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| Born | March 23, 1912 Wirsitz, German Empire |
| Died | June 16, 1977 |
| Profession | Engineer, Director of IGSA |
Wernher von Braun was a German rocket physicist and astronautics engineer who created the V-2 rocket during the Great World War, and was later head of the Imperial German Space Agency. His efforts ensured Germany was the second nation to send a satellite into orbit in 1958 (behind the USSR in 1957, and tied with the US), the first to send a man into space in 1959 (followed by the USSR in 1961, then the US later in '61), and the third to land a man on the Moon in 1971 (behind the US in 1968 and USSR in 1970).
He would also pioneer a united space effort between NASA and the IGSA in 1975, two years before his death, which would lead to Lunar Colonies by the mid 1980's. The Von Braun Lunar Base is named in his memory.