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This Week in NASA History: The First Saturn Rocket Arrives at KSC – Aug. 15, 1961

This week in 1961, the first Saturn I rocket, SA-1, arrived at NASA's Kennedy Space Center.
This week in 1961, the first Saturn I rocket, SA-1, arrived at NASA's Kennedy Space Center.

This week in 1961, the first Saturn I rocket, SA-1, arrived at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. The SA-1 mission was used to demonstrate the validity of the clustered engine concept as well as test the aerodynamic and structural design of the Saturn I booster. Here, the S-1 stage for the SA-1 mission is being installed on the launch pad for its Oct. 27, 1961, launch. Today, Marshall is developing NASA’s Space Launch System, the most powerful rocket ever built that will be capable of sending astronauts deeper into space than ever before, including to Mars. The NASA History Program is responsible for generating, disseminating, and preserving NASA’s remarkable history and providing a comprehensive understanding of the institutional, cultural, social, political, economic, technological, and scientific aspects of NASA’s activities in aeronautics and space. For more pictures like this one and to connect to NASA’s history, visit the Marshall History Program’s webpage. (NASA)