News of American rocket pioneer Robert Goddard's ideas about a rocket being able to reach the Moon drifted overseas and attracted the attention of Hermann Oberth. In May 1922, Oberth read in a Heidelberg newspaper of the American's work and immediately wrote a letter to Goddard. In his best fractured English, Oberth explained his own interest and work in rocketry, his delight at finding a fellow enthusiast, and his desire to learn more about Goddard's work. He requested a copy of Goddard's paper, A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitudes, and promised to send a copy of his own work, Die Rakete zu den Planetenraumen (By Rocket to Planetary Space), as soon as it was published.
Goddard didn't care for either the letter or the idea that someone else was involved in rocketry. Nevertheless, he felt obliged to answer Oberth, and he reluctantly sent a copy of his paper to Heidelberg. Oberth quickly sent Goddard a copy of his book. Goddard was stunned and suspicious that, rather than keeping his futuristic thoughts to himself, the man was publishing them for everyone to read. For a short time after Goddard read Die Rakete, he engaged in a brief correspondence with the person he would forever refer to as "that German Oberth." But the two never established any lasting connection either personally or professionally.
