biography
pronunciation:
[lay]
| sex:
| male
|
| lived:
| (1906–69)
|
| biography:
| Rocket scientist and writer, born in Berlin, Germany. After studying science at German universities, he abandoned his plan to be a geologist after reading (1926) a work by the rocket scientist, Hermann Oberth. Ley took the lead in founding the German Society for Space Travel (1927), made it the centre of international activity in rocket research, brought Wernher von Braun and others into the group, and in particular helped develop the liquid-fuel rocket. When the Nazis forced rocket research into military applications, he fled to the USA (1935). Unable to find financial support for rocket research and space travel, he turned to writing about all aspects of science, and became widely known as a popularizer. But he never lost his faith in space travel, writing numerous science fiction and non-fiction accounts, including the award-winning The Conquest of Space (1949). He advised film-makers from Fritz Lang to Walt Disney on space travel, and during World War 2 advised Americans on bombs and explosive devices. |
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