Harold Finger
Encyclopedia
Harold Benjamin Finger is an aeronautical nuclear engineer and the former head of the United States nuclear rocket program. He helped establish and lead the Space Nuclear Propulsion Office
, a liaison organization between NASA
and the Department of Energy
to coordinate efforts to create a nuclear thermal rocket
.
Space Nuclear Propulsion Office
The United States Space Nuclear Propulsion Office was created in 1961 in response to NASA Marshall Space Flight Center's desire to explore the use of nuclear thermal rockets created by Project Rover in NASA space exploration activities...
, a liaison organization between NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
and the Department of Energy
United States Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
to coordinate efforts to create a nuclear thermal rocket
Nuclear thermal rocket
In a nuclear thermal rocket a working fluid, usually liquid hydrogen, is heated to a high temperature in a nuclear reactor, and then expands through a rocket nozzle to create thrust. In this kind of thermal rocket, the nuclear reactor's energy replaces the chemical energy of the propellant's...
.
External links
- http://anstd.ans.org/NETS2011/Documents/Presentations/Finger.pdf Harold Finger short resume at the Aerospace Nuclear Science and Technology section page of the American Nuclear Society website
- http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/history/oral.../FingerHB/FingerHB_5-16-02.pdf Interview with Harold Finger at the NASA Oral History Project