The Rocket Lab

Maurice Zucrow, Purdue University, and America’s Race to Space

Michael G. Smith

• Publisher: Purdue University Press
• Year: 2023
• Print ISBN: 9781612498416, 9781612498409
• eBook ISBN: 9781612498423
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Science & Technology Biographies
• Index: Technology & Engineering

The Rocket Lab: Maurice Zucrow, Purdue University, and America's Race to Space focuses on the golden era of space exploration between 1946 and 1966, specifically the life and times of Purdue University's Dr. Maurice J. Zucrow, a pioneering teacher and researcher in aerospace engineering. Zucrow taught America's first university course in jet and rocket propulsion, wrote the field's first textbook, and established the country's first educational Rocket Lab. He was part of a small circle of innovators who transformed Purdue into the country's largest engineering university, which became a cradle of astronauts. Taking a chronological and thematic approach, The Rocket Lab weaves between the local and national, drawing in rival universities, especially Harvard, MIT, Princeton, and Caltech. Also covered is Zucrow's role in the national project system of research and development through World War II and the Cold War. At Aerojet, he was one of the country's original project engineers, dedicated to scientific-technical expertise and the stepwise approach. He made vanguard power plant contributions to the Northrop Flying Wing, as well as the Corporal, Nike, and Atlas missiles, among others. Zucrow's work in propulsion helped to improve the country's arsenal of ballistic missiles and space launchers, and as a teacher, he educated the first generation of aerospace engineers. This book elevates Zucrow and the central role he played in getting the United States to space.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Abbreviations
• Introduction: A Study in Professional Biography
• 1. Moishe Zucrow: An Emigrant’s Life
• 2. Prime Movers: Purdue University and Its Power Plants
• 3. Research and Development: American Rockets for War
• 4. Jet Propulsion: The New Science of Rocket Engines
• 5. Project State: Guided Missiles for the Cold War
• 6. Satellite Visions: The Dilemmas of Space Exploration
• 7. Rocket Lab: Doc Zucrow and His Boys
• 8. Moon Race: Purdue’s Pathways to Outer Space
• Epilogue: The Enduring Life of a Consultant
• Appendix 1: Zucrow PhD Students (as of 1965), With Graduation Dates and Positions
• Appendix 2: Career Paths and Contributions of Select Zucrow Students
• Appendix 3: Purdue Rocket Laboratory Courses Between 1946 and 1971
• Notes
• Archival Sources
• Index
• About the Author