Like father, Like son
A passion for space technology runs in Tim Pickens's family. Herman Leon Pickens, Tim's father, was an engineer and inventor who designed and analyzed circuits for NASA's Saturn 5 rocket ground support equipment while working for Sperry Rand Corp.'s Space Support Division in Huntsville, Alabama, from 1965 to 1972. Herman Pickens was still working on space technology when he died in 2016 at the age of 83.
*To this day when they lightrocket engines, they are using a device that he designed and built from his home shop to provide the spark to light the engines," Tim Pickens said by email.
NASA Marshall Space Flight Center relied on Herman Pickens' exciter in 2016 when testing an advanced upper stage engine fueled by liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen to provide 35,000 pounds of thrust.
The engine was tested over 10 times, including in heavy rain and the exciter worked every time, Jason Turpin, NASA Marshall Liquid Engine Systems Branch chief, said in a May 2016 letter to the Pickens family. "Although we suffered issues with instrumentation and valve control, Herman's exciter worked perfectly and provided reliable ignition," Turpin wrote.
Earlier this year, Tim Pickens learned of another large rocket engine tested with help from his father's exciter. "Even after his passing, he is still alive through the technology that exist at Marshall Space Flight Center," Tim Pickens said.
Herman Pickens was a U.S. Navy electrician before a lengthy career that included jobs with Philco, McDonnell Aircraft Corp. and RCA Corp.
"In later years he would go to work for me and be my most brilliant engineer," Tim Pickens said
- Debra Werner
A passion for space technology runs in Tim Pickens's family. Herman Leon Pickens, Tim's father, was an engineer and inventor who designed and analyzed circuits for NASA's Saturn 5 rocket ground support equipment while working for Sperry Rand Corp.'s Space Support Division in Huntsville, Alabama, from 1965 to 1972. Herman Pickens was still working on space technology when he died in 2016 at the age of 83.
*To this day when they lightrocket engines, they are using a device that he designed and built from his home shop to provide the spark to light the engines," Tim Pickens said by email.
NASA Marshall Space Flight Center relied on Herman Pickens' exciter in 2016 when testing an advanced upper stage engine fueled by liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen to provide 35,000 pounds of thrust.
The engine was tested over 10 times, including in heavy rain and the exciter worked every time, Jason Turpin, NASA Marshall Liquid Engine Systems Branch chief, said in a May 2016 letter to the Pickens family. "Although we suffered issues with instrumentation and valve control, Herman's exciter worked perfectly and provided reliable ignition," Turpin wrote.
Earlier this year, Tim Pickens learned of another large rocket engine tested with help from his father's exciter. "Even after his passing, he is still alive through the technology that exist at Marshall Space Flight Center," Tim Pickens said.
Herman Pickens was a U.S. Navy electrician before a lengthy career that included jobs with Philco, McDonnell Aircraft Corp. and RCA Corp.
"In later years he would go to work for me and be my most brilliant engineer," Tim Pickens said
- Debra Werner