Suara.com – The original headset used by the first aviation director NASA will be auctioned this May 21.
This Western Electric Bell System 52 headset is worn by Christopher C. Kraft, Jr. otherwise known as “the father of Mission Control”.
“He was director of the Johnson Space Center for a decade at a pivotal period in NASA history and came up with the idea for the NASA Mission Control concept,” said Brad Palmer, director of the Heritage Auctions space exploration consignment.
As NASA’s first aviation director, Kraft also designed how mission planning and operations were carried out.
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Starting with the launch of the first American astronaut in space 60 years ago, Kraft developed processes for astronaut launch decisions, space-to-Earth communications, mission tracking, and crushing recovery.
Reporting from Space.com, Friday (21/5/2021), Kraft’s career includes the missions of Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, Skylab, and the early space shuttle. He died in 2019 at the age of 95.
Kraft wore the Western Electric Bell System 52 for the first four Mercury astronaut flights.
He keeps the headset as a personal keepsake after being replaced with a more modern device.
“These headsets help the astronauts on Mercury’s early missions to stay in touch with the team on Earth. These headsets have a very important role in NASA’s space program,” added Palmer.
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The auction house has set an opening bid for the headset for US $ 1,750 or around Rp. 25 million.
Other items from the Kraft residence include a 1970s-era headset he wore during the early shuttle program and a desktop nameplate, as well as a set of pens that had been mounted on top of 18 small lights.
Other items include plugs from Apollo 11 and heat protection segments from the Gemini spacecraft.
Kraft also owns a small American flag and mission patch that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin flew to the lunar surface.
Not only that, the auction house will also auction the display of three flag panels flown by Apollo 12, Apollo 16, and Apollo 17 with an opening bid of 12,000 US dollars or around Rp.171 million and the large United States flag carried on the first shuttle mission.
Another keepsake in Kraft includes the navel of the docking module given to him after the 1975 Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, the first joint US and Russian mission.
The auction will be held over two days with bidding in person, telephone and online.
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