket engine he designed is the prototype of a modern small rocket for landing on the moon, and it was successfully launched to a height of about 2 kilometers. He has obtained 2 14 patents.
Goddard's research is extremely short of funds, and the critical media has not spared this rigorous professor. Journalists in The New York Times laughed at him for not knowing the basic knowledge of physics in high school, but dreaming of traveling to the moon all day. They called Goddard "the Moon Man". The public around the press also expressed doubts and incomprehension about the scientist's work, but none of these could shake the tenacious Goddard. The best way is to go his own way, continue his own research, and remain silent about the public's reaction, because he knows very well that this sarcasm will not last long.
The attention of the press is focused on him again, at least this time with some praise. Unexpectedly, the newspaper report caught the attention of Lin Bai, one of the pioneers of American aviation. After personally checking Goddard's experiments and plans, he immediately managed to raise $50,000 for Goddard from the Gegenheim Foundation. For Goddard, who is extremely short of funds and in urgent need of experimental design, it is really a timely help. At this time, Massachusetts' plan for Goddard was too crowded, so in 1930, his family and four assistants moved to Roswell, New Mexico, and set up his launch site. By 194 1, except for a short interruption, he was engaged in the most outstanding personal research project in the history of science and technology.
Goddard's research finally caught the attention of the government. After his death, his honor peaked. He was posthumously awarded the first Lewis Hill Space Medal, and a major NASA base was named Goddard Space Center after him.
Although Goddard successfully launched the world's first liquid rocket, it did not attract the attention and support of the American government at first, so by the time of his death, American rocket technology was still far behind Germany. It was not until 196 1 Soviet astronaut Gagarin died that the United States released all reports on Goddard's research on liquid rockets in the past 30 years. Later, he was called "the father of rockets" in the United States, and a space flight center of NASA was named "Goddard Space Research Center".
But his life is lonely and incomprehensible. The brave Goddard is fearless and has done a lot of work in theory and practice, showing those who doubt his vision that the whole space industry in the future will be based on rocket technology. Therefore, he deserves to be called "the father of modern rockets".
Goddard's life was bumpy and heroic. The reports, articles and a lot of notes he left behind are a great wealth. For his work, Wernher wernher von braun once commented: "In the history of rocket development, Dr. Goddard is unparalleled. In the design, construction and launch of the liquid rocket, he walked ahead of everyone, and it was the liquid rocket that paved the way for exploring space. When Goddard is completing his greatest work, we latecomers in the rocket and aerospace industries have just begun to learn to walk. "