Ever wondered about that swooshy red thing in the NASA logo?

"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn) 02/24/2020 at 12:35 • Filed to: wingspan, Planelopnik, Spacelopnik

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The National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s first logo, seen above, was designed by NASA employee James Modarelli in 1959 and was nicknamed the “meatball.” The elements that Modarelli used in the symbol reflect NASA’s expanded mission after it transformed from the earlier National Advisory Committee or Aeronautics (NACA), which dealt primarily with aviation. The round blue ball represents a planet, and the stars represent space, while the elliptical pathway in the center represents space travel by depicting an orbit. Hearkening back to NACA’s original mission, the big red swoosh represents aeronautics. But where did the shape come from?

Modarelli found inspiration for the swoosh in an experimental wooden wing that NASA engineers developed in 1958 to investigate supersonic flight. Built for testing in a wind tunnel, the wing’s principal design elements—its sharp 75-degree sweep, cambered surfaces, and upturned nose—are all evident in Modarelli’s stylized design found in the NASA logo.

In 1975, NASA decided that they needed a more modern logo to represent the agency, so the meatball was dropped favor of what became known as the “worm.” This logo lasted until 1992, when the classic meatball returned as the agency’s primary symbol. For formal situations, NASA uses a seal which incorporates an updated version of the meatball.

The “worm”, NASA’s logo from 1975-1996

The formal NASA seal

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HammerheadFistpunch > ttyymmnn 02/24/2020 at 12:39

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neat!  I always wondered about that.

benn454 > ttyymmnn 02/24/2020 at 12:44

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 Got it right the first time. Meatball über alles.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > ttyymmnn 02/24/2020 at 13:03

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Check Snope. The red swoosh is for Chemtrails.

user314 > ttyymmnn 02/24/2020 at 13:20

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The “worm” logo is inexorably tied to the Shuttle in my mind.

ttyymmnn > HammerheadFistpunch 02/24/2020 at 13:54

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Yeah, I thought so too. I was browsing through the NASA Flickr when I saw that old photo of the wing. The caption identified it as the inspiration. 

ttyymmnn > user314 02/24/2020 at 13:55

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Yup. It was certainly prominent at that time. 

Tripper > ttyymmnn 02/24/2020 at 15:42

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“Ever wondered about that swooshy red thing in the NASA logo?”

Yes, thanks!

ttyymmnn > Tripper 02/24/2020 at 16:22

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ttyymmnn > user314 02/24/2020 at 17:19

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Now that I go back and look at these pictures, I think the w orm works well on the tail. Looks like they’re using a simplified meatball now.

And it’s reversed on the starboard side.

The Compromiser > ttyymmnn 02/24/2020 at 19:42

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Not until you mentioned it.  Now I had to know.

ttyymmnn > The Compromiser 02/24/2020 at 20:13

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And now you know.

phenotyp > ttyymmnn 02/25/2020 at 03:26

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I will always and forever be for the worm. It was the future of my childhood. 

Heard the symphony practice in austin was cancelled because of politics, yesterday.

Hope yall are doing good. Keep on keepin on. 

ttyymmnn > phenotyp 02/25/2020 at 07:47

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Don’t know where you heard that, but it’s absolutely false. The second rehearsal was canceled because we got everything done in the first rehearsal and didn’t need the second. And we still got paid for it. I know, I was there. Seriously, these sorts of rumors, and the people who start them, can GTFAC. 

phenotyp > ttyymmnn 02/25/2020 at 08:52

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Oh, well, I stand corrected. It was mentioned that way by a friend of mine who’s also in the orchestra. She’d said that everyone decided to stay out of dowtown because of the rally. Not a bad thing, or judgemental in any way.

I was just wishing y’all well.

Anyway. Team Worm Logo forever.

ttyymmnn > phenotyp 02/25/2020 at 09:35

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Thanks. I suppose the rally might have figured into the decision, but it would have been about logistics and not politics. We left about 30 minutes before the rally officially started, and traffic was fine. Ultimately, the decision to bag the rehearsal was made by the conductor.

What does your friend play? I’ve been in the orchestra (officially) for a few years, and I still don’t know many of the player’s names beyond those I sit near. 

phenotyp > ttyymmnn 02/25/2020 at 09:45

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I know a couple people in ASO. One of my neighbors is a harpist, and the other... I honestly don’t know what she plays. I think it’s cello, but we don’t see her much.

It was definitely a logistical decision; getting down town is bonkers on a regular day. Not fighting it when there’s something that big going down was the right thing to do.

user314 > ttyymmnn 02/25/2020 at 09:57

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God those engines look comically large on that plane. 

The Compromiser > ttyymmnn 02/26/2020 at 20:33

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And knowing is  half the something something...