Robert Seamans; helped lead NASA during Apollo missions

A prominent figure in the quest to put a man on the moon, Robert C. Seamans Jr. helped lead the nation's space program from its infancy to its triumphant Apollo missions, working with aerospace engineers, pioneering astronauts, and presidents to win the space race against the Soviet Union.

Dr. Seamans, former deputy administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and former secretary of the Air Force, died Saturday of heart failure at his home in Beverly Farms. He was 89.

Dr. Seamans was a longtime professor at MIT, where he studied and taught aeronautics in the 1940s and 1950s. He played a central role in the early days of space exploration and joined NASA as an associate administrator in 1960, three years after the Soviet Union had launched Sputnik, the world's first man-made object to orbit the Earth. He worked closely with President Kennedy's administration toward achieving his pledge of a manned lunar landing by the end of the decade.

"Bob Seamans ran NASA during Apollo and was critical to its success," said Jay Apt, a former space shuttle astronaut. "He's really a giant figure in the history of space exploration."

Apt said that Seamans left a vast legacy at NASA and that his personality and intellectual rigor still "illuminate the best parts of the agency."

Mr. Seamans, who toured Cape Canaveral with famed rocket scientist Wernher von Braun and Kennedy less than a week before the president was assassinated, served as deputy administrator from 1965 to 1968 and worked closely with the defense department on research and engineering programs, particularly those that affected national security.

In an introduction to "Apollo Expeditions to the Moon," a NASA history, Dr. Seamans described the monumental technical and organizational challenges involved in carrying men to the moon and bringing them back safely.

"As planning for Apollo began, we identified more than 10,000 separate tasks that had to be accomplished to put a man on the Moon," Dr. Seamans wrote. "Each task had its particular objectives, its manpower needs, its time schedule, and its complex interrelationship with many other tasks."

His trademark attention to detail, combined with a determined ability to cut problems down to size, allowed him to tackle the most daunting tasks.

"He had a remarkable ability to get to the essence of things," said his son, Joseph, 60, who lives in Pittsburgh. "He could take very complicated issues and make very difficult decisions quickly. No matter what, he always kept moving forward toward the goal."

A native of Salem, Robert C. Seamans Jr. attended Lenox School in Lenox. He earned a bachelor's of science from Harvard University, a master's from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a doctorate in instrumenation from MIT.

Donald Seamans, Robert Seamans's younger brother, said Dr. Seamans had an ambitious, driven personality who took a meticulous approach to analyzing problems.

"He always figured out where he was going and how he was going to get there," Donald Seamans said with a chuckle.

But Dr. Seamans also had a bold streak. While some NASA administrators thought a lunar landing was a remote possibility, Dr. Seamans insisted it was within reach, and was not shy about saying so.

"He was willing to take risks, but very calculated risks," Donald Seamans said. "He was confident this could happen, and determined to try."

Apt said Seamans was instrumental in deciding in late 1968 to send Apollo 8 to the moon, over the objections of some in the agency. The successful mission, which orbited the moon 10 times, led the way for the lunar landing the following year.

"Had we not launched Apollo 8 when we did, the Russians might very well have gone to the moon first," Apt said. "It was a very gutsy call."

Dr. Seamans resigned from NASA in January 1968 to become a visiting professor at MIT, though he remained a consultant to the NASA administrator. From 1969 to 1973, he served as secretary of the Air Force, and in 1974 was named by President Ford as administrator of the Energy, Research and Development Administration.

He returned to MIT in 1977 and became dean of its School of Engineering. Even after retiring in 1984, he would return to the classroom to teach freshman seminars in aeronautics.

An accomplished sportsman, he excelled at sailing and tennis, going to great lengths to blend matches into his professional life.

"He would get off Air Force 2 with his tennis clothes on," his son recalled with a laugh. "Always had a game set up ahead of time."

Despite his high-powered career, he worked hard to spend time with his family, his son said.

"He was very protective of his personal life and the pleasure he got from it," he said.

Dr. Seamans and his wife, Eugenia, recently celebrated their 66th wedding anniversary.

Donald Seamans, 81, who lives in Marblehead, said family and friends could count on Dr. Seamans for a iron handshake and a heartfelt "How's the family?"

"When he shook hands with you, you knew it, and he was always interested in you and your family," he said. "He truly cared."

As recently as two weeks ago, he was playing tennis and looking forward to voyages on his refurbished 45-foot Bristol sailboat this summer, said his brother.

In addition to his son, Joseph, and wife, Eugenia (Merrill), Dr. Seamans leaves two daughters, Katharine Padulo of Philadelphia and May Baldwin of Cambridge; two sons, Robert III of Beverly Farms and Daniel of Berkeley, Calif., 11 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at St. John's Episcopal Church in Beverly Farms.