Seliger Forschungs- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH
Encyclopedia
The Berthold Seliger Forschungs- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH (BSFEGmbH) was a company founded by German
rocket technical designer Berthold Seliger in 1961. Seliger was a former assistant theoretician professor Dr. Eugen Sänger
. The company developed and built prototype
s of sounding rocket
s and launched them near Cuxhaven. The BSFEGmbH cooperated strongly with the Hermann-Oberth-Gesellschaft, of which Berthold Seliger was a member. The first rocket developed by the BSFEGmbH was an improved version of the Kumulus
, which was first launched on November 19, 1962 and reached a height of 50 kilometres. On February 7, 1963, the BSFEGmbH launched a two-stage
rocket with a maximum height of 80 kilometres, and on May 2, 1963, they launched a three-stage rocket with a maximum flight height of more than 100 kilometres. The latter rocket may have attained the highest flight altitude of all rockets built in post-war Germany. The signals from all these rockets were also received at the observatory in Bochum
(300km SSW of Cuxhaven). After May 1963, the BSFEGmbH worked on the improvement of the steering system of their rockets and thought also on military usable rockets.
On December 5, 1963, the BSFEGmbH gave a flight demonstration of their rockets to military staff of non-NATO-countries. Although their rockets were launched with reduced amount of propellant in order not to violate Allied laws concerning the development of military rockets in Germany and were not fit for military use, the rocket experiments of the Hermann-Oberth-Gesellschaft e.V. and the BSFEGmbH after this date were viewed with great suspicion.
In 1964, these experiments were discontinued with a temporary injunction, which is still valid today, after a fatal accident at a rocket demonstration by Gerhard Zucker
at Braunlage, although Gerhard Zucker did not cooperate with the BSFEGmbH or the Hermann-Oberth-Gesellschaft e.V. in any way and also had a bad reputation with the members of these societies.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
rocket technical designer Berthold Seliger in 1961. Seliger was a former assistant theoretician professor Dr. Eugen Sänger
Eugen Sänger
Eugen Sänger was an Austrian-German aerospace engineer best known for his contributions to lifting body and ramjet technology.-Early career:...
. The company developed and built prototype
Prototype
A prototype is an early sample or model built to test a concept or process or to act as a thing to be replicated or learned from.The word prototype derives from the Greek πρωτότυπον , "primitive form", neutral of πρωτότυπος , "original, primitive", from πρῶτος , "first" and τύπος ,...
s of sounding rocket
Sounding rocket
A sounding rocket, sometimes called a research rocket, is an instrument-carrying rocket designed to take measurements and perform scientific experiments during its sub-orbital flight. The origin of the term comes from nautical vocabulary, where to sound is to throw a weighted line from a ship into...
s and launched them near Cuxhaven. The BSFEGmbH cooperated strongly with the Hermann-Oberth-Gesellschaft, of which Berthold Seliger was a member. The first rocket developed by the BSFEGmbH was an improved version of the Kumulus
Kumulus (rocket)
Kumulus is the name of a rocket of the "Hermann-Oberth-Gesellschaft e.V.". The first Kumulus rocket was launched on December 20, 1960 near Cuxhaven...
, which was first launched on November 19, 1962 and reached a height of 50 kilometres. On February 7, 1963, the BSFEGmbH launched a two-stage
Multistage rocket
A multistage rocket is a rocket that usestwo or more stages, each of which contains its own engines and propellant. A tandem or serial stage is mounted on top of another stage; a parallel stage is attached alongside another stage. The result is effectively two or more rockets stacked on top of or...
rocket with a maximum height of 80 kilometres, and on May 2, 1963, they launched a three-stage rocket with a maximum flight height of more than 100 kilometres. The latter rocket may have attained the highest flight altitude of all rockets built in post-war Germany. The signals from all these rockets were also received at the observatory in Bochum
Bochum
Bochum is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, western Germany. It is located in the Ruhr area and is surrounded by the cities of Essen, Gelsenkirchen, Herne, Castrop-Rauxel, Dortmund, Witten and Hattingen.-History:...
(300km SSW of Cuxhaven). After May 1963, the BSFEGmbH worked on the improvement of the steering system of their rockets and thought also on military usable rockets.
On December 5, 1963, the BSFEGmbH gave a flight demonstration of their rockets to military staff of non-NATO-countries. Although their rockets were launched with reduced amount of propellant in order not to violate Allied laws concerning the development of military rockets in Germany and were not fit for military use, the rocket experiments of the Hermann-Oberth-Gesellschaft e.V. and the BSFEGmbH after this date were viewed with great suspicion.
In 1964, these experiments were discontinued with a temporary injunction, which is still valid today, after a fatal accident at a rocket demonstration by Gerhard Zucker
Gerhard Zucker
Gerhard Zucker was a German businessman and rocket engineer. However, none of his machinations proved to be operational, ranging from outright fraud to total failure....
at Braunlage, although Gerhard Zucker did not cooperate with the BSFEGmbH or the Hermann-Oberth-Gesellschaft e.V. in any way and also had a bad reputation with the members of these societies.
External links
- http://www.modellraketenbau.de/countdown/cdo030301.htm
- http://www.raketen-modellbau-technik.de/geschichte/cuxhaven/bericht.htm
- http://www.astronautix.com/astros/seliger.htm