The People Who Took Us To The Moon
This article is supplied by Raytheon
On May 25, 1961, President John F. Kennedy stood before a joint session of Congress and made a bold pledge:
"I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth," Kennedy said. "No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space."
This year marks the 45th anniversary of the 1969 landing on the moon and the realization of President Kennedy's dream. Raytheon products and engineers helped to get the Apollo lander there, and the company has remained a leader in space technologies ever since.
In the 1960s, Raytheon built the Apollo Guidance Computer. One of the world's first integrated circuit-based computers, it provided exceptional navigation capabilities with only minimal adjustments made by the astronauts.
Another Raytheon invention, the Amplitron microwave amplifier tube, was at the heart of the powerful transmitters used to send signals to Earth. The tube allowed millions of people to watch as astronaut Neil Armstrong stepped onto the dusty lunar surface.
Raytheon's 1969 Annual Report celebrated that moment: "Raytheon shared with the nation and the world the feelings of both awe and pride that followed man's first lunar landing. There was particular pride among the Raytheon people who produced the on-board guidance computer that performed so well all of the navigation computations required through the course of the complex and historic Apollo 11 mission."
The Apollo mission was only one of the contributions that Raytheon and the companies it acquired after 1969 have made – and continue to make. Raytheon devices have mapped the surface of Venus, explored Mars, captured detailed images of Earth at night and day and enhanced satellite communications.
The Raytheon inventions of today have capabilities incalculably far beyond those of the machines that placed a man on the moon. Right now, from a satellite in space orbit, the Raytheon Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) is scanning the Earth and beaming back images and measurements that are critically important for the accurate monitoring of global weather conditions.
And Raytheon is still helping man explore the Moon. The company's Miniature Radio Frequency (Mini-RF) equipment was installed on both NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and the Indian Space Research Organization's (ISRO) Chandrayaan-1 probe, allowing these spacecraft to determine whether there is exploitable water at the lunar poles, and provide surface imaging to prepare for future manned excursions to the Moon.
Those are only a few of the Raytheon products that extend the frontiers of science and discovery to this very day.
"Innovation is a fundamental part of Raytheon's culture, brand and history and it inspires and drives us each and every day," said Raytheon Chairman and CEO Thomas A. Kennedy. "As a result, we strive for innovation in everything we do, from quantum computing to quantum leaps in satellite imagery. We leverage innovation to help our customers succeed, and we use it to continuously improve our efficiencies and how we operate as a company."