science · 07 July 1914 · 110 years ago
In 1914, Robert Goddard, age 31, was issued a U.S. patent, the first of the 214 he would obtain in his lifetime as a pioneer rocket scientist. This patent was for a “Rocket Apparatus” (U.S. No. 1,102,653) which described the multi-stage rocket concept. A liquid-fueled rocket design was issued a patent the following week, on 14 Jul 1914, also titled “Rocket Apparatus.” It described a combustion chamber, with expander nozzle, into which liquid fuels are pumped. This was his second rocket patent. On 16 Mar 1926, his test launch, the first ever of a liquid-fuelled rocket, managed to propel a 10-ft long projectile to a height of 41-ft (12.5 m). Its 2.5 second flight covered a distance of 184-ft at an average speed of 60-mph. The fuel was a combination of liquid oxygen and gasoline.
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