While next month’s Quick-Goethert lecturer
qualifies as a “rocket scientist,” he says his talk at The
University of Tennessee Space Institute will be “down to Earth”
and not aimed specifically at scientists.
“We know that there are clear-cut solutions to all of the
difficulties we face in attempting to live together on this
unique planet,” Dr. Gary A. Flandro says, and he is eager to
discuss some of these with the general public, especially young
people.
Dr. John E. Caruthers echoed this assessment as he invited the
public to Dr. Gary A. Flandro’s free lecture at 4 p.m. Oct. 20
in UTSI’s auditorium.
“Gary is certainly a leading authority on the knotty issue of
rocket motor combustion instability, but he does a remarkable
job of cutting through technical jargon to explain highly
complicated issues in a simple and exciting way,” continued
Caruthers, associate vice president and chief operating officer
of the Institute.
“The general public, young and old, will find his lecture to be
stimulating, informative, and inspiring. I’d especially like to
see members of high school science classes in the audience.
Everyone is invited to the lecture as well as to the banquet
that will follow. No reservations are required for the lecture,
but persons who plan to attend the banquet are asked to make
reservations no later than Oct. 10 by calling Dee Merriman,
(931) 393-7213.
Flandro, who has held UTSI’s Boling Chair of Excellence in Space
Propulsion since 1991, believes that a change from “merely
exploring space to actually utilizing it can lead to the
solution of many of our growth problems here on the earth.” To
accomplish this, he says, “We must first identify new and more
efficient pathways into space.”
He insists that “we must give up the notion that we are trapped
in the Earth’s gravity well and its atmospheric mantle. We can
no longer view this cradle of humanity as a closed system. Our
very survival depends on harnessing the energy and resources
that are available in abundance within our reach just outside
the atmosphere and nearby on the moon.
“Were we to find ways to access it, these resources could
readily provide the means to end all current troubles, wars, and
international turmoil that are linked to our dependence on
fossil fuels. Energy in the form of radiation from the sun can
be harvested and converted to electricity outside the atmosphere
– what we don’t yet have is a practical means for transferring
this energy to the earth’s surface.”
Flandro also believes that the average person will be able to
travel into space before long, and he promises to “explore a few
of the myriad paths that show greatest promise” in his lecture,
which he will give again in Germany next year.
The professor thinks private industry could be instrumental in
building a more efficient pathway into space than the current
approach of relying totally on the government. “Close scrutiny”
of the government’s venture into space shows that “much of the
money expended is used on endless studies and the design of
systems that never fly,” he says, “which is very wasteful and
frustrating.” By using good engineering, it “is possible for the
common man to fly in space,” Flandro says, and he thinks that
space travel will soon be a “recreational activity” as well as
means for exploiting energy and other resources.
As a Cal-Tech graduate student, Flandro charted the “Grand Tour”
of planets for Voyager, using his suggested application of
“gravity assist” method, which made the tour possible.
Professor Dr.-Ing. Wolfgang Alles, who holds the Chair of Flight
Dynamics at The Technical University of Aachen, will represent
that university for the lecture. The series was established in
1974 by the Aachen University and UTSI.
DR. GARY A. FLANDRO
Quick-Goethert Lecturer
Writer: Weldon Payne (931) 393-7222
wpayne@utsi.edu
