Robert Albert Charles Esnault-Pelterie (8 November 1881 – 6 December 1957) was a French
aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to flight, fly by gaining support from the Atmosphere of Earth, air. It counters the force of gravity by using either Buoyancy, static lift or by using the Lift (force), dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in ...
designer and spaceflight theorist. He is referred to as being one of the founders of modern
rocket
A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entir ...
ry and
astronautics
Astronautics (or cosmonautics) is the theory and practice of travel beyond Earth's atmosphere into outer space. Spaceflight is one of its main applications and space science its overarching field.
The term ''astronautics'' (originally ''astron ...
, along with the Russian
Konstantin Tsiolkovsky
Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky (russian: Константи́н Эдуа́рдович Циолко́вский , , p=kənstɐnʲˈtʲin ɪdʊˈardəvʲɪtɕ tsɨɐlˈkofskʲɪj , a=Ru-Konstantin Tsiolkovsky.oga; – 19 September 1935) ...
, the Chinese
Qian Xuesen
Qian Xuesen, or Hsue-Shen Tsien (; 11 December 1911 – 31 October 2009), was a Chinese mathematician, cyberneticist, aerospace engineer, and physicist who made significant contributions to the field of aerodynamics and established engineering ...
, Germans
Hermann Oberth
Hermann Julius Oberth (; 25 June 1894 – 28 December 1989) was an Austro-Hungarian-born German physicist and engineer. He is considered one of the founding fathers of rocketry and astronautics, along with Robert Esnault-Pelterie, Konstantin ...
,
Fritz von Opel,
Wernher Von Braun
Wernher Magnus Maximilian Freiherr von Braun ( , ; 23 March 191216 June 1977) was a German and American aerospace engineer and space architect. He was a member of the Nazi Party and Allgemeine SS, as well as the leading figure in the develop ...
and the American
Robert H. Goddard.
Biography
He was born on 8 November 1881 in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
to a
textile
Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, different #Fabric, fabric types, etc. At f ...
industrialist. He was educated at the ''Faculté des Sciences'', studying
engineering
Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...
at the
Sorbonne.
He served in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
and was made an ''Officier de la Légion d'Honneur''.
In November 1928, on board the ''
Ile de France'' while sailing to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, he was married to Carmen Bernaldo de Quirós, the daughter of Don Antonio and Yvonne Cabarrus, and granddaughter of General Marquis of Santiago,
Grandee of Spain
Grandee (; es, Grande de España, ) is an official aristocratic title conferred on some Spanish nobility. Holders of this dignity enjoyed similar privileges to those of the peerage of France during the , though in neither country did they ...
, Head of the Military Household of Queen
Isabella II
Isabella II ( es, Isabel II; 10 October 1830 – 9 April 1904), was Queen of Spain from 29 September 1833 until 30 September 1868.
Shortly before her birth, the King Ferdinand VII of Spain issued a Pragmatic Sanction to ensure the successi ...
.
He died on 6 December 1957 in Nice, France.
REP
Esnault-Pelterie developed and manufactured aeroplanes and aero engines under the name REP.
Aeroplanes
His first experiments in aviation were based on the
Wright brothers 1902 glider. His first glider design was tested on a beach near
Calais
Calais ( , , traditionally , ) is a port city in the Pas-de-Calais department, of which it is a subprefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's prefecture is its third-largest city of Arras. Th ...
, but was not successful. His glider was based upon an incomplete understanding of the Wright glider, and although using a version of the wing-warping which the Wright brothers had used to control their aircraft this did not work properly and was abandoned, since he considered it dangerous. After condemning the Wright brothers' approach, he developed the concept of the
aileron
An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...
, fitting a pair of mid-gap control surfaces in front of the wings. This potentially "initial" example of the use of ailerons of any sort is believed to pre-date all others, after their patent description in 1868 by British inventor
M. P. W. Boulton was approved in that year.
In 1906 he began his first experiments in towed flight. On 19 September 1906 he flew . He made his first powered flight on 10 October 1907, a distance of with the
REP 1. This was driven by a seven-cylinder, 30 hp air-cooled engine of his own design.
Trials of the monoplane
REP 2 began on 8 June 1908. This aircraft set a record with a flight, reaching an altitude of . After a modified version of this plane was flown for the last time in 1909 at
Rheims
Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne.
Founded by ...
, Pelterie stopped flying and instead focused on the development and manufacture of aircraft.
The
Vickers R.E.P. Type Monoplane
The Vickers R.E.P. Type Monoplanes were a series of single-engined monoplane aircraft built by Vickers prior to the outbreak of the First World War. They were developed from a French design for which Vickers had purchased a license, with eight ...
was based upon his designs, and marked the beginning of aircraft production at the later
Vickers Limited
Vickers Limited was a British engineering conglomerate. The business began in Sheffield in 1828 as a steel foundry and became known for its church bells, going on to make shafts and propellers for ships, armour plate and then artillery. Entir ...
. In 1912 he introduced the
REP Type N
The REP Type N was a military reconnaissance monoplane produced in France in 1914.Taylor 1989, p.758
Design and Development
It was a wire-braced, mid-wing monoplane of conventional design with fixed, tailskid undercarriage.Davilla & Soltan 2002 ...
and in 1914 the
REP Parasol monoplane.
His family had invested heavily to fund his aircraft designs, and this had left them nearly financially ruined. However, he was the inventor of the "
joystick
A joystick, sometimes called a flight stick, is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. A joystick, also known as the control column, is the principal cont ...
" flight control, and owned a patent on the design. This would end up being integrated during 1908, into fellow French aviator
Louis Blériot
Louis Charles Joseph Blériot ( , also , ; 1 July 1872 – 1 August 1936) was a French aviator, inventor, and engineer. He developed the first practical headlamp for cars and established a profitable business manufacturing them, using much of th ...
's
eighth design, setting the pattern for future "user interfaces" in
aircraft flight control system
A conventional fixed-wing aircraft flight control system consists of flight control surfaces, the respective cockpit controls, connecting linkages, and the necessary operating mechanisms to control an aircraft's direction in flight. Aircraft ...
design. Following the war, Esnault-Pelterie was involved in litigation over his joystick patent. Many aircraft built during the war had used this design and the aircraft companies owed him royalties. The damages he won and subsequent royalties made him a wealthy man. This also allowed him to repay his father's significant investment.
Aero engines
Esnault-Pelterie designed and built his own aero engines. He also sold them under the name R.E.P. They were all of an unusual multiple-banked fan or half-radial type. The first design featured seven cylinders double-banked, with four in one bank and three in the other, and was rated at . A later model doubled them up to create a 14 cylinder quadruple-banked engine giving .
Rocketry
He became interested in
space travel, and, not knowing of
Tsiolkovsky's 1903 work, in 1913 produced a paper that presented the
rocket equation
A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely ...
and calculated the energies required to reach the Moon and nearby planets. In this talk, he proposed the use of atomic energy, using 400 kg of
radium
Radium is a chemical element with the symbol Ra and atomic number 88. It is the sixth element in group 2 of the periodic table, also known as the alkaline earth metals. Pure radium is silvery-white, but it readily reacts with nitrogen (rat ...
to power an interplanetary vehicle. His culminating work was ''L'Astronautique'', published in 1930. A later version published in 1934 included details on
interplanetary travel and applications of
nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...
.
On 8 June 1927 Esnault-Pelterie gave a symposium for the
Société astronomique de France
The Société astronomique de France (SAF; ), the French astronomical society, is a non-profit association in the public interest organized under French law ( Association loi de 1901). Founded by astronomer Camille Flammarion in 1887, its purpose ...
(French Astronomical Society) titled ''L'exploration par fusées de la très haute atmosphère et la possibilité des voyages interplanétaires'', concerning the exploration of outer space using rocket propulsion.
Jean-Jacques Barré Jean-Jacques is a French name, equivalent to "John James" in English. Since the second half of 18th century, Jean Jacques Rousseau was widely known as Jean Jacques. Notable people bearing this name include:
Given name
* Jean-Jacques Annaud (born 19 ...
attended this lecture, and developed a correspondence with Esnault-Pelterie on the topic of rockets.
In 1929 Esnault-Pelterie proposed the idea of the
ballistic missile
A ballistic missile is a type of missile that uses projectile motion to deliver warheads on a target. These weapons are guided only during relatively brief periods—most of the flight is unpowered. Short-range ballistic missiles stay within t ...
for military bombardment. By 1930, Esnault-Pelterie and Barré had persuaded the French War Department to fund a study of the concept. In 1931, the two began experimenting with various types of rocket propulsion systems, including liquid propellants. The same year he ran a demonstration of a rocket engine powered with gasoline and liquid oxygen. During an experiment with a rocket design using
tetra-nitromethane he lost four fingers from his right hand during an explosion. Ultimately, their work failed to create an interest in rocketry within France.
Prix REP-Hirsch
The ''Prix REP-Hirsch'' was an international award of the
Société astronomique de France
The Société astronomique de France (SAF; ), the French astronomical society, is a non-profit association in the public interest organized under French law ( Association loi de 1901). Founded by astronomer Camille Flammarion in 1887, its purpose ...
given in recognition of the study of
interplanetary travel and
astronautics
Astronautics (or cosmonautics) is the theory and practice of travel beyond Earth's atmosphere into outer space. Spaceflight is one of its main applications and space science its overarching field.
The term ''astronautics'' (originally ''astron ...
. Established by Esnault-Pelterie and André-Louis Hirsch, a Parisian banker and science enthusiast, it was the first prize for astronautics in the world. The award was given "to recognize the best original scientific work, theoretical or experimental, that is able to advance one of the questions related to the realisation of space travel, or to increase human understanding of one of the branches related to the science of astronautics." The idea for establishing the prize originated during a dinner Hirsch and Esnault-Pelterie organised in Paris on 26 December 1927. The guests discussed the emerging science of space travel, which they called “astronautics” at the suggestion of science fiction writer
J.H. Rosny the elder. Hirsch and Esnault-Pelterie provided funds – 5,000 francs annually for 1928, 1929, and 1930 – to the Société astronomique de France, for an annual award in astronautics in their names. A Comité d'Astronautique was established to manage the prize. In addition to Esnault-Pelterie, Hirsch, and Rosny the elder, it included General
Gustave-Auguste Ferrié
Gustave-Auguste Ferrié (19 November 1868 – 16 February 1932) was a French radio pioneer and army general. (President),
Jean Perrin
Jean Baptiste Perrin (30 September 1870 – 17 April 1942) was a French physicist who, in his studies of the Brownian motion of minute particles suspended in liquids (sedimentation equilibrium), verified Albert Einstein’s explanation of this p ...
and
Eugène Fichot (Vice-Presidents) and other expert members. The prize was awarded for 10 years. In 1936, the name of the award changed from the ''Prix REP-Hirsch'' to the ''Prix International d'Astronautique'' (International Astronautics Prize).
The laureates were:
* 1929 —
Hermann Oberth
Hermann Julius Oberth (; 25 June 1894 – 28 December 1989) was an Austro-Hungarian-born German physicist and engineer. He is considered one of the founding fathers of rocketry and astronautics, along with Robert Esnault-Pelterie, Konstantin ...
, for his overall contributions to the field.
* 1931 — Pierre Montagne, for his theoretical work on the equilibrium of gas temperatures inside combustion chambers.
* 1934 — Pierre Montagne, for his work on chemical equilibria in chemical reactions and their application to rockets, and
Ary Sternfeld (Prix d'Encouragement), for his book ''Initiation à la Cosmonautique''.
* 1935 —
Louis Damblanc, for his innovations in
solid propellants for rockets.
* 1936 —
American Rocket Society
The American Rocket Society (ARS) began its existence on , under the name of the American Interplanetary Society. It was founded by science fiction writers G. Edward Pendray, David Lasser, Laurence Manning, Nathan Schachner, and others. Pendra ...
and Alfred Africano,
* 1938 — Giovanni Serragli, for his publication ''Recherches sur les poudres lentes et leur usage pour l'exploration de la haute atmosphère''.
* 1939 —
Frank J. Malina (Médaille de vermeil) and Nathan Carver (Médaille d'argent).
Though the award was short-lived, it helped stimulate interest in the new science of astronautics and encouraged early pioneers in the field.
Francis French, Colin Burgess. Into That Silent Sea: Trailblazers of the Space Era, 1961-1965 (University of Nebraska Press, 2007), p. 55.
/ref>
* 2019 — Jacques Blamont
Legacy
Among his interests were horseback riding, playing golf, camping and driving cars. During his lifetime he filed about 120 patents in a variety of fields ranging from metallurgy
Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys.
Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...
to automobile suspension. He was the inventor of the " center stick" aircraft control and of a new type of fuel pump. He also developed the idea of rocket maneuver by means of vectored thrust.
Honors
* In 1930, he received the Prix Jules Janssen
The Prix Jules Janssen is the highest award of the Société astronomique de France (SAF), the French astronomical society.
This annual prize is given to a professional French astronomer or to an astronomer of another nationality in recognition ...
, the highest award of the Société astronomique de France
The Société astronomique de France (SAF; ), the French astronomical society, is a non-profit association in the public interest organized under French law ( Association loi de 1901). Founded by astronomer Camille Flammarion in 1887, its purpose ...
, the French astronomical society.
* Member of the French Academy
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...
.
* The crater Esnault-Pelterie on the Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
is named after him.
* An avenue in Paris (rue Robert Esnault-Pelterie in the 7th arr.) is named after him.
* Inducted as a member of the inaugural class to the International Space Hall of Fame
The New Mexico Museum of Space History is a museum and planetarium complex in Alamogordo, New Mexico dedicated to artifacts and displays related to space flight and the Space Age. It includes the International Space Hall of Fame. The Museum of ...
.
Works by Esnault-Pelterie
* ''L'Astronautique'', Paris, A. Lahure, 1930.
* ''L'Astronautique-Complément'', Paris, Société des Ingénieurs Civils de France, 1935.
See also
* French space program
* France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
* CNES
The (CNES; French: ''Centre national d'études spatiales'') is the French government space agency (administratively, a "public administration with industrial and commercial purpose"). Its headquarters are located in central Paris and it is und ...
* Space sciences
The following outline is provided as an overview and topical guide to space science:
Space science encompasses all of the scientific disciplines that involve space exploration and study natural phenomena and physical bodies occurring in outer ...
* Qian Xuesen
Qian Xuesen, or Hsue-Shen Tsien (; 11 December 1911 – 31 October 2009), was a Chinese mathematician, cyberneticist, aerospace engineer, and physicist who made significant contributions to the field of aerodynamics and established engineering ...
* Wernher von Braun
Wernher Magnus Maximilian Freiherr von Braun ( , ; 23 March 191216 June 1977) was a German and American aerospace engineer and space architect. He was a member of the Nazi Party and Allgemeine SS, as well as the leading figure in the develop ...
* Sergey Korolyov
* History of rockets
The first rockets were used as propulsion systems for arrows, and may have appeared as early as the 10th century in Song dynasty China. However more solid documentary evidence does not appear until the 13th century. The technology probably sprea ...
* Hermann Oberth
Hermann Julius Oberth (; 25 June 1894 – 28 December 1989) was an Austro-Hungarian-born German physicist and engineer. He is considered one of the founding fathers of rocketry and astronautics, along with Robert Esnault-Pelterie, Konstantin ...
* Konstantin Tsiolkovsky
Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky (russian: Константи́н Эдуа́рдович Циолко́вский , , p=kənstɐnʲˈtʲin ɪdʊˈardəvʲɪtɕ tsɨɐlˈkofskʲɪj , a=Ru-Konstantin Tsiolkovsky.oga; – 19 September 1935) ...
References
Further reading
* Gibbs-Smith, C.H. ''The Rebirth of European Aviation''. London, HMSO, 1974
* F. Torres et J. Villain,'' Robert Esnault-Pelterie : du ciel aux étoiles, un génie solitaire''. Éditions Confluences, Bordeaux, 2007, .
*
External links
The Pioneers: Robert Esnault-Pelterie
{{DEFAULTSORT:Esnault-Pelterie, Robert
1957 deaths
University of Paris alumni
Members of the French Academy of Sciences
Members of the Early Birds of Aviation
20th-century French engineers
REP
1881 births
French aviation record holders
Rocket science pioneers