After the war, more than 100 Nazi scientists — including several from the V-2 rocket program — escaped through ODESSA (a network of former SS officers) to Argentina, Spain, and Egypt. Perhaps the most remarkable escape was that of Dr. Kurt H. Debus, who managed to get to Argentina and then to the United States — where he became the director of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Debus oversaw the launch facilities for Mercury, Apollo, and Skylab. He was awarded the NASA Distinguished Service Medal in 1973. His Nazi past was not publicly known until 1985, when a historian researching ODESSA discovered his service record. Debus died in 1977 without ever publicly discussing his wartime activities.