Robert S. Kraemer
October 21, 1928 – August 20, 2013
Robert Samuel Kraemer spent more than three decades at the center of America's rocket and space exploration programs — from early liquid-propellant engine design at Rocketdyne through seven years as NASA's Director of Planetary Programs, when the missions under his direction returned the first close-up images of Venus and Mercury, the first landers on Mars, and the first spacecraft to leave the solar system.
He later served as Assistant Center Director for Technology at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, retiring from NASA in 1990. He was the author of two books on the history of American rocketry and planetary exploration, and received the Distinguished Service Medal, NASA's highest honor. He is remembered by his wife of 59 years, Anne, six children, and eleven grandchildren.
Rocketdyne & NASA
Employment timeline, mission highlights, and the full 1983 career record.
Published Works
Beyond the Moon and Rocketdyne: Powering Humans into Space.
Rocket-Propelled Launch Vehicles
A 2008 recorded talk to the Charlestown Community, in his own words.
2013
The Los Angeles Times obituary and a son's words of remembrance.