James Slattin Martin, Jr.

For other people named James Martin, see James Martin (disambiguation).

James Slattin Martin, Jr. (1920-06-21 – 2002-04-14) was project manager for the Viking program.[1]

Biography

As Viking 1 landed on Mars, Martin hung up on a call from President Ford, telling him that he was "busy right now" and to call back in three hours.[2] The President called back three hours later at which time Martin, along with then-NASA Administrator Jim Fletcher, briefed him on the landing.[3]

References

  1. ↑ Saxon, Wolfgang (April 20, 2002). "James Martin Jr., 81, Manager Of Milestone Missions to Mars". New York Times. Retrieved 2009-12-09. James S. Martin Jr., the aeronautical engineer who oversaw the twin missions that produced the first maps and close-up pictures of Mars, died on Sunday in Rising Sun, the small town in far northeastern Maryland where he lived. He was 81. The cause was cancer, said the Langley Research Center, the NASA complex in Hampton, Va., where a quarter-century ago Mr. Martin was project manager for Viking 1 and Viking 2.
  2. ↑ John Newcomb, Call Back Later, Mr. President, http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/video/viking30/index.html
  3. ↑ Gerald R. Ford: Telephone Conversation With National Aeronautics and Space Administration Officials on the Mars Landing of the Viking I Spacecraft
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