leftmeet.blogg.se

In 1960, the international scientific community adopted a new standard of length, replacing the old platinum-iridium meter bar with a wavelength of a specific frequency of visible light. A key feature of the program was the independent assessment of the accuracy of data published in the scientific literature. The National Standard Reference Data System, centered at NIST, was established by law to provide critically evaluated quantitative data on the properties of chemical substances and materials important to science and technology. Meanwhile, the Institute continued to provide leadership in measurements and standards. NIST still has the nation's largest universal testing machine, capable of supplying 53.4 MN (12 million pounds) of force in compression. The device to be calibrated was set at the top of a loading frame, and weights as heavy as 23 metric tons (50,000 pounds) were loaded in increments the applied force was calculated from the mass of the weights. To calibrate the devices used to measure the forces on large rockets, giant machines were built, such as a 4.5 meganewton (1 million pound) force machine that was 29.3 meters (96 feet) tall. In the 1950s, NIST could measure temperatures reliably only up to 3000 OC by 1964, thanks to improved instruments and techniques, it was routinely measuring in the 20,000 OC range. Measurement capabilities were extended to new realms. NIST was already working on such problems as a result of the Army's first supersonic flight in the late 1940s.

space program required new measurements of the combustion of missile fuels and of rocket thrust in the million-pounds range, as well as the effects of extreme and sudden changes in temperature and pressure on materials and mechanisms of rocket engines. Kennedy committed the nation to landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration was formed, and, in May 1961, President John F. The launch of the satellite Sputnik I in 1957 precipitated the space race. But it was a golden age for science, with ample funding and broad industrial and public support. The 1960s were a time of social turmoil, marked by the civil rights movement, political assassinations, the Vietnam War, and the antiwar movement. Wisconsin Governor's Letter about Centennial.Washington Governor's Letter about Centennial.Virginia Governor's Letter about Centennial.Tennessee Governor's Letter about Centennial.South Carolina Governor's Letter about Centennial.