National Air and Space Museum Archives

Space Astronomy Oral History Project

Summary

Collection ID:
NASM.1999.0034
Creators:
DeVorkin, David H., 1944-
Dates:
1981-1991
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
3.59 Cubic feet
19 boxes
Repository:
The collection consists of the transcripts for the Space Astronomy Oral History Project (SAOHP), which examined the early use of rockets and satellites to study the upper atmosphere and space for the period 1946 through the early 1960s. This project constitutes one of several oral history projects conducted within the Department of Space History, NASM. The principal investigator for the SAOHP was David H. DeVorkin, and the interview set contains 225 hours of interviews with 56 individuals. The central thread of this collection is how the availability of new technologies for research, first the rocket and later satellites, helped to create a new social matrix for research. The following were interviewed: Jules Aaron; Ball Brothers; William Baum, William Behring; Jay Bergstrahl; Richard Bleach; William Brunk; Arthur Code; Jerry Conner; Frank Drake; William Fastie; Lorence Fraser; Herbert Friedman; Phyllis Frier; Robert Frosch; George Gianoplis; Thomas Gold; Leo Goldberg; Martin Harwit; Ralph Havens; Albert Hibbs; Noel Hinners; Hans Hinteregger; Charles Johnson; Francis Johnson; Adolph Jursa; Henry Kondracki; Ernst Krause; Alfred Nier; Gerry Neugebauer; Werner Neupert; Ray Newburn; Gordon Newkirk; Edward Ney; Charles O'Dell; William Pickering; Richard Porter; James Purcell; William Rense;Walter Roberts; Nancy Roman; Milton Rosen; Dan Scheiderman; Ronald Schorn; Martin Schwarzschild; Richard Silberstein; John Simpson; Lyman Spitzer; Kaj Strand; Nelson Spencer; John Strong; Gerald Tape; Clyde Tombaugh; Richard Tousey; Mona Tycz; James Van Allen; Gerald Wasserburg; James Webb; James Westphal; Charles Whitsett; Fred Wilshusen; and George Withbroe.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
Audio cassettes and transcipts.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The Space Astronomy Oral History Project interviews are arranged alphabetically by interviewee.

Historical Note

Historical Note
This collection contains the interviews for the Space Astronomy Oral History Project. These interviews explore the early use of rockets and satellites over the period 1946 through the early 1960s to investigate the upper atmosphere and space. This project constitutes one of several oral history projects conducted within the National Air and Space Museum's (NASM) Department of Space History. The principal interviewer for this project was David H. DeVorkin and the interview set consists of 225 hours of interviews with 67 individuals. Please note that there are a few instances where audio cassette tapes of the interview subjects exist but without written transcripts while there are also a few cases of existing transcripts of the interviews without any audio cassette tapes. The following were interviewed for this project: Jules Aaron; Frank Bateson; William Alvin Baum; William Behring; Jay Thor Bergstrahl; Richard Bleach; William E. Brunk; Arthur Dodd Code; Jerry Conner; Fred Dolder; Frank Donald Drake; William G. Fastie; Lorence Fraser; Phyllis Freier; Herbert Friedman; Robert Frosch; Reuben H. Gablehouse; R.A.Gaiser; George Gianopolis; Thomas Gold; Leo Goldberg; Martin Otto Harwit; Ralph Havens; Albert Roach Hibbs; Noel Hinners; Hans Erich Hinteregger; Charles Yothers Johnson; Francis S. Johnson; Adolph Simon Jursa; Jerome Kohl; Henry Kondracki; Ernst Henry Krause; R.C. Mercure; Alfred O. Neir; Gerry Neugebauer; Werner Neupert; Ray Leon Newburn; Gordon Allen Newkirk; Edward P. Ney; Charles Robert O'Dell; William Hayward Pickering; Richard W. Porter; James D. Purcell; William A. Rense; Walter Orr Roberts; Nancy Grace Roman; Milton W. Rosen; Dan Schneiderman; Ronald A. Schorn; Martin Schwarzschild; Richard Silberstein; John Simpson; Nelson W. Spencer; Lyman Spitzer, Jr.; Kaj Strand; John Strong; Gerald Tape; Clyde William Tombaugh; Richard Tousey; Mona Tycz; James Van Allen; Gerald Joseph Wasserburg; James Edwin Webb; James A. Westphal; Charles Edward Whitsett; Fred Wilshusen and George Withbroe.

Administration

Author
Mark Kahn
Immediate Source of Acquisition note
Space History, NASM, Transfer, 1999, 1999-0034, Varies
Processing Information
Additional material: This collection consists only of the interview transcripts, not the tapes. The tapes are housed in the National Air and Space Museum Department of Space History.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access note
The audio cassette tapes of these interviews have yet to be remastered and, due to their fragility, are unavailable to researchers. Transcripts are available to researchers though, there are restrictions placed on a number of them. A NASM staff member will advice the patron which transcripts are available for copying or viewing and how to order copies of transcripts and/or CDs.
Preferred Citation
Space Astronomy Oral History Project, Acc. 1994-0034, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
Conditions Governing Use

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Transcripts Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rockets (Aeronautics) Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Atmosphere, Upper -- Rocket observations Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Astronomy Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Astronautics Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Artificial satellites Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Code, Arthur D. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Connor, Jerry Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bleach, Richard Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
National Air and Space Museum (U.S.). Division of Space History Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Behring, William Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bergstralh, Jay T. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Aaron, Jules Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Baum, William Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Frier, Phyllis Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Frosch, Robert Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Fraser, Lorence Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Friedman, Herbert Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Drake, Frank D. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Fastie, William Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
DeVorkin, David H., 1944- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Brunk, William Edward, 1928- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Strand, K. Aage (Kaj Aage), 1907- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Spitzer, Lyman, 1914- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Spencer, Nelson Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Space Astronomy Oral History Project (SAOHP) (U.S.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tousey, Richard, 1908-1997 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tombaugh, Clyde William, 1906- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tape, Gerald Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Strong, John Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Webb, James E. (James Edwin), 1906-1992 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Wasserburg, Gerald Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Van Allen, James Alfred, 1914- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tycz, Mona Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Withbroe, G. L. (George L.) Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Wilshusen, Fred Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Whitsett, Charles Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Westphal, James Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Newkirk, Gordon Allen, 1928- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Ney, Edward Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Nier, Alfred Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
O'Dell, Charles Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Pickering, William Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Porter, Richard W. (Richard William), 1913-1996 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Purcell, J. DeWitt (James DeWitt), 1912-1986 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rense, William Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Roberts, Walter Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Roman, Nancy Grace, 1925- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rosen, Milton W. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Scheiderman, Dan Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Schorn, Ronald Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Schwarzschild, Martin Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Silberstein, Richard Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Simpson, John A. (John Alexander), 1916-2000 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Gold, Thomas Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Gianoplis, George Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Harwit, Martin, 1931- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Goldberg, Leo Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hinners, Noel W. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hibbs, Albert R. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Johnson, Charles Yothers, 1920- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hinteregger, Hans H. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Jursa, Adolph S. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Johnson, Francis Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Krause, Ernst H. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Kondracki, Henry Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Neugebauer, G. (Gerry) Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Newburn, R. L. (Ray L.) Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Neupert, Werner Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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