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}} Wernher Magnus Maximilian, Freiherr von Braun (March 23, 1912 – June 16, 1977) was a German (and later American) aerospace engineer and space architect credited with inventing the V-2 rocket for Nazi Germany and the Saturn V for the United States.〔(Werner von Braun: History's Most Controversial Figure? ), Al Jazeera〕〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=SP-4206 Stages to Saturn, Chapter 9 )〕 He was one of the leading figures in the development of rocket technology in Nazi Germany, where he was a member of the Nazi Party and the SS. Following World War II he, as well as about 1500 other scientists, technicians, and engineers, were moved to the United States as part of Operation Paperclip, where he developed the rockets that launched America's first space satellite and first series of moon missions. In his twenties and early thirties, von Braun worked in Germany's rocket development program, where he helped design and develop the V-2 rocket at Peenemünde during World War II. Following the war, Von Braun worked for the United States Army on an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) program before his group was assimilated into NASA. Under NASA, he served as director of the newly formed Marshall Space Flight Center and as the chief architect of the Saturn V launch vehicle, the superbooster that propelled the Apollo spacecraft to the Moon.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://history.msfc.nasa.gov/vonbraun/bio.html )〕 According to NASA, he is, "without doubt, the greatest rocket scientist in history", as well as the "Father of Rocket Science".〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Wernher von Braun: Feature Articles )〕 In 1975 he received the National Medal of Science. He continued insisting on the human mission to Mars throughout his life. == Early life == He was born in Wirstiz, in the province of Posen on March 23, 1912, which is Wyrzysk in Poland, part of Prussia and the German Empire. He was the second of three sons. He belonged to a noble family, inheriting the German title of ''Freiherr'' (equivalent to Baron). His father, conservative civil servant Magnus Freiherr von Braun (1878–1972), served as a Minister of Agriculture in the Reich Cabinet during the Weimar Republic. His mother, Emmy von Quistorp (1886–1959), could trace her ancestry through both parents to medieval European royalty and was a descendant of Philip III of France, Valdemar I of Denmark, Robert III of Scotland, and Edward III of England.〔("Von Braun, Wernher" ), Erratik Institut. Retrieved 4 February 2011〕〔("Dr. Wernher von Braun'i mälestuseks" ), Füüsikainstituut. Retrieved 4 February 2011〕 Von Braun had an older brother, Sigismund, and a younger brother, also named Magnus.〔 After Wernher von Braun's Lutheran confirmation, his mother gave him a telescope, and he developed a passion for astronomy. The family moved to Berlin in 1915 where his father worked at the Ministry of the Interior.〔Magnus Freiherr von Braun, ''Von Ostpreußen bis Texas. Erlebnisse und zeitgeschichtliche Betrachtungen eines Ostdeutschen''. Stollhamm 1955〕 Here 12-year-old Wernher von Braun, inspired by speed records established by Max Valier and Fritz von Opel in rocket-propelled cars,〔 caused a major disruption in a crowded street by detonating a toy wagon to which he had attached a number of fireworks. He was taken into custody by the local police until his father came to collect him. Wernher von Braun was an accomplished amateur pianist who could play Beethoven and Bach from memory. He learned to play both the cello and the piano at an early age and at one time wanted to become a composer. He took lessons from the composer Paul Hindemith. The few pieces of von Braun’s youthful compositions that exist are reminiscent of Hindemith’s style. Beginning in 1925, von Braun attended a boarding school at Ettersburg Castle near Weimar, where he did not do well in physics and mathematics. There he acquired a copy of ''Die Rakete zu den Planetenräumen'' (1923) ("By Rocket into Planetary Space") (in German) by rocket pioneer Hermann Oberth. In 1928, his parents moved him to the Hermann-Lietz-Internat (also a residential school) on the East Frisian North Sea island of Spiekeroog. Space travel had always fascinated von Braun, and from then on he applied himself to physics and mathematics to pursue his interest in rocket engineering. In 1930, he attended the Technische Hochschule Berlin, where he joined the ''Verein für Raumschiffahrt'' (VfR, the "Spaceflight Society") and assisted Willy Ley in his liquid-fueled rocket motor tests in conjunction with Hermann Oberth.〔Various sources such as (The Nazi Rocketeers ) (ISBN 0811733874 pp 5–8) list the young Wernher von Braun as joining the VfR as an apprentice to Willy Ley, one of the three founders. Later when Ley fled Germany because he was a Jew, von Braun took over the leadership of the ''Verein'' and changed its activity to military development.〕 In spring 1932, he graduated from the Technische Hochschule Berlin, with a Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Wernher von Braun biography )〕 His early exposure to rocketry convinced him that the exploration of space would require far more than applications of the current engineering technology. Wanting to learn more about physics, chemistry, and astronomy, von Braun entered the Friedrich-Wilhelm University of Berlin for post-graduate studies and graduated with a D. Phil. degree in physics in 1934.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Early Experiences in Rocketry as Told by Werner Von Braun 1963 )〕 He also studied at ETH Zürich. Although he worked mainly on military rockets in his later years there, space travel remained his primary interest. In 1930, von Braun attended a presentation given by Auguste Piccard. After the talk the young student approached the famous pioneer of high-altitude balloon flight, and stated to him: "You know, I plan on traveling to the Moon at some time." Piccard is said to have responded with encouraging words.〔As related by Auguste's son Jacques Piccard to fellow deep-sea explorer Hans Fricke, cited in: Fricke H. ''Der Fisch, der aus der Urzeit kam'', pp. 23–24. Deutscher Taschenbuch-Verlag, 2010. ISBN 978-3-423-34616-0 (in German)〕 He was greatly influenced by Oberth, of whom he said: 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「Wernher von Braun」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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