Joseph G. Gavin, Jr.
(18 Sep 1920 - 30 Oct 2010)
American engineer who directed the lunar module program, overseeing the construction and testing of the first manned vehicle to land on the moon. That complex task included designing to deal with any kind of landing surface, from ice to boulders to dust to potholes.
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Science Quotes by Joseph G. Gavin, Jr. (3 quotes)
If a project is truly innovative, you cannot possibly know its exact cost and exact schedule at the beginning. And if you do know the exact cost and the exact schedule, chances are that the technology is obsolete.
— Joseph G. Gavin, Jr.
From interview with Technology Review, quoted in Douglas Martin, 'Joseph Gavin, Who Helped Put First Man on Moon, Dies at 90', New York Times (4 Nov 2010)
There’s a certain exuberance that comes from being out there on the edge of technology, where things are not certain, where there is some risk, and where you make something work.
— Joseph G. Gavin, Jr.
As quoted in Douglas Martin, 'Joseph Gavin, Who Helped Put First Man on Moon, Dies at 90', New York Times (4 Nov 2010).
We developed a computer program, based on tests of a quarter-scale model of the lunar module, and we ran the program through some 400 different [moon] landing conditions.
— Joseph G. Gavin, Jr.
From interview with Technology Review, quoted in Douglas Martin, 'Joseph Gavin, Who Helped Put First Man on Moon, Dies at 90', New York Times (4 Nov 2010).