Valentin Petrovich Glushko

Valentin Petrovich Glushko (born Aug. 20 [Sept. 2, New Style], 1908, Odessa, Ukraine, Russian Empire—died Jan. 10, 1989, Moscow, Russia, U.S.S.R.) was a Soviet rocket scientist, a pioneer in rocket propulsion systems, and a major contributor to Soviet space and defense technology. After graduating from Leningrad State University (1929), Glushko headed the design bureau of Gas Dynamics Laboratory in Leningrad and began research on electrothermal, solid-fuel, and liquid-fuel rocket engines. Working together from 1932 to...