Tony Jenzano, Astronaut Trainer by Michael G Neece; 2020. Hardcover. (Ch-NF)

When America's first astronauts launched into outer space, Tony Jenzano helped them learn to navigate by the stars. As the leader of a big planetarium in a small town, Tony was the man who made the stars shine. Without Tony, NASA's first space travelers would have been lost in space.

Anthony Jenzano (1919–1997), an American man born in Philadelphia, loved the stars. After serving in the Navy during World War II where he trained as an electrician, Jenzano was hired by the Morehead Planetarium in Chapel Hill, NC, to run and maintain the star projector. He eventually became the director. In 1958, NASA asked Jenzano to teach the Mercury 7 astronaut team how to navigate space and use the stars as guides to return to Earth when equipment malfunctioned. Gus Grissom, John Glenn, and Alan Shepard were among those who trained with Jenzano. On at least two occasions, astronauts implemented the knowledge they acquired from Jenzano, including James Lovell and the other members of the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission. This picture book biography provides solid information about a little-known participant in the United States space program,