Moffett Field

The looming immensity of Moffett Fields Hangar One, built

in 1933 to house the worlds largest -- and last -- rigid-frame

dirigible, is an unforgettable South Bay landmark. The lighterthan-air Macon cost 2.5 million Depression-era dollars and could hold 100 men and five Sparrowhawk biplanes, yet its silvery bulk hovered silently or sailed up to 80 miles an hour. It drew crowds as it darkened the skies around Mountain View until it broke up in a storm two years later. Other blimp squadrons, equipped with carrier pigeons instead of biplanes, succeeded the Macon. Moffett Field has at various times served the navy, army, and the air force. Now home to the worlds largest wind tunnel, the NASA Ames Research Center also supports research that blazes the frontiers of supercomputing, robotics, space sciences, astrobiology, and nanotechnology.

About the author

Author Nicholas A. Veronico, a professional photographer as well as a former science writer for NASA Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, has written more than 20 books on aviation and military subjects and over 1,000 newspaper and magazine articles. With the informed passion of his profession, he visually recalls the greatest era in Bay Area aviation and Moffett Field's new role in its technological future.

Product details

• Authors: Nicholas A Veronico, Nicholas A. Veronico
• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing (SC)
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 03.05.2006
• EAN: 9780738531328
• ISBN: 978-0-7385-3132-8
• No. of pages: 128
• Dimensions: 175 mm x 234 mm x 9 mm
• Weight: 336 g
• Series: Images of aviation; Images of Aviation
• Subject: Guides > Motor vehicles, aircraft, ships, space travel > Aircraft, space travel