Overview
- Summary
- A stunning investigation of the roots of the first moon landing forty years ago, this illuminating story of the dawn of the space age reaches back to the reactionary modernism of the Third Reich, using the life of "rocket scientist" Wernher von Braun as its narrative path through the crumbling of Weimar Germany and the rise of the Nazi regime. Von Braun, a blinkered opportunist who could apply only tunnel vision to his meteoric career, stands as an archetype of myriad twentieth century technologists who thrived under regimes of military secrecy and unlimited money. His seamless transformation from developer of the deadly V2 ballistic missile for Hitler to an American celebrity as the supposed genius behind the golden years of the U.S. space program in the 1950s and 1960s raises haunting questions about the culture of the Cold War, the shared values of technology in totalitarian and democratic societies, and the imperatives of material progress.
- Format
- Book
- Published
- New York : W.W. Norton, [2009]
©2009 - Locale
- Germany
United States - Edition
- First edition
- Contents
-
A junker's life
Memories of deeat
"Highly technological romanticism"
An heir of credibility
Childhood's end
"Fingers in the pie"
Supreme zeal
Grand and horribly wrong
Depravity
" A psychologicsal block". - Notes
-
Includes bibliographical references pages 199-204) and index.
A junker's life -- Memories of deeat -- "Highly technological romanticism" -- An heir of credibility -- Childhood's end -- "Fingers in the pie" -- Supreme zeal -- Grand and horribly wrong -- Depravity -- " A psychologicsal block".
Physical Details
- Language
- English
- ISBN
- 0393059103
9780393059106 - Physical Description
- xiv, 220 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm
Keywords & Subjects
- Subjects
- Rocketry--Germany--Biography. Rocketry--United States--Biography. World War, 1939-1945--Science. Space race--United States--History--20th century. Astronautics--United States--Biography. Astronautics--Moral and ethical aspects. Cold War. Germany--Politics and government--1933-1945. Biographies. Von Braun, Wernher,--1912-1977.
- Record last modified:
- 2024-06-21 18:43:00
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/bib210440
Additional Resources
Librarian ViewDownload & Licensing
- Terms of Use
- This record is not digitized and cannot be downloaded online.
In-Person Research
- Requires Research Visit
- Plan a Research Visit
- Check Nearby Libraries
-
Request in Shapell Center Reading Room
Bowie, MD
