Jesco von Puttkamer

Real world article
(written from a Production point of view)

Jesco von Puttkamer
Birth name:	Jesco Freiherr von Puttkamer
Date of birth:	22 September 1933
Place of birth:	Leipzig, Germany
Date of death:	27 December 2012
Place of death:	Alexandria, Virginia, USA
Roles:	Science Consultant, Star Trek author

Jesco Freiherr von Puttkamer (22 September 1933 – 27 December 2012; age 79) was a German-born American aerospace engineer and senior NASA manager, who served as special science advisor on the first Star Trek film, Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Among others, von Puttkamer came up with the theory behind the faster-than-light warp speed drive, and the slogan "The Human Adventure is Just Beginning". He also explained the scientific principles behind certain phenomena, such as the wormhole, to production staffers in order for them to be more accurate in displaying them in the movie. The memo he wrote to Gene Roddenberry, concerning the wormhole, is reproduced in Starlog magazine.

Von Puttkamer's scientific input was not lost on the Star Trek fan community, and he had been invited to several period conventions, which he attended. (Starlog, issue 3, p. 27) Nor did his acquaintance with the franchise stop there, as Puttkamer also wrote a short story for the The New Voyages 2 anthology, edited by Sondra Marshak and Myrna Culbreath.

Von Puttkamer was later the management leader of the International Space Station at the NASA Headquarters in Washington DC.

He died of a sudden illness on 27 December 2012 at his home. [1]

Bibliography

• "The Sleeping God", The New Voyages 2, 1978
• "The Origins of Star Trek's Wormhole", Starlog, issue 33, April 1980, p. 25

External links

• Jesco von Puttkamer at Wikipedia
• Jesco von Puttkamer at the Internet Movie Database