WARREN — There is a NASA facility in Cleveland?
You might be surprised to know it operated prior to the more famous sites in Florida and Texas.
NASA Glenn Research Librarian Robin Unger rectified this lack of awareness during her talk, “History of NASA Glenn Research Center,” on Saturday at the Warren-Trumbull County Public Library. It was an America250-Ohio program.
“The NASA Research Center is 85, and NASA is getting ready to celebrate 68. We are older than the agency itself,” Unger said.
Located near Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, its research hangar can be viewed from your plane window as you taxi for departure.
“The research center was originally part of NACA (National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics). It was established in 1915,” Unger said.
It was tasked with finding problems with flight and working toward practical solutions. The 12 members were from business and academia. They had aeronautical science or engineering backgrounds and put political, commercial and personal interests aside to serve the aeronautical community.
They discovered aeronautical problems and universities did the research.
“NACA grew rapidly. During World War I, the use of aircraft for military purposes was introduced. While we weren’t engaged yet in the conflict, you don’t want to be caught without your technology ducks in a row,” Unger said.
With the end of one world war, the necessity for air combat became more apparent as a second world war approached.
“In 1939, NACA had a European liaison, John J. Ide, who kept a pulse in the region. He sounded the alarm that something was afoot in Germany,” Unger said.
Ide reported to Congress that Germany had thousands of workers at aeronautical research labs. The United States had fewer than 500 workers at the Langley, Virginia NACA facility.
“After touring German labs, George Lewis, executive officer of NACA, told Congress what he saw firsthand. We were facing a significant national defense issue and expanding our facilities beyond what is available at Langley is imperative,” Unger said.
Congress granted in 1939 the creation of one new facility weeks before Hitler swept across Poland.
Simultaneously, Charles Lindbergh had a committee that cited the need to put work into engine research.
“Many thought that the next big advancements in engines would come from the manufacturers. That was not happening. The Germans had an entire lab dedicated to studying engines and their specific applications to aircraft,” Unger said.
She noted that better engines are the key to faster planes flying at higher altitudes.
In June 1940, Congress approved the establishment of a third NACA center to research airplane engines.
“NACA, being the apolitical body that it was, decided it would create a list of weighted criteria to find the ideal location for the lab,” said Unger.
Some of the requirements were the local environment of at least 100 acres that could expand, electric power, water and a flying field nearby.
With 62 sites submitted, Cleveland beat Boston, Chicago and Columbus, among other cities.
“Cleveland was very different then than it is today. It was the sixth most populous city in the United States with a huge industrial and manufacturing base. In 1940, there were almost 100 companies with a direct tie to aviation,” Unger said.
In Cleveland’s favor was its location near transportation hubs of planes, trains, highways and waterways. It is centrally located and half of the country’s manufacturing is within 500 miles.
It also had the accessibility of natural resources of coal and iron. Cleveland Hopkins Airport was the most advanced at the time. The area had advanced education institutes to continue to staff the facility.
“Major John Berry, superintendent of the airport, mentioned that the park commissioner agreed to offer part of the park adjoining the airport, which we now know as Cleveland MetroParks to the NACA. This would create a buffer around the lab about a mile on every side,” Unger said.
The site previously hosted air races but were suspended because of WWII. The grandstands were removed, which was a problem during the selection process. The removal of the grandstands swung Cleveland into the top choice for the research center.
“On Nov. 25, 1940, the selection for Cleveland as the site for the engine research laboratory was formally announced,” Unger said.
The city sold 200 acres of land to NACA for $500 to create the facility.
“Every Jan. 23 we celebrate our groundbreaking day at Glenn,” Unger said.
In May 1942 the first tests were conducted at the new facility.
Since the creation of the center, one of the projects it has worked on is how ice builds up at different altitudes. All seven Mercury Seven astronauts trained at the facility.
NACA became NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) on Oct. 1, 1958.
Unger mentioned a local connection to NASA. A contest took place in 1959 to create an official logo. James Modarelli, who was born in Youngstown and graduated from the Cleveland Institute of Art, won the contest while employed at NASA Glenn Research Center. The logo became affectionately known as the meatball.
Unger also discussed the upcoming Artemis flight with four astronauts between February and April of this year. They will circle the moon and the next flight will explore the south pole of the moon, which has not been previously visited.
The NASA Glenn Research Center is located at 21000 Brookpark Road in Cleveland.
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