Rocket Man

April 8, 2008 / Add comment

Werner Von Braun's World War II long-range ballistic rocket, the V-2, was an "expensive and useless toy," yet its development paved the way for the Apollo missions. Dyson reviews a new biography of the Nazi scientist turned NASA technician, illuminating the brilliant mind whose avant garde work in Germany found a natural home in America during the Cold War, where he dreamt of helping humanity "move out of the nursery." Dyson's experience -- he was a Royal Air Force operative during the war -- lends the article personality, and his nuanced examination of Von Braun's oft-excused SS membership is worthwhile.