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Obituaries

Elmer H. Davison, 86, Retired NASA Aeronautical Engineer, Worked on Mariner Space Program

He helped send robotic probes to explore Mars, Venus and Mercury.

Elmer H. Davison, who retired from what is now NASA Glenn Research Center after a 30-year career in aeronautical engineering, conducted research on the Mariner space program that led to unmanned space probes exploring Mars, Venus and Mercury.

The forward-thinking Westlake resident, who died Nov. 5, at age 86, evaluated the potential hazards of meteors, micro-meteors and space debris on spacecraft in the 1960s.

He studied solar electric power and helped develop a patented process for opening solar panels on satellites. He led research on using ionized rocket fuel as an alternative to standard liquid fuels.

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Davison was born in Greensburg, PA, and grew up in Cincinnati.

After receiving a bachelor's degree in engineering from the University of Cincinnati in 1947, he began working for NASA's predecessor, NACA, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics.

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He earned a master's degree in engineering in 1951 from what was then Case Institute of Technology.

The aeronautical engineer was also an outdoorsman and hunter. He belonged to the Woods and Waters Club of Northern Ohio. He planned to develop a nature preserve on the 210-acre working farm that he owned near Cambridge, OH.

Survivors include his wife, Josephine; children, Michael, Sherrie and Barbara; and seven grandchildren.

A memorial service took place at West Shore Unitarian Church in Rocky River, where Davison was a member.

Memorial donations may be made to the Parkinson's Disease Foundation or the Hospice of the Western Reserve.

Arrangements were by .

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