Wernher von Braun (1912-1977) was one of the most important rocket developers and champions of space exploration between the 1930s and 1970s. As a youth he became enamored with the possibilities of space exploration by reading the science fiction of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells, and from the science fact writings of Hermann Oberth, whose 1923 classic study, Die Rakete zu den Planetenräumen (By Rocket to Space), prompted young von Braun to master calculus and trigonometry so he could understand the physics of rocketry.
Von Braun came to the United States in September 1945 under contract with the U.S. Army Ordnance Corps as part of Operation Paperclip. He and his "rocket team" worked on rockets for the United States army. They were responsible for developing the Jupiter C Reentry Test Missile and launching the Free World’s first scientific earth satellite, Explorer 1. Von Braun also became one of the most prominent spokesmen of space exploration in the United States during the 1950s.
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