Banachiewicz  Poles  Copernicus

po polsku

Mieczyslaw G. Bekker (1905-1989)

Polish-American engineer and scientist, graduated from Warsaw Technical University (Warsaw, Poland) in 1929, moved to France in 1939, since 1942 lived in Canada and the U.S., and finally settled in the U.S. in 1956. He was a leading specialist in theory and design of military and off-the-road locomotion vehicles, and an originator of a new engineering discipline called "terramechanics". He worked for Polish Ministry of Military Affairs (1931-1939), lectured at the Warsaw Technical University (1936-1939) and several U.S. universities, then worked in General Motors laboratories in Santa Barbara, CA (1960-1970), and consulted Canadian and U.S. armies. Bekker authored the general idea and contributed significantly to the design and construction of LRV (Lunar Roving Vehicle) used by missions Apollo 15, Apollo 16, and Apollo 17 on the Moon . He was an author of several patented inventions in the area of off-the-road vehicles, including those for extraterrestrial use.

His main contributions are:

1956:

Publication of the first of his ground-breaking books about vehicle design: "Theory of Land Locomotion," The University of Michigan Press; (2nd ed.: 1962).

1960:

Publication of the book "Off-the-Road Locomotion," The University of Michigan Press.

1963:

Preliminary designs for the Moon rover are described in a paper on "Mechanics of locomotion and lunar surface vehicle concepts."

1969:

Publication of his third book "Introduction to Terrain Vehicle Systems," The University of Michigan Press. The book contains also his first research results pertaining to the design of the Lunar Rover Vehicle.

1963-1972:

Working for General Motors Bekker developed several concepts of the Moon rover and prepared an appropriate proposal for NASA. He also took part in the actual construction of the vehicle (he personally designed the special wire-mesh wheels and the elastic frame of the rover) and consulted the general design and its subsequent modifications. The vehicle was finally built by Boeing with General Motors (AC Electronics Defense Research Laboratories [currently Delco Electronics Division] in Santa Barbara, CA, headed by Bekker) as a subcontractor.

[Photo: Apollo astronaut David R. Scott/NASA.]

Lunar Roving Vehicle on the Moon , during Apollo 15 mission, at the end of the first EVA on July 31, 1971, nearby the LM lander (whose shadow is visible in the bottom-right corner); standing - astronaut James B. Irwin (1930-1991). Place: Mare Imbrium at the feet of lunar Appenines, near Hadley Rille (Rima Hadley: 26°4´54"N, 3°39´30"E). In the background - Mt. Hadley (Mons Hadley; 4200 meters over the level of Mare Imbrium). Note: the lander shadow and Mt. Hadley are better visible on the larger photo linked to the picture. [ZK]

Top of page

kontakt@uranos.eu.org