[018] Two tanks for pressure-operated rocket, Winter 1926

Photographer

Esther C. Goddard

Preview

Description

This photograph was incorrectly dated by Esther Goddard. She lists this as "two tanks for pressure-operated rocket, December 6, 1925". While the description is accurate, the date does not fit. December 6, 1925 marked the first time in which a liquid propelled rocket operated satisfactorily and lifted its own weight. This test used the pumps, engines, and other moving parts that Robert Goddard had spent years working with. The rocket for this test did not produce pressure via supply tanks as seen here.

In fact, this December 6, 1925 test, in Goddard's words, "demonstrated that the problems of pumping, governing, and control of heating were solved, but it also showed that a rocket on so small a scale as this model would not lift itself sufficiently to give a flight, including, as it did, devices which would not be necessary in a larger rocket". It was following this test that the pumps were finally discarded in favor of a pressure-fed system like the one seen in this photograph in order to reduce the rocket's weight to a minimum. A few months later, on March 16, 1926, Goddard completed the world's first successful liquid-fueled rocket launch.

In his "Report on the Development of a Liquid Propelled Rocket", Goddard provides photographs of every newly developed part and/or component; he did not take photographs of every minor adjustment or iteration made (for example the many variances of width, diameter, thickness and length of various materials). The pressure tanks seen here, which would eventually hold gasoline and liquid oxygen, represent what the tanks would look like for the landmark March 16, 1926 rocket launch. Every photograph of a rocket component that aligns with the March 16, 1926 launch has been included in the March 16, 1926: The First Liquid-Propellant Rocket Launch series. These photographs make up the closest and most granular visual evidence of the March 16, 1926 rocket's construction.

'The Goddard Rocket Researches: A Photographic Record' is an annotated photo album covering Robert H. Goddard's work and experimentation with rocketry. It was assembled and curated by Esther Goddard sometime after her husband's passing in 1945. Additionally, almost all of the photographs were taken by Esther herself.

Photographs were scanned at 400dpi.

Date Taken

Winter 1926

Type

image

Genre

photograph

Format

jpg

Keywords

Robert Goddard, rocketry, liquid-propellant rocket, Clark University

Recommended Citation

Goddard, Esther C., "[018] Two tanks for pressure-operated rocket, Winter 1926" (1926). The Goddard Rocket Researches: A Photographic Record [Individual Photographs]. 20.
https://commons.clarku.edu/goddardphotographs/20

Rights

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