National Air and Space Museum Archives

Space Telescope History Project

Summary

Collection ID:
NASM.1999.0035
Creators:
National Air and Space Museum (U.S.). Division of Space History
Dates:
1983-1991
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
3.7 Cubic feet
15 cassette boxes; 5 letter-size document boxes
Repository:
This collection consists of the oral history transcripts and related research documentation for the Space Telescope History Project (STHP), which examined the space sciences, predominantly astronomy, viewed through the lens of a particular undertaking, the Hubble Space Telescope, 1970s-1980s.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
This collection consists of the oral history transcripts and related research documentation for the Space Telescope History Project (STHP), which examined the space sciences, predominantly astronomy, viewed through the lens of a particular undertaking, the Hubble Space Telescope, 1970s-1980s. The principal investigator for the STHP was Robert W. Smith, and the interview set contains 235 hours of interviews with 80 individuals. The central thread of this collection was the problem of configuring new political relations among the space sciences and sponsors. The following were interviewed: Bob Adams (with Robert Trevino and Kitty Havens); M. Aucremanne; John Bahcall; Neta Bahcall; William Baum; Michael Belton; March Bensimon; Robert Bless; Greg Boeshaar; Albert Boggess; John Brandt; Robert Brown; Bert Bulkin; Margaret Burbidge; J. J. Caldwell; Frank Carr; Clark Chapman; John Clark; Art Code; Frank Costa; E. G. Danielson; Arthur Davidsen; Mike Disney; John Downey; Rodger Doxsey; Frank Edmondson; James Elliot; Garvin Emanuel; William Fastie; Riccardo Giacconi; Alan Goldberg; Edward Groth; Arun Guha; Don Hall; Richard Harms; Richard Henry; Noel Hinners; Donald Hunten; William Keathley; Warren Keller; Sam Keller; Ivan King; A.L. Lane; Barry Lasker; Robin Laurence; David Leckrone; Malcolm Longair; John Lowrance; Duccio Macchetto; Bruce McCandless; Kent Meserve; Jesse Mitchell; Jim Moore; Mas Nein; Don Noah; Memphis Norman; T. Bland Norris; James Odom; Jean Olivier; Charles Pellerin; Arthur Reetz; Jack Rehnberg; Evan Richards; Nancy Roman; James Rose; Jeffrey Rosendhal; Jane Russell; Ethan Schreier; Daniel Schroeder; Thomas Sherrill; F. Pete Simmons; Stanley Sobieski; Fred Speer; Lyman Spitzer; Peter Stockman; Ernst Stuhlinger; John Teem; Domenick Tenerelli; William Tifft; Hedrick van de Hulst; Edward Weiler; James Welch; James Westphal; Richard White; and Ray Zedekar. The collection also contains the following documentation gathered from a variety of sources: photographs, slides, NASA publications and reports, contractor reports and studies, press releases, and finding aids produced by the Space History Department, NASM.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The Space Telescope History History Project interviews are arranged alphabetically by interviewee. Boxes 1-14 contain interviews on audio cassette tapes. Boxes 15-20 contain the transcripts for these cassette tapes. Most of these transcripts are available to researchers though, restrictions are placed on a small number of them. A NASM staff member will advise the patron which transcripts are available for copying and/or viewing and how to order copies of transcripts. Transcripts with user restrictions are highlighted in bold type.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
This collection contains the interviews for the Space Telescope History Project. These interviews examine the early planning and development of what would eventually be known as the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). The period covered is from the 1970s into the 1980s. This project constitutes one of several oral history projects carried out within the National Air and Space Museum's (NASM) Department of Space History. This interview set consists of over 235 hours of interviews with 94 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 a few cases of existing transcripts of the interviews without any audio cassette tapes. Those interviewed include astronomers, scientists, engineers, as well as administrators, all of whom were involved in the space telescope project. The following were interviewed for this project: Bob Adams, Ken Ando, Marcel Aucremanne, John N. Bahcall, Neta Bahcall, William Baum, Michael J.S. Belton, Marc Bensimon, Livingston Biddle, Robert C. Bless, Greg Boeshaar, Albert Boggess, III, John Brandt, Robert A. Brown, Bert Bulkin, Margaret E. Burbridge, J.J. Caldwell, Frank Carr, Clark R. Chapman, John Clark, Art Code, Frank V. Costa, Allan Cree, E.G. Danielson, Arthur Davidsen, Mike Disney, James A. Downey, III, Roger Doxsey, Frank K. Edmondson, James L. Elliot, Garvin Emmanuel, William G. Fastie, George Field, Don Fordyce, Laurence W. Fredrick, Riccardo Giaconi, Alan Goldberg, Edward Groth, Arun K. Guha, Don Hall, Richard Harms, Kitty Havens, Richard Henry, Noel Hinners, Donald Hunten, William W. Keathley, Warren J. Keller, Sam Keller, Ivan King, A.L. Lane, Barry Lasker, Robin J. Laurance, David Leckone, Malcolm Longair, John L. Lowrance, Duccio Macchetto, Bruce McCandless, Kent Meserve, Jesse L. Mitchell, Jim Moore, Max Nein, Don Noah, Memphis Norman, T. Bland Norris, James B. Odom, Jean R. Olivier, Charles Pellerin, Arthur J. Reetz, Jack Rehnberg, Evan Richards, Nancy Roman, James Rose, Jeffrey D. Rosendahl, Jane Russell, Ethan Schreier, Daniel J. Schroeder, Thomas J. Sherrill, Pete F. Simmons, Stanley Sobieski, Fred A. Speer, Lyman Spitzer, Peter Stockman, Ernst Stuhlinger, John Teem, Domenick Tenerelli, William G. Tifft, Rodger Thompson, Robert Trevino, Hendrick C. van de Hulst, Edward Weiler, James C. Welch, James A. Westphal, Richard L. White and Ray Zedekar.

Administration

Author
Mark Kahn
Processing Information
Arranged and described by Mark Kahn, 2008.
Encoded by Amanda Buel, 2014.
Immediate Source of Acquisition note
Department of Space History, NASM, Transfer, 1999, 1999-0035, Varies.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Use
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests.
Conditions Governing Access note
Some restrictions apply; see permission forms in the collection accession file.
Preferred Citation
Space Telescope History Project, NASM.1999.0035, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.

More Information

General note

General note
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.


Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Slides (photographs) Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Press releases Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Transcripts Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Astronautics Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Astronomy Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Space sciences Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Telescopes Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Reports Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Publications Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Baum, William Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bahcall, Neta Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bahcall, John N. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Aucremanne, M. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Adams, Robert 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
Westphal, James Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
White, Richard Lee, 1953- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Zedekar, Ray Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tifft, William G. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Trevino, Robert Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Weiler, Edward Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Welch, James Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Schroeder, D. J. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Schreier, Ethan Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Smith, Robert W. (Robert William), 1952- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Simmons, F. Pete Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rosendhal, Jeffrey D. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rose, James Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Scherrill, Thomas Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Russell, Jane Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Stuhlinger, Ernst, 1913- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Stockman, Peter Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tenerelli, Domenik Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Teem, John Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Space Telescope History Project (U.S.) Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sobieski, Stanley Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Spitzer, Lyman, 1914- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Speer, Fred Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Pellerin, Charles Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Olivier, Jean Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Odom, James Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Norris, T. Bland Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Roman, Nancy Grace, 1925- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Richards, Evan Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Rehnberg, Jack Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Reetz, Arthur Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Moore, Jim Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Mitchell, Jesse Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Norman, Memphis Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Noah, Don Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Nein, Mas Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
National Air and Space Museum. Department of Space History Corporate Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Leckrone, David Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Longair, M. S., 1941- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Lasker, Barry M. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Laurence, Robin Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
McCandless, Bruce, II, 1937-2017 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Meserve, Kent Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Lowrance, John Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Macchetto, F. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hunten, Donald M. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Keathley, William Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hinners, Noel W. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hulst, H. C. van de (Hendrik Christoffel), 1918- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
King, Ivan R. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Lane, A. L. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Keller, Sam Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Keller, Warren Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Goldberg, Alan Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Giacconi, Riccardo Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Guha, Arun Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Groth, Edward Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Harms, Richard Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hall, Donald N. B. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Henry, Richard B. C. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Havens, Kitty Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Disney, Michael Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Davidsen, Arthur Falnes, 1944- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Doxsey, Rodger E. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Downey, John Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Elliot, James, 1943-2011 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Edmondson, Frank K. (Frank Kelly) Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Fastie, William Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Emanuel, Garvin Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bulkin, Bert Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Burbidge, E. Margaret Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Caldwell, J. J. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Carr, Frank Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Chapman, Clark R. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Clark, John Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Costa, Frank Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Danielson, E. G. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Belton, M. J. S. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bensimon, March Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Bless, Robert, 1927- Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Boeshaar, Greg Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Boggess, Albert Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Brandt, John C. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Brown, Art Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Brown, Robert A. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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