Actually you are wrong about the zero knowledge part.
Once of the misconceptions about the early space program succcess was that the funding provided during the 60s put folks into college who then graduated and came out and put the Apollo on the moon.
22 year olds didn’t build our space program - 30, 40, and 50 year olds with existing degrees - the vast majority of which payed their own way through college - did. Quite a few were imports from Germany shortly after WWII when the Allies moved in.
In other words - we didn’t go from zero knowledge.
=8-)
I was not talking about that. What I meant was going to the moon or space flight had never been done before. Virtually all of it was engineered and build from point zero.
No, I am not wrong.
You’re correct.
Without “our” Germans it would have taken a lot longer.