Whipple, Fred L. (Fred Lawrence), 1906-2004, interviewee Search this
Extent:
4 audiotapes (Reference copies).
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Transcripts
Audiotapes
Date:
1976
Introduction:
The Smithsonian Institution Archives began its Oral History Program in 1973. The purpose of the program is to supplement the written documentation of the Archives'
record and manuscript collections with an Oral History Collection, focusing on the history of the Institution, research by its scholars, and contributions of its staff. Program
staff conducts interviews with current and retired Smithsonian staff and others who have made significant contributions to the Institution. There are also interviews conducted
by researchers or students on topics related to the history of the Smithsonian or the holdings of the Smithsonian Institution Archives.
Whipple was interviewed for the Oral History Collection because of his central role in the modernization of the SAO and his outstanding contributions to science. For additional
information, see the following related collections in Smithsonian Archives: the records of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory; the Fred Lawrence Whipple Papers; and
Record Unit 9542, Multiple Mirror Telescope videohistory interviews.
Descriptive Entry:
Whipple was interviewed on June 24 and 25, 1976 by Pamela M. Henson. The interviews cover his education; radar countermeasure work during World War II; role in the development
of national programs for astrophysics and space exploration; research program on comets, meteors, and interplanetary material; administration of SAO; development of Mt. Hopkins,
MMT, and optical tracking programs; and reminiscences of colleagues such as Imre G. Izsak, Craig M. Merrihue, and Carlton W. Tillinghast.
Historical Note:
Fred Lawrence Whipple (1906-2004), received the B.A. in mathematics with a minor in physics and astronomy from the University of California at Los Angeles in 1927 and
the Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of California at Berkeley in 1931. His early training focused on comet orbits. After teaching for a year at Stanford University,
he joined the staff of the Harvard College Observatory in 1931 and remained in Cambridge throughout his career. During the 1930s his work focused on double station meteor
research. From 1943 to 1945, he developed radar countermeasures for the U. S. Army Radiation Laboratory of the Office of Scientific Research and Development. After World War
II he worked on development of the Super-Schmidt cameras to photograph meteors and continued research on the influx of material from comets into the interplanetary medium.
His comet research culminated in publication of the Icy Comet Model in 1950. During the forties he also conducted studies of meteor hazards to spacecraft, inventing the meteor
bumper, and served on the Rocket and Satellite Research Panel. In the early fifties, with Wernher von Braun and Cornelius J. Ryan, he coauthored a series of popular articles
on the conquest of the space frontier.
His teaching career at Harvard University progressed from Instructor, 1932-1938; Lecturer, 1938-1945; Associate Professor, 1945-1950; Professor, 1950-1970; Chairman of
the Department of Astronomy, 1949-1956; to Phillips Professor of Astronomy, 1970-1977. Thus when Whipple was appointed Director of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
(SAO) in July 1955, he moved its headquarters to the Cambridge campus and continued as Professor and member of the Harvard College Observatory staff. He reorganized the Smithsonian's
observatory and reoriented its research program. Under his directorship, the staff grew from a handful to more than five hundred, including over sixty scientists.
At the request of the National Science Foundation and the National Academy of Sciences, Whipple began development of Baker-Nunn cameras to track artificial satellites during
the International Geophysical Year (1957-1958). With the help of Armand N. Spitz, he also developed the Moonwatch optical tracking program, which utilized teams of volunteers
observing satellites with hand-held telescopes. When Sputnik was launched in October of 1957, the Moonwatch teams were the only U. S. mechanism available to track the Russian
satellite. The SAO subsequently received large contracts from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to operate the Satellite Tracking Program (STP), an optical
tracking system with Baker-Nunn camera stations located all over the globe. Whipple's satellite tracking work earned him the 1963 Distinguished Civilian Service Award from
President John F. Kennedy.
The Prairie Network, an optical tracking system designed to photograph meteorites and fireballs in order to calculate their orbits, created by Whipple and Richard E. McCrosky,
began observations in 1964. Coordination of STP camera observations with Jodrell Bank Observatory radio data on flare stars led to the first identification of radio noise
from any star besides the sun.
SAO relied on early computers such as the Mark IV, IBM 7090, and CDC 6400 for rapid processing of massive quantities of data. Baker-Nunn and Super-Schmidt camera data were
directly processed by automated means, which made possible the 1966 SAO Star Catalog, coordinated by Katherine L. Haramundanis. Whipple required direct publication from computer
tapes, a first for the U. S. Government Printing Office. Observations from the STP were progressively refined during the sixties through new laser tracking techniques and
advances in automated data processing, to provide improved geodetic and geophysical data. In the early sixties, stellar atmosphere models were developed with the aid of an
IBM 7090 and after 1966 a CDC 6400, in anticipation of far ultraviolet light data from orbiting observatories. Based on this experience in upper atmosphere research, Whipple
was appointed project director for the orbiting astronomical observatories from 1958 to 1972.
The telegraph service of the International Astronomical Union came to the SAO in 1965 under the coordination of Owen J. Gingerich and later Brian G. Marsden. It utilized
SAO's sophisticated communications network and led eventually to the creation of the Center for Short-Lived Phenomena by Robert A. Citron.
Development of an observatory site at Mt. Hopkins, Arizona, began in 1966. Chosen by Whipple for its altitude and seeing conditions, the site was dedicated in 1981 as the
Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory. On this site, in conjunction with the U. S. Air Force and University of Arizona, he developed the technically innovative Multiple Mirror
Telescope (MMT), which commenced observations in May of 1979.
In addition to his own research program on comets, meteors, and interplanetary materials, Whipple coordinated the SAO research programs in celestial mechanics, geodesy,
meteoritics, radio astronomy, neutrino searches, stellar atmosphere models, and the atomic clock project to test the theory of relativity. He encouraged NASA's lunar program
and development of the space telescope.
Whipple was distinguished both for his theoretical work in astrophysics and his technical innovations in such areas as tracking cameras, multiple mirror telescopes, and
meteor bumpers. A member of the National Academy of Sciences, Whipple received the Academy's J. Lawrence Smith Medal in 1949 for his meteor research. He was awarded the Kepler
Medal by the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1971 and the Joseph Henry Medal of the Smithsonian Institution in 1973. Through his work on numerous federal
and private boards, panels, and commissions, Whipple was influential in the development of national programs for research in astrophysics and creation of a space exploration
program.
Whipple retired from administration of SAO in 1973 but continued active research as a Senior Scientist from 1973 to 1977. Upon his retirement in 1977, he was appointed
Emeritus Phillips Professor of Astronomy at Harvard.
Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Satellite Tracking Program Search this
Extent:
41 cu. ft. (82 document boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Color photographs
Black-and-white photographs
Maps
Clippings
Manuscripts
Architectural drawings
Date:
1953-1968
Descriptive Entry:
This record unit consists mostly of records documenting the administration and operation of the STP tracking stations and includes files on the stations kept by the
Photographic Observation Section, 1956-1961; SOD, 1961-1965; and STADAD, 1965-1968. The station files consist of incoming and outgoing correspondence and memoranda, reports,
and technical data concerning satellite tracking operations; station fiscal matters; the construction and maintenance of station buildings and facilities; conferences and
meetings held at the stations; the procurement of equipment and supplies for the stations; station personnel; and special projects conducted at each station. Also included
are administrative records of SOD and STADAD; station files and administrative records of the Engineering Section of SOD and STADAD, mostly concerning the operation of the
Baker-Nunn tracking cameras at each station; station financial statements; and records documenting relations between SAO and foreign countries or states where tracking stations
were located.
Many of the files in this record unit are arranged in a numerical-subject records management system instituted at SAO about 1964. In the system, records were assigned a
number code based on subject classification and filed numerically. Often records prior to 1964 were refiled using the numerical-subject system. Retrieval of records using
the system is difficult. For a detailed explanation of the SAO numerical-subject filing system, see appendix 1 in the Archives.
Historical Note:
Created in 1956 as part of the International Geophysical Year, the Satellite Tracking Program (STP) of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) was a world-wide
network of stations responsible for the optical tracking of satellites. From 1956 until June 1959, the program was funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
In July 1959, funding was assumed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The goal of STP was to obtain photographs of satellites in sufficient number
and accuracy to allow the determination of highly precise orbits. Data derived from the orbits provided information concerning variations in the density and temperature of
the upper atmosphere and helped construct new representations of the earth's gravitational potential and geometrical figure. Twelve camera stations were established around
the world between 36 degrees north and 36 degrees south of the equator. Stations were located at Jupiter, Florida (closed in 1967); Organ Pass, New Mexico (moved to Mt. Hopkins,
Arizona in 1968); Maui, Hawaii; Curacao, Netherlands Antilles, West Indies (moved to Natal, Brazil, in 1966); Arequipa, Peru; Villa Dolores, Argentina (moved to Comodoro Rivadavia,
Argentina, in 1966); Shiraz, Iran (moved to Debre Zeit, Ethiopia, in 1966); Olifantsfontein, South Africa; Naini Tal, India; San Fernando, Spain; Tokyo, Japan (closed in 1968);
and Woomera, Australia (moved to the Space Research Site at Island Lagoon, Australia, in 1964). Cooperative programs enabled STP to track satellites at United States Air Force
stations at Oslo, Norway, and Johnston and Kwajalein Islands in the Pacific Ocean; the Royal Canadian Air Force station at Cold Lake, Alberta; Harvard University's Agassiz
Station; and the geodetic station at the National Technical University of Athens, Greece. A special satellite tracking camera, designed by James C. Baker and Joseph Nunn,
was installed in each station.
When it was created in 1956, STP was a part of SAO's Upper Atmosphere Studies Division. The 12 satellite tracking camera stations were administered by the Photographic
Observation Section, under the direction of Karl G. Henize. In 1961, STP became a separate Department of SAO. At that time the Station Operations Division (SOD) was created
within STP for the administrative direction and logistical support of all satellite tracking camera stations, for maintenance of equipment and development of new equipment
and techniques, and for technical support in observing procedures. SOD was organized into three sections: Administrative, Operations, and Engineering. Richard C. Brock became
the first chief of the Station Operations Division in June 1961. Other incumbents included Jan Rolff, 1962-1964, and Carl W. Hagge, acting chief, 1964-1965. In 1965, SOD was
abolished and replaced by the Satellite Tracking and Data Acquisition Department (STADAD). STADAD assumed the duties of its predecessor and was also responsible for administering
SAO's Meteor Simulation Project station at Wallops Island, Virginia. STADAD was comprised of five divisions: Optical Tracking Division, Moonwatch Division, Wallops Island
Division, Engineering Division, and Administrative Support Division. John I. Hsia was appointed the first manager of STADAD in 1965. Other incumbents included Jack A. Coffey,
1966-1968, and Harry Albers, 1968- .
Topic:
International Geophysical Year, 1957-1958 Search this
Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 263, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Satellite Tracking Program, Satellite Tracking Station Records
Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Moonwatch Division Search this
Extent:
24 cu. ft. (24 record storage boxes)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Motion pictures (visual works)
Audiotapes
Manuscripts
Black-and-white photographs
Clippings
Black-and-white transparencies
Date:
1956-1975
Introduction:
This finding aid was digitized with funds generously provided by the Smithsonian Institution Women's Committee.
Descriptive Entry:
These records document the history of the Moonwatch Division and the volunteer Flight Officer Network. They include the outgoing correspondence of Albert Werner, 1968-1975;
general correspondence of the Moonwatch Division, 1957-1975; Moonwatch station files, 1956-1975, including correspondence and other data from American and foreign Moonwatch
teams; Moonwatch administrative files, 1956-1975; Moonwatch project files, 1962-1973, including correspondence and reports on various comets, satellites, and other projects
assigned to Moonwatch to track; the incoming and outgoing correspondence of Herbert E. Roth, 1966-1975; general correspondence of the VFON, 1969-1975; VFON airline files,
1963-1975, containing correspondence and sighting reports from member airlines; VFON administrative files, 1963-1975; Moonwatch and VFON newsletters and bulletins, 1956-1975;
and a small number of slides, tapes, and movies.
Historical Note:
The Moonwatch Division of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory was created in 1956 as part of the Satellite Tracking Program established to track and photograph
the artificial earth satellites to be launched during the International Geophysical Year, 1957-1958. The surprise launch of Sputnik in 1957 generated much enthusiasm for the
satellite program. Amateur astronomers, often supported by local businesses and schools, formed groups of volunteers who manned rows of telescopes searching for satellites.
The Moonwatch Division directed and instructed the observers, loaned them equipment, and tabulated the data collected. Scientists were named in other parts of the world to
help establish Moonwatch teams in many foreign countries. Gradually many "teams" came to be composed of a single observer, highly skilled in satellite tracking and often affiliated
with a local observatory or university. Until its termination in 1975, the Moonwatch Division coordinated this network of volunteers and amassed a total of nearly 400,000
observations of satellites. Directors of the Division included Armand N. Spitz, 1956-1957; Leon Campbell, Jr., 1957-1962; Richard C. Vanderburgh, 1962-1964; William P. Hirst,
1964-1968; and Albert Werner, 1968-1975.
The Volunteer Flight Officer Network (VFON) was established in 1963 by Denver Moonwatch team leader Herbert E. Roth to collect eyewitness reports of satellites and meteor
sightings from airline pilots and other flight personnel. Roth was employed by United Air Lines, which agreed to support the project by providing printing and mailing funds.
In 1965 the VFON became affiliated with Moonwatch, which advised Roth and assumed a part of the mailing expenses. In 1969 Moonwatch assumed complete administrative control
of the VFON under a contract with the United States Air Force. Before its termination in 1975, the VFON had grown to include the employees of 118 airlines in 57 countries
and had collected approximately 4200 observations. Roth was its sole director.
Topic:
International Geophysical Year, 1957-1958 Search this
International Geophysical Year, 1957-1958 Search this
Local number:
SIA RU000371 [96-1369]
Restrictions & Rights:
No access restrictions Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu
No access restrictions Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu
No access restrictions Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu
United States IGY bibliography, 1953-1960; an annotated bibliography of United States contributions to the IGY and IGC (1957-1959) Compiled by Frank M. Marson and Janet R. Terner. A joint project of the Library of Congress, the National Science Foundation, the National Academy of Sciences
Author:
Library of Congress Science and Technology Division Search this
