(Each image is approximately 200K - 400K in size)

Aberdeen Turbine Pump

NOTE: The photographers scale seen in many of these shots is 6 x 12 inches
in size with inches shown in the checkerboard portion.

The 5,000 rpm liquid oxygen and alcohol pump was the key to building a liquid fueled rocket.  Although Robert Goddard had already built one in the New Mexico desert, few in Germany thought that such a pump could be built compact enough and light enough for use in a rocket.  It would be Walter who would make the breakthrough in Germany and provide the Peenemunde engineers with a practical "heart" for their tactical ballistic missile.  The pump was driven by a hydrogen peroxide burning "steam generator" mounted inside the V2.  This unit would be started first then, after the pump was spinning at operating rpm, the fuel and oxidizer valves would be opened.  When the alcohol and liquid oxygen came together in the combustion chamber they would ignite automatically and the engine would be running.

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