Chapter 9: An Active Retirement 

Chapter 9 

M

An Active Retirement 

Saudi Arabia 

By 1975, the College of Petroleum and Minerals near Dhahran in the 

Kingdom of Saudi Arabia had grown in size and status to the point where, by 

a royal decree, it was raised to the status of a university. The student body had 

expanded from about 60 to over 2,000 full-time students at both the undergraduate and the graduate level. Saudi and foreign students from over 40 countries were represented on the university’s large desert-based academic campus. 

The full-time academic faculty numbered about 400, about half of whom 

were Saudi with the balance being foreign source academics under contract 

to the university. 

The university looked to what it called a “Consortium of American 

Universities” for advice and guidance on a broad range of topics relevant to 

the establishment and operation of a first rank university. Representatives 

from Caltech, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University, 

Stanford University, and the University of Michigan, among others, were part 

of the consortium, which met twice a year in Saudi Arabia or in the U.S.

1 

Plans for the following decade included a research institute devoted to 

applied research and development projects in five areas of specific interest to the 

Kingdom: namely water, oil, minerals, energy, and standards of measurement.

2 

Therefore, it was hardly surprising that in 1975, when the newly chartered 

University of Petroleum and Minerals (UPM) began looking for a director for its 

new Research Institute, it would send its Senior Advisor to the Rector

3 to talk 

with William Pickering, retiring director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). 

Dr. Robert King Hall was “the guy from Saudi Arabia” that “turned up” at 

JPL, much to Pickering’s surprise, about the time that he had concluded that a 

return to academic life at Caltech after retirement would not be in his best interests. King Hall’s offer of a position as the first director of the new Research 

Institute in Saudi Arabia suddenly offered an intriguing alternative. 

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William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

For the next several months, while the retirement functions swirled about him, 

Pickering considered the King Hall proposal. Ultimately, he agreed to accept a 

contract for two years, beginning in September 1976 when the UPM academic 

year began, right after the extremely hot months of midsummer were past. Since his 

function at this point was to be largely planning in nature, he did not see the need to 

reside permanently in Saudi Arabia. He would do his planning in Pasadena. 

Pickering made the first move in his post-JPL career with a brief two week 

visit to the Research Institute right after the new director took office at JPL in 

April 1976. Impressed with the university and its infrastructure and, incidentally, intrigued by the cultural overtones that infused every aspect of Arabian 

academic life, Pickering returned to Pasadena to address the task of generating 

a long-term development plan for the institute. For this purpose he engaged 

several colleagues from Caltech and JPL on a part-time basis to help him plan 

a curriculum and formulate an operating mode for the new institute. 

Pickering believed that the Research Institute should play a role for Saudi 

Arabia similar to that of the great American institutes of technology and his 

general plan, produced toward the end of 1976, reflected those concepts.

4 

The Research Institute would perform several very important research 

functions for the Kingdom. For the first time, engineering problems arising 

within the Kingdom could be investigated at home by a competent research 

team rather than by calling on experts from abroad. The Research Institute 

could initiate research activities leading to practical applications of particular 

value to the Kingdom and the unique institutional and technical resources 

of the Research Institute would enable it to perform the underlying research 

work that would lead to new industries in the Kingdom. 

Most of the work would be done within the Research Institute, although 

some would be contracted out. Pickering emphasized the need to retain people 

with experience in applied research, principally from the U.S., as a resource 

for the Research Institute in its early years. He suggested criteria by which the 

institute could select engineering problems for study and criteria by which the 

approach to selected projects could be evaluated. 

Finally, he suggested a management structure that was strongly representative of the flight project structure that he had advocated for so many years at JPL. 

Pickering wrote, “Since much of the institute work will be oriented toward 

projects involving a number of technical disciplines, the staff will frequently be 

organized into project teams. These teams will be structured into a hierarchy of 

responsibilities, and their members will be required to work within the structure. Members must understand how to work as members of a team rather than 

as individual researchers as is usually true in university faculty research.” 

For the next couple of years Pickering divided his time between the Research 

Institute in Dhahran and his office in Pasadena, living on the university campus 

when in Saudi Arabia and living at home during his return visits to California. 

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It was a lifestyle that he thoroughly enjoyed and he took a great interest in the history, religion, and culture of the Arabic world in which he was now immersed. On 

one visit he took Muriel with him and together they shared a new and enriching 

experience of living with other expatriates and faculty in the “Compound” 

on the campus. 

Between commutes to Dhahran and Pasadena he found time, and reason, 

to deliver speeches and lectures—on space in Saudi Arabia5 and on “Islam and 

Oil” in California6—and to attend a conference in Lyons, France, on “Space 

and Civilization.”7 

When his contract with UPM expired in August 1978, Pickering returned to 

Pasadena and his protégé at the institute, a young Saudi scientist named Abdallah 

Dabbagh, took over as director of the Research Institute. By then, the institute 

was developing along the lines that Pickering had proposed in his original planning document. It was now up to the Saudi’s to make it work and he had great 

confidence that Director Dabbagh had the potential to do that. From this point 

forward he would become a member of the university’s Advisory Consortium 

and give the benefit of his advice once or twice each year as required. 

In subsequent years, Pickering returned to Saudi Arabia on several occasions as a member of the Consortium.

8 

Over time, the Research Institute evolved into a vibrant state-of-the-art 

institution contributing its expertise in a wide spectrum of applied research to 

problems of prime interest to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, all 

of this had been accomplished within the original organizational structure.

9 

William Pickering could justifiably take some considerable satisfaction in that. 

Toward the end of his contract, William Pickering presented the university 

with a proposal to continue his association with the Research Institute as an 

independent technical consultant rather than as an employee of the university. 

To that end, he planned to set up a small, high tech consulting firm in Pasadena 

that would “provide manpower, expert consulting, technical studies, and supporting services to the Research Institute.” In providing such support, the firm 

would, from time to time, draw upon experts readily available to Pickering 

through his close working relationships with numerous laboratories and educational institutions, most notably JPL and Caltech. The firm would be known as 

the Pickering Research Corporation (PRC) and would be based in Pasadena.

10 

With this business model in mind and high ambitions for future growth in a 

broad range of advanced technical areas, Pickering assembled a small group of 

professional colleagues from JPL and Caltech and with a very modest amount of 

working capital formed the Pickering Research Corporation: “a nonprofit institution to provide research and development support to the Kingdom of Saudi 

Arabia,” in Pasadena in 1978.

11 

The precise details of the services to be supplied were to be negotiated in the 

form of a three year renewable contract between the PRC and the institute. 

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William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

Research Institute of the University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia (Photo: Pickering Collection, 

Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California). 

Pickering’s powerful influence in American technology, his extensive network 

ofacquaintances in high office,and the appeal of his cause—build up of American 

technological influence in Saudi Arabia—assured him of ready access to expertise 

in a wide field of technology to implement his projects for the institute. 

Plans and specifications for a satellite receiving station, an image processing 

center, and even an oceanographic institute were prepared.

12 Pickering did 

not limit the interests of the PRC to the Saudi contract, however, but sought 

other clients in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere. He formed agreements with several 

well-established high tech specialist firms in U.S. and made efforts to interest 

the Saudi government in weather modification experiments and environmental monitoring programs in which PRC would act as a facilitator between the 

Saudi users and the American suppliers.

13 

However, despite his good relations with Dabbagh and a prodigious 

amount of promotional work for each of these proposals, none of them came 

to fruition and by mid-1979 when his consulting contract with the Research 

Institute expired his connection with UPM reverted to his obligations as a 

member of the Consortium Advisory Board.

14 

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Technology Transfer 

As his involvement with the Saudi Research Institute wound down, Pickering 

turned his attention to finding other opportunities for his small corporation. 

Despite his disappointing experiences in “technology transfer” during his final 

years at JPL, Pickering retained a deep concern for the viability of the basic concept. As a result, space technology transfer soon became the basis for two new 

ventures in applied technology—one of them in nuclear power generation and 

the other in image processing—and both of them ultimately successful. 

The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) was established in 1973 as 

an independent, nonprofit organization designed to manage a broad publicprivate collaborative research program on behalf of the electric utility industry, the industry’s customers, and society at large.

15 Pickering and its founder 

Professor Chauncey Starr were old friends who “knew the ropes” and held a 

deep respect for each other’s experience and accomplishments. 

Pickering perceived that the nation’s nuclear power generation industry 

had much in common with U.S. space and missile programs in the areas of 

reliability and safety and that the power generation industry might well benefit 

from knowledge of the “lessons learned” and the systems engineering approach 

that had evolved over the past 20 years in those two major national programs. 

His argument elicited a receptive response from EPRI and a proposal and contract soon followed. The deliverable was to be a report “documenting the 

evolutionary development of reliability and safety practices in unmanned and 

manned space projects and military intercontinental missile projects, over 

the last two decades.” It would describe successes, problems, failures, and 

how they were corrected to increase the reliability of advanced systems of 

ever-increasing complexity. It would present the lessons learned in a way that 

would make it useful to other organizations—such as those engaged in nuclear 

power generation where high reliability in extremely complex systems was of 

the utmost importance. 

Less than six months after his initial agreements with Chauncey Starr, 

the PRC completed its contract with EPRI. A few months later the Nuclear 

Safety Analysis Center published Pickering’s report in a formal document for 

distribution throughout the industry.

16 

Riding on the success of his first contract with EPRI, Pickering followed 

up with a second proposal to the Nuclear Systems and Materials department 

of EPRI. Pickering proposed to describe the failure reporting systems then 

being used by JPL in the Voyager project and by the military in a major space 

project. These proven techniques, he believed, would have direct application to the nuclear power industry. Again EPRI accepted his proposal and, 

with help from a slightly different mix of consultants, PRC delivered “on 

time and in budget.” 

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William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

These were small contracts to be sure, but they served to sustain Pickering’s 

interest in the viability of his tiny corporation, encourage him in the potential 

for “technology transfer,” capitalize on his prestigious name, and provide an 

impressive front from which he could lever the organization into much more 

substantial contracts. 

Searching for another niche in the field of technology transfer, Pickering 

turned his attention to computer-aided image processing. 

As a consequence of its long experience with the challenges of data processing for its deep space projects, particularly Mariner and Viking, JPL had by 

then built up a substantial reservoir of unique expertise in the rapidly-advancing new technology of computer-aided image data processing—perhaps the 

best and most advanced in world at that time—and it was this expertise that 

it employed to support the Viking Mars mission.

17 Pickering, of course, was 

well aware of this unique source of expertise and knew exactly where to tap 

into it—in JPL’s Mission Control and Computing Center—for the “technology transfer” he required for his next project. 

Pickering planned to apply JPL’s image processing technology to the 

manipulation of Landsat images to produce marketable products of interest 

to U.S. or foreign agencies engaged in the interpretation of surface imaging data for their particular fields of interest. Such areas of interest included 

demographics, geodetic or geographic features, vegetation, population, water 

prevalence, erosion, disaster effects, urbanization, surveying and cartography, 

agriculture, forestry, desert sand movement, etc., the list went on and on. 

Landsat images were already readily available to public users as part of the 

government move toward commercialization of the Landsat image products.

18 

However, to manipulate them and combine them with tabular and other 

graphic data to meet the specific requirements of individual users, powerful computers, advanced software programs, and peripheral image processing 

equipment were needed. PRC solved these and other problems by leasing the 

necessary JPL-developed software programs from the University of Georgia’s 

Computer Software Management and Information Center (COSMIC) and 

renting time on suitable computers at Caltech’s computer center. To manage 

the Landsat image data processing functions, he persuaded one of JPL’s leading 

software experts to support PRC on a consulting basis as required. Pickering 

himself undertook to find customers for the esoteric services his corporation 

could now offer. 

Initially, Pickering’s Landsat image processing business involved relatively 

small contracts for U.S. customers who were interested in environmental and 

demographic problems. However, the returns from this work were not great 

and barely sustained the effort. From time to time he submitted a number of 

proposals to potential customers in Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, and Sri 

Lanka. In some cases, his proposals included a complete image processing 

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center with training courses for personnel to manage, operate, and maintain 

it. None of these proposals, however, was successful. 

Then, in March of 1980, as part of the gradually expanding cultural and scientific exchanges with the U.S., Pickering paid a visit to the Peoples Republic 

of China at the invitation of Dr. Chen Jie, Secretary General of the Chinese 

Society of Astronautics. He toured numerous academic institutions and manufacturing facilities associated with China’s emerging space program and aeronautics industry and gave presentations on Mars, Jupiter, and spacecraft design. 

His visit proved to be of immense interest to the Chinese engineers and scientists. When he was shown a ground terminal for the Chinese experimental 

communications satellite, he elicited some discussion of Landsat data processing, 

a topic that held considerable interest for his Chinese hosts. Sensing some possible business opening in this area, Pickering left his hosts with a draft proposal 

to supply the Beijing Research Institute with an American-built image 

processing system. 

Summing up his impressions later, Pickering thought that “the places we 

visited were very backward by our standards; they are short of good instruments, electronics, and computers, and have trouble in developing reliable 

systems and understanding trade-offs. They also appeared to be deficient in 

ground tracking and trajectory calculations.”19 

A few months later, Pickering submitted a full proposal from PRC to “design 

and install an image processing system for the Beijing Research Institute for 

remote sensing.”20 The price and delivery details were contingent upon obtaining an export license from the U.S. government.

21 

At first, the U.S. government authorities rejected his request for an export 

license on the grounds that some of the computing equipment and the JPL-developed software contained advanced data processing capabilities that conflicted 

with government policies regarding the export of U.S. technology to foreign 

countries. Pickering appealed to his Congressman for reconsideration. In the outcome, Pickering was forced to downgrade the hardware and software to the bare 

minimum required to manipulate Landsat images and resubmit his application. 

Eventually, the long-delayed export license was approved and all of 

the hardware and software reached the end user in Beijing. In mid-1984 

Pickering returned to China for a formal “acceptance and hand-over” ceremony to transfer the image processing system from its supplier, PRC, to its 

ultimate owner, Beijing Research Institute. 

Through all of this frustration, Pickering continued to seek further image 

processing related business opportunities in China, including a proposal to supply a complete Landsat ground station to the Chinese government. Although 

none of these ventures was successful he, nevertheless, retained good relations 

with many top level executives in academic and government circles in that country and made reciprocal visits with them on several occasions in later years. 

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William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

In the early 1980s, just as the outlook for a successful outcome for the contract 

with China was in serious doubt and, indeed, the future of PRC appeared doubtful, a colleague from JPL—a chemist by profession—drew Pickering’s attention 

to an idea for an alternative fuel that involved the use of highly compressed pellets 

of wood waste-sawdust. At the time, the concept had already been patented but 

attempts to market the product had proved singularly unsuccessful.

22 Pickering 

picked up on the idea and in due course negotiated an arrangement with the 

owner of the patent to promote and market the idea through PRC. 

Pickering soon began to focus his formidable promotional skills on developing a market for “Frajon pelletized fuels” which, at the time, were being produced very inefficiently, Pickering thought, by a plant in the St. Louis area. He 

sent out promotional material and made presentations, attended trade-shows, 

and cultivated contacts in the environment and air quality control industries and 

government agencies to draw attention to the highly efficient, clean burning, 

nonpolluting, combustible qualities of “pelletized fuel,” but the response was 

not encouraging. 23 

Then began a remarkable chain of events that, many years later, William 

Pickering recalled in his inimitable, low-key style. “So about this time I got a call 

from a man in Idaho who said, ‘I’ve got this pellet manufacturing plant [in Idaho] 

and it is about to go bankrupt, but it’s a good idea and I need some money and I 

understand you are interested in pellets.’ He hoped I would take an interest in his 

plant and bail him out.”24 But Pickering did not have the capital to intervene and, 

although he remained interested, the bank eventually foreclosed on the facility. 

Acting on his intuition that pelletized fuel held great promise as an alternative source of energy, Pickering assembled a small group of colleagues of like 

mind into yet another small investment company with the idea of buying the 

foreclosed manufacturing plant from the bank at a favorable price and turning 

it into a profitable enterprise. The new company would refurbish the Idaho 

plant to improve its efficiency and operation and begin producing pellet fuel 

under the “Frajon” system. Pickering believed that by applying his redoubtable resources in technology to the manufacturing process, he could develop 

a dominant position in the then-faltering pellet fuel industry. Fortunately, he 

was able to negotiate an innovative financing arrangement that covered one 

year of refurbishment work and gave the Pickering group an option to eventually buy the plant under a longer term mortgage arrangement. 

Pickering was also fortunate in finding a former JPL colleague with the appropriate expertise, experience, and availability to carry out the refurbishment work 

at the Idaho plant. Just over a year later, the work was done and the new plant at 

Sandpoint, Idaho, a few miles from the Canadian border, was in production. In 

1983, Pickering renamed the new corporation “Lignetics” after the Latin word for 

wood and, with himself as Chairman of the Board and a small board of directors 

comprised of the dozen or so partners, opened Lignetics, Inc. for business. 

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As Chief Executive Officer, Pickering’s devoted his full attention to the 

day-to-day management of the Idaho plant, promotion and distribution of the 

Lignetics product, and oversight of the tenuous financial stability of the fledgling 

corporation. For a man who, a few years earlier, bore ultimate responsibility for 

the disposition of an assured annual budget numbering in the many hundreds of 

millions of dollars and a professional staff of thousands, the task must have seemed 

very ordinary indeed. Yet, he found a personal challenge in it and was happy to 

employ his formidable intellectual resources toward making it succeed. 

High Honors 

JPL’s spectacular retirement functions in March of 1976 did not represent 

the end of public recognition for William Pickering’s pioneering career in 

deep space. For the next 25 years, public and professional institutions, national 

and international, accorded him their highest honors. 

In November 1975, Queen Elizabeth II of England had conferred upon 

William Hayward Pickering the distinction of Honorary Knight Commander 

of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for his “Services to Science.” 

The “Honorary” designation signified his formal, non-British citizenship and 

entitled him to wear the insignia and append the nominals K.B.E. to his name. 

Henceforth, his formal address would become “Dr. William H. Pickering, 

K.B.E.” The new title assured him of a permanent place in the ranks of other 

great New Zealand achievers. 

In early June 1976, he and Muriel made a short visit to New Zealand for the investiture, held in this case by the Queen’s representative in New Zealand, GovernorGeneral Sir Denis Blundell at Government House in the capital city of Wellington. 

The short ceremony was followed by an official luncheon at Government House. 

Before returning to California, Pickering filled a long-standing commitment 

to address the 50th anniversary convention of the New Zealand Association of 

Radio Transmitters—the country’s leading amateur radio organization. As New 

Zealand’s most famous living “Ham,”26 he represented a direct link to the early days 

of radio at Wellington College. His address was appropriately titled “From 

Galena to Silicon,” a clever reference to the technological advance from early 

radio based on galena crystal detectors to modern silicon-based transistor radio.

27 

Later that year, in company with his friend Wernher von Braun and highly 

respected colleague Frederick Terman, William Pickering paid another visit to 

the White House in Washington, DC. On this occasion, 18 October 1976, he 

was to receive the National Medal of Science from President Gerald Ford.

28 

This was the nation’s highest honor for engineering excellence and its 

recipients were giants of American technology who would be worthy bearers 

of the honor that had first been bestowed upon Pickering’s mentor, Theodore 

von Kármán. The National Science Board citation read: “For his leadership 

205
William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

Dr. William H. Pickering, K.B.E., with Sir Denis Blundell, 

Governor General of New Zealand, following the investiture ceremony in Wellington, New Zealand, 2 June 1976 

(Photo: Courtesy of the Pickering Family Trust). 

of the exploration of the planets of the 

solar system and his personal contributions to the theory and practice of soft 

planetary landings and the collection 

of data from deep space.” Conferred 

by the nation’s highest executive and 

endorsed by his peers, the National 

Medal of Science was perhaps the 

award that he valued most for it represented, unequivocally, excellence in 

his selected field of endeavor. 

Pickering’s propensity for international travel showed no sign of diminishing after he left JPL. For the first 

few years he made numerous visits to Saudi Arabia as part of his relationship 

with the University of Petroleum and Minerals in Dhahran. On occasion, 

he extended these trips to include visits to India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand to 

engage in discussions, generally accompanied by lectures, on the U.S. space 

program and related topics at universities or technical institutes. He gave 

papers and lectures in France and 

Germany for similar purposes. 

The Australia and New Zealand 

Association for the Advancement of 

Science (ANZAAS), New Zealand 

Amateur Radio Transmitters 

(NZART), New Zealand Institute of 

Management, Center for Advanced 

Engineering (CAE), Institution 

of Professional Engineers New 

Zealand, Royal Society of New 

Zealand, and the Canterbury School 

of Engineering were at one time or 

William H. Pickering receives the 1975 National 

Medal of Science for Engineering from President 

Ford at the White House, Washington, DC, 17 

October 1976 (Photo: Pickering Collection, Pasadena 

Museum of History, Pasadena, California). 

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Chapter 9: An Active Retirement 

President Ford chats with Dr. William Pickering and his wife Muriel at the White House reception following the 

presentation of the National Medal of Science, 17 October 1976 (Photo: Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of 

History, Pasadena, California). 

another honored with personal appearances and presentations by William 

Pickering. Affording him an opportunity to visit family and friends, institutionally sponsored visits to New Zealand were always an acceptable obligation 

in those years. 

In his retirement years, Pickering’s travel within the U.S. was less frequent 

and far less onerous than it had been in JPL years. Requests for appearances 

and speeches diminished as NASA’s achievements in space no longer held 

the public interest they once did. In any case there were new personalities at 

NASA and JPL to talk about the remarkable Voyager encounters with Jupiter 

and Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, and the new projects to explore the solar 

system. Gradually Pickering’s speeches began to address topics in the field of 

alternative energy. “Conservation and New Energy Alternatives,” “Densified 

Wood as Domestic Fuel,” “A New Energy Resource–Wood,” and “Pellet 

Economics” were examples of this new trend in his thinking.

29 

Throughout his professional life he had maintained a strong connection to 

the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). Together with 

cofounder L. Eugene Root, he had brought together the American Rocket 

207
William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

Society and the Institute of Aerospace Science to establish the AIAA in 1963 

and he had acted as its first president. He had exercised his considerable prestige 

and wisdom to formulate the guiding principles of governance that enabled the 

AIAA to grow to become the world’s leading organization of aeronautics and 

astronautics professionals with an international reputation and active alliances in 

many European and Soviet countries. His personal contribution to its programs 

and his powerful influence on the organization were a matter of record.

30 

In 1986 the AIAA recognized William Pickering’s contribution to the 

advancement of aerospace technology with a celebratory dinner at the Caltech 

Athenaeum and the presentation of its 1986 Aerospace Pioneer award. Among 

many laudatory messages he received on that occasion were letters from U.S. 

President Ronald Reagan, California Governor George Deukmejian, National 

Academy President Frank Press, and many others representing NASA, universities, distinguished scientists, and the country’s major aerospace industries. 

Pickering’s personal satisfaction with the recognition he received as a consequence of his success in public life in these years was tempered by a grievous 

setback to his personal life in 1992 when, after a prolonged illness, Muriel died 

of congestive heart failure. 

Throughout all of the 59 years that they had been married, William 

Pickering looked to his wife Muriel for comfort and encouragement when 

his professional life was difficult and for recognition and approval when it was 

successful. She had traveled the world with him and shared his introductions 

to princes and presidents, prominent politicians, distinguished scientists, and 

dull people aspiring to public recognition by the act of meeting those who 

had already achieved it. To her husband’s public charisma she added her own 

natural charm, equanimity, and graciousness. 

William Pickering bore the loss of his beloved wife with a private grief 

that those who knew him personally were not party to, for in personal matters he was an intensely private man. He was also a sensitive man, and gentle, 

and his grief, if not visible, was assuredly palpable. The La Cañada-Flintridge 

community paid handsome tribute to Muriel’s generous contributions to its 

welfare, law enforcement, beautification, and city improvement activities. She 

was sorely missed in many ways. 

In the months that followed, his daughter Beth helped her father to deal with the 

loss that they both felt deeply and to adapt to his changed personal circumstances, 

while Pickering immersed himself in the demands of his new business venture. 

Beyond his business interests, Pickering’s prominence in the field of aerospace engineering continued to expand as further high honors were bestowed 

upon him—on this occasion from a European source. 

Established in 1992 by European philanthropist Albina du Boisrouvray in 

memory of her son, the François-Xavier Bagnoud Aerospace Prize was largest 

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Chapter 9: An Active Retirement 

international prize in its field. It was to be administered by the university of 

Michigan’s department of Aerospace Engineering at Ann Arbor, Michigan, where 

her son had taken his degree in aerospace technology.

31 

The following year the prize selection committee, comprising of aerospace 

experts from around the world, nominated William Hayward Pickering to be 

the first recipient of the valuable François-Xavier Bagnoud Aerospace Prize. 

At his nomination, Pickering commented, “I am honored and delighted to be 

chosen as the first recipient of the François-Xavier Bagnoud Aerospace Prize 

and I am a bit overwhelmed by the honorarium [$250,000]. Thank you very 

much indeed. Being the first recipient is particularly significant to me when I 

look at the truly international membership of the selection committee.” 

In a background paper on William Hayward Pickering, Thomas E. Everhart, 

then president of Caltech wrote, “More than any other individual, Bill Pickering 

was responsible for America’s successes in exploring the planets—an endeavor 

that demanded vision, courage, dedication, expertise, and the ability to inspire 

two generations of scientists and engineers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.”32 

Pickering’s presentation dinneraddress “Some Reflections on Space Research: 

The Challenges and the 

Triumphs,” traced the evolution of the U.S. space program from the initial events 

leading up to Explorer 1 and 

the early Moon and Venus 

and Mars missions, through 

the Voyager missions to 

Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and 

Neptune. It was, in essence, 

a retrospective of his own life 

told on this occasion from 

the vantage point of history 

rather than, as in the past, 

that of a real time participant. 

“The space program of the 

1960s and 1970s was a major 

weapon in the Cold War,” 

he said. But public support 

for space was not what it was 

during the Apollo period. 

William Pickering with his daughter Beth 

Pickering Mezitt, Los Angeles, April 1992 

(Photo: Courtesy of the Pickering Family Trust). 

209
William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

“Thirty years later, a fickle public finds space boring. With a recession and an 

enormous government debt, the cost of space research looks like a controllable 

area of the national budget that can be sharply reduced. Space flights today 

seem to be noteworthy only when disaster strikes and the results of space 

missions seem to be of interest only to a small group of scientists, and are 

considered by the public to be of no practical value,” he said. But we should 

be looking ahead. He concluded: 

We should regard the ability to explore space and to travel in 

space as another step in the evolution of mankind, upwards from 

the cave. My generation took the first steps in space—your generation is the first to have grown up with the knowledge that man has 

stepped off Earth into the cosmos. You cannot go back—you must 

move forward. As the Russian rocket pioneer K. E. Tsiolkovsky 

said almost 100 years ago, ‘Earth is the cradle of mankind, but one 

cannot live in the cradle forever.’ 

On this occasion, his pleasure was enhanced by the presence of his daughter Beth and her husband and the company of a longtime family friend from 

La Cañada by the name of Inez Chapman. Inez, it turned out, was destined to 

play a major role in William Pickering’s later life, but for now other matters 

demanded his immediate attention, foremost among them an invitation to 

visit the Emperor of Japan. 

William Pickering marked his 84th birthday in December 1994 with a few 

friends and dinner at the beautiful Athenaeum on the Caltech campus in downtown Pasadena. As a Professor Emeritus he enjoyed the deference accorded his 

visits to the Athenaeum and the ambience of the grand dining hall spoke to him 

eloquently of the great men of science, many of them his personal friends, who 

had passed through it in times past. 

That evening, Pickering’s birthday party also celebrated his selection asarecipient of the 1994 Japan Prize for Aerospace Technologies. The prize carried with 

it an award of 50 million yen.

33 It was certainly a sufficient cause for celebration. 

He was in good company. The other recipient of a Japan Prize that year would 

be a Dr. Arvid Carlsson a distinguished pharmacologist from the University of 

Gothenburg, Sweden. Established by the Science and Technology Foundation 

of Japan in 1985, the Japan Prize demonstrated Japan’s commitment to science 

and technology by honoring those in the international community whose 

work had contributed to the peace and prosperity of humankind. 

For Inez Chapman, now his fiancé and companion on the visit to Japan, the 

social events in the elaborate program presented, understandably, new challenges. To prepare herself for the task ahead, Inez took time to inform herself 

about the Japanese royal family and its background and the customs, culture, 

and recent history of Japan. For his part, Pickering prepared the “commemorative” lecture titled “Space Technology: The New Challenge.” 

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Chapter 9: An Active Retirement 

The formalities of “Japan Prize Week” included a joint press conference, 

receptions at the American and Swedish Embassies, a visit with the prime minister of Japan, the Japan Prize presentation ceremony in the presence of His 

Majesty the Emperor of Japan, a formal banquet attended by their Majesties the 

Emperor and the Empress, and commemorative lectures and discussions with an 

international panel of scientists and technologists.

34 

In his commemorative address, Pickering traced the history of the U.S. 

space program from its inception, shortly after the debut of Sputnik in 1957, 

to the present time, reminding the audience that the initial exploration of 

space was accomplished by both the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Later, other 

countries, including Japan became involved with the U.S. programs. As scientific questions became more detailed and the missions became more complex, 

greater opportunities for international cooperation arose. 

Pickering expressed his pleasure at the extent to which Japan was now 

engaged in cooperative space ventures with JPL and expressed the hope that 

“such cooperation might soon include many other space faring nations as well.” 

In conclusion, he said, “There are worlds that have waited for us for billions of 

years. The end of the waiting period has begun. We are the first generation to 

open the doors for the generations to follow.”35 

In addition to the very substantial prize money, William Pickering received 

an exquisite gold medallion that symbolized the Sun, national emblem of Japan, 

and the perfection of the circle. “For inspirational leadership in unmanned lunar 

and planetary exploration, and for pioneering achievements in the development 

of spacecraft and deep space communications”: a fitting tribute from a nation 

that held such works in high esteem. 

For Inez the visit to Japan and the events associated with it had been the 

experience of a lifetime. It was a difficult act to follow, but follow it she did, 

by accepting Bill’s offer of 

marriage and celebrating 

it a few months later with 

a splendid wedding in the 

La Cañada Presbyterian 

Church on 27 July 1994. 

Bill Pickering’s “cup of 

happiness” was full indeed. 

The Emperor of Japan Akihito greets 

William Pickering and Inez Chapman 

on the occasion of the Japan Prize 

presentation banquet, Tokyo, Japan, 

April 1994 (Photo: Courtesy of the 

Pickering Family Trust). 

211
William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

The new couple settled down in La Cañada-Flintridge, living in the smaller 

of the two houses they then owned, and set up a combined household that 

satisfied the needs of both. For Inez that meant maintaining her piano teaching classes and her community and social activities; for Bill it meant sustaining 

his business interests in Lignetics and maintaining his numerous obligations to 

professional institutions such as the Academy of Science, AIAA, and IEEE. It 

all worked out very well indeed. 

The new Lignetics plant in Glenville, West Virginia, had come on line that 

year. A 1997 news release announced its opening: “Dr. William Pickering, 

Chairman, Lignetics Inc., informed stockholders in November that the company’s new West Virginia pellet fuel manufacturing plant is now in production. This makes Lignetics the largest producer of wood pellet fuel in the 

United States with combined [three-plant] production of capacity of 200,000 

tons per year. This is more than three times the amount of the industry’s second largest competitor.”36 

Now,with three pellet plantsin production, the Lignetics organization required 

Pickering’s strong direction to make the enterprise profitable. No longer involved 

with interplanetary space missions and the politics of government/university relations, Pickering’s attention was fully engaged with the intricacies of financial 

statements, production goals, overhead costs and distribution, seasonal inventory, and the price of wet sawdust.

37 

Space Revisited 

Despite his business interests, however, William Pickering’s interest in deep 

space exploration had not entirely waned, nor had his name and charisma lost 

its ability to attract an enthusiastic audience. 

When JPL and Caltech celebrated 40 years of space exploration in January 

1998 with displays from the past and present and a public meeting at Caltech, 

the featured speakers were William Pickering and James Van Allen,

38 surviving members of the original Explorer 1 group, and Edward Stone current 

director of JPL. Pickering spoke of the momentous events surrounding the 

Explorer 1 event of so long ago, while Stone spoke of the present and the 

outlook for the future. The three speakers epitomized the amazing progress 

that spanned the first 40 years of JPL’s venture into space exploration. Many 

of those present were hearing the Explorer 1 story from the legendary participants themselves for the first and, probably, the last time. 

Pickering recreated the dramatic events of the launch of Explorer 1—the 

first detection of the signal from the satellite that signified America’s first satellite was in orbit and the tumultuous media reaction that followed the realization that Americans had, at least for the moment, caught up with the Russians 

in the race for space.

39 In the rush of public excitement it was Explorer 1 versus 

212
Chapter 9: An Active Retirement 

Sputnik 1—the U.S. versus the USSR. And there was more, as Pickering was 

quick to point out. We had science, real and not pseudo, from Van Allen’s 

unique radiation instrument.

40 

The Explorer 1 satellite, conceived and built in haste at JPL, carried with it 

the hopes and expectations of Cold War America, a country reeling from the 

shock of the Sputnik demonstration of Soviet superiority. Looking back from 40 

years, Pickering could, with some justification, have pointed to the influence of 

science and technology as a powerful factor for the betterment of humankind, a 

claim that had been the focus of much of his public discourse in the early years. 

“NASA Failures Blamed on Policies,” proclaimed the Los Angeles Times in 

March 2000.

41 Suggesting that “NASA took undue risks by working on major 

space missions too quickly and too cheaply,” and this article, like many on that 

date, referred to the failures, just about one month apart, of two spectacular 

missions to Mars: the Mars Climate Orbiter and the Mars Polar Lander both 

of which were the responsibility of JPL. Reminiscent of the early Ranger 

missions to the Moon, the mishaps had triggered a public outcry critical of 

NASA and JPL and prompted massive investigations by both organizations in 

addition to giving rise to a congressional enquiry. 

From his modest Lignetics office just across the Arroyo Seco, Pickering 

empathized with the stress and anguish that the situation brought to the current occupant of his former office at JPL. Forty years earlier he had been in 

that “hot seat,” but now he was on the outside looking in and now, as then, 

he moved quickly to voice his opinion on the nature of the problem. More 

than 20 years absence from JPL had not diminished his legacy or dulled his 

influence within the JPL-Caltech culture. Soliciting opinions from a number of his former senior engineering managers, Pickering quickly produced a 

position paper titled “Comments on Recent JPL Failures.”42 Referring to the 

Ranger program and the JPL “culture” that it engendered, Pickering wrote: 

The engineers and scientists of that day were not smarter than they 

are today . . . but they did some things differently. JPLers were confident, proud of their skills—some even said arrogant. They were cautious, they were meticulous. NASA had difficulty understanding the 

JPL staffers who were so different from their civil service counterparts. 

Pickering described the “loose hierarchical system” that encouraged close communications within the JPL organization and emphasized the importance of “system design and attention to engineering detail” in JPL’s success. Since the only real 

test of a complete (spacecraft) system occurs with the flight itself, “preflight testing 

must come as close as possible to the actual flight conditions,” he wrote. 

Pickering believed that to recover from the trauma of losing two Mars 

missions, JPL must first review its relationship with NASA to restore “both 

authority and responsibility for technical detail.” Changes were also required 

213
William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

within JPL. Perhaps, he surmised, the “matrix” type of organization that 

had worked so well in the past for a relatively small number of large projects was 

no longer suited to the current work programs that comprised a larger number of 

smaller projects. The organizational structure within JPL should be reviewed to 

find the answer to that question. 

Sensitive to the potential value of ideas at all levels within JPL, Pickering 

asserted that “the internal organization should welcome technical discussions 

with the younger generation . . . who have sparked the technology boom,” and 

he encouraged the younger generation to “take advantage of the hindsight that 

the history of NASA and JPL offered them.” 

Much of Pickering’s thinking about NASA and JPL was all too familiar. To 

the “older generation” it seemed that the problems were the same, only the 

people had changed. Eventually, as it had done in the past, JPL righted itself and 

went on to greater glory, leaving behind yet another wrinkle in the rich fabric 

of Pickering’s life experience. 

214
Endnotes

2 Research Institute, “The Ultimate Resource.” Dharan, Saudi Arabia: University of Petroluem 


and Minerals, November 1979.


3 The chief executive officer responsible for the implementation of policy and administration of 


the university.


4 Pickering, W.H., “The Research Institute.” Undated, 1976. In the Pickering Collection, 


Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 


5 Pickering, W.H., “Engineering in Space.” Society of Petroleum Engineers, Dharan, Saudi 


Arabia, 25 January 1977; “The Landsat Satellite.” University of Petroleum and Minerals, 


Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, 20 June 1977. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of 


History, Pasadena, California.


Chapter 9: An Active Retirement 

1 Research Institute, “. . . And Thus Seek Knowledge.” Dharan, Saudi Arabia: University of 


Petroleum and Minerals, January 1976. 


6 Pickering, W.H., “Islam.” La Canada Universalist Church, La Canada, California, 19 April 


1977; “Oil, Sand, and the Koran.” Rotary Club, Pasadena, California, 20 June 1977. In the 


Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California.


7 Pickering, W.H., “Exploring the Planets—The First Steps.” IAF Conference on Space and 


Civilization, Lyons, France, 7 June 1978. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of 


History, Pasadena, California.


8 Research Institute. “. . . And Thus Seek Knowledge.” Dharan, Saudi Arabia: University of 


Petroleum and Minerals, January 1976.


9 Dabbagh, A. E. “Research Institute Progress Report.” Dhahran, Saudi Arabia: King Fahd, 


University of Petroleum and Minerals, January 1989.


10 W. H. Pickering to Abdullah Dabbagh, Rector, Dharan, Saudi Arabia: University of 

Petroleum and Minerals, 23 July 1978. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of 

History, Pasadena, California. 

11 Pickering Research Corporation, “Proposal,” 17 June 1978. In the Pickering Collection, 

Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

12 Pickering W.H. “Planning documents prepared for the RI, UPM, 1979: Image Processing 

Center, Oceanographic Institute, Satellite Receiving Station.” 30 April 1979. In the Pickering 

Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

13 W. H. Pickering to Abdullah Dabbagh, “Planning reports,” 18 May 1979; “Invoice for 

consulting support and activities report,” 1 June 1979. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena 

Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

14 Pickering, William H., “Progress reports prepared for the R.I.” Annual Report, 1 September 

1978 to 31 August 1979; “Report for the Director,” March 1980; “UPM Consortium 

Visitation Report,” 6–18 March 1980. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of 

History, Pasadena, California. 

15 See about APRI online at http://my.epri.com, accessed 7 July 2007. 

16 Pickering Research Corporation, “Space and Missile Reliability and Safety Programs.” 

Nuclear Safety Analysis Center, Doc. NSAC 31, February 1981. 

17 Each Viking spacecraft comprised an Orbiter and a Lander. The Orbiters were equipped to 

make high definition images of the Martian surface from orbit, while the Landers were to 

carry out their photographic missions from the surface. JPL would provide tracking and data 

acquisition services including the imaging processing functions. 

215
William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

18 Landsat 1 was launched in 1972 and, over the next two years, transmitted over 100,000 

images covering 75 percent of Earth’s land surface to the tracking and data receiving center 

located at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. These data were made 

available to over 300 investigators in the U.S. and foreign countries. 

19 Pickering, W. H., “Notes on Visit to China,” 27 March to 7 April 1980. In the Pickering 

Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

20 Pickering, W. H., “Pickering Research Corporation Proposal to Beijing Research Institute,” 1 

August 1980. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

21 Before embarking on this project, Pickering sought unofficial opinions from his connections 

in the Pentagon and elsewhere in Washington to the effect that such an application from PRC 

would be viewed with favor by the official authorities. 

22 The concept of using pelletized sawdust as a fuel was not new—it had been around for some 

considerable time. However, the patented “Frajon” process eased the manufacturing process 

and substantially improved the combusting quality of the product by the use of a special additive that was the subject of the patent. 

23 Pickering, W. H., “Demonstration of Frajon Fuel Pellets as a Direct Replacement for 

Oil in Oil-Fired Boilers.” Unsolicited Proposal to the Deputy Director Engineering and 

Technology, Office of the Corps of Engineers, Department of the Army, 5 March 1981. In the 

Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

24 Pickering, W. H., Interview with the author, August 2003. 

25 As a U.S. citizen, Pickering was not entitled to use the title “Sir,” neither in New Zealand nor 

in any other country. (Honours Secretariat, N.Z. Prime Minister’s Department, April 2005.) 

Although William Pickering never abrogated the privilege, it nevertheless had become common public usage in New Zealand to refer to him as Sir William Pickering. 

26 Amateur radio operator. 

27 Dougherty, Ian, Ham Shacks, Brass Pounders and Rag Chewers: A History of Amateur Radio in New 

Zealand (New Zealand: New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters, 1997), p. 227. 

28 See online at http://www.nsf.gov/nsb/awards/nms, accessed 17 May 2007. 

29 From the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

30 Copies of Pickering’s extensive correspondence with the AIAA (and other professional institutions) are contained in Pickering, William H., Records 1970–1989. Pasadena, California: 

Archives and Records Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, JPL 3, 2004. 

31 University of Michigan, Notes on “Albina Du Boisrouvray,” 23 September 1993. In the 

Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

32 Everhart, Thomas E., “Notes for the François-Xavier Bagnoud Aerospace Prize.” Ann Arbor 

Michigan, 7 October 1993. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, 

Pasadena, California. 

33 Equivalent to about $500,000 U.S. at the time the award was made (1994). 

34 Science and Technology Foundation of Japan, “1994 10th Anniversary, Japan Prize 

Presentation Ceremony; Background,” 27 April 1994. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena 

Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

35 Pickering, W. H., “Space Technology: The New Challenge.” April 1997. In the Pickering 

Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

36 Lignetics, Inc, “Lignetics Announces New Pellet Production Milestone.” News Release, 24 

November 1997. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

216
Chapter 9: An Active Retirement 

37 The Missouri plant did not meet the company’s expectations and was closed the following year. 

38 Wernher von Braun the third member of the original group credited with the success of 

Explorer 1 had passed away in 1977. 

39 Pickering, W. H., “40th Anniversary of Explorer 1.” January 1998. In the Pickering 

Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

40 Ill health prevented James Van Allen from traveling to Pasadena but he sent a video recording 

in which he told of his discovery of the now-familiar bands of intense radiation that surrounded Earth and now bear his name. Van Allen, James A., “Text of statement by James A. 

Van Allen for a gathering at Caltech on January 31, 1998.” January 1998. In the Pickering 

Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

41 McFarling, Usha Lee, “NASA Failures Blamed on Policies,” Los Angeles Times, p. A3, 14 

March 2000. 

42 Pickering, W. H., et al., “Comments on Recent JPL Mission Failures.” 10 March 2000. In the 

Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

217
William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

218
Chapter 10: Full Circle 

Chapter 10 

M

Full Circle 

Full Circle (1994–2004) 

At age 90, William Pickering was an imposing figure. Tall, slim, and of 

upright bearing, he walked purposefully, unaided by cane or walker. He 

dressed plainly but well, informally or otherwise, and always with good taste. 

His graying hair, sparse but not bald, was always neatly combed in place and 

his facial features, unadorned by beard or moustache, were clear, healthylooking, and well shaped. Piercing blue eyes beneath a prominent forehead 

imparted an air of authority to his presence that was a defining characteristic 

of his persona. Thin lips and a small, tight mouth gave his speech a clipped 

incisiveness that complemented his deep resonant voice and residual “Kiwi” 

accent. His sight and hearing were good and his memory and power of recollection were awesome. He did not smoke but enjoyed whisky, beer, or wine 

in moderation as the social occasion demanded. In conversation, he often 

summoned a tight-lipped Mona Lisa-like smile but seldom laughed outright, 

tending to “chuckle” deep within his throat when amused. 

He bore his many honors like the elder statesman of science that, by that 

time, he really was. He possessed a personal charisma that endeared him to 

audiences wherever he went and was equally at home in the company of presidents or princes; Congressmen or kings; and preeminent scientists or adoring 

school children. The media loved him for he had the knack of pitching his 

remarks to the level of understanding of his listeners and he was never at a loss 

to answer a question. “Let me reflect on that . . .” he invariably began. The 

media called him, with justification, the “gentle giant of science.” Among his 

peers throughout the world he engendered the greatest respect and among 

those he led at JPL he generated a loyalty that never waned. He was a natural 

leader and knew no other way to conduct the business of his life. 

219

William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

The new century found William Pickering taking a much less active role 

in his business affairs. The unprofitable Missouri plant had since been closed 

and the two remaining plants were operating profitably. A younger man 

who had been with the company since its inception carried the title of Chief 

Executive Officer and now directed the company’s regular business from new 

headquarters in Idaho. Pickering retained the title of Chairman of the Board 

of Directors and maintained a modest office in Altadena just across the Arroyo 

Seco from JPL. There he periodically convened meetings of his stockholders and dealt with a continuous stream of daily business associated with his 

remaining professional interests. Although the company was growing slowly, 

Pickering felt that it faced an uncertain financial future that might, in the 

not too distant future, necessitate its sale to satisfy shareholder expectations 

for a more timely return on their investments. But for now, he was content 

to let events take their course and look to others to deal with the situation 

as it evolved. 

Although Pickering’s association with professional societies in the field of 

aeronautics and astronautics grew tenuous in his later years, the institutions that 

he had served so well in his earlier years—founder in one case, president in most 

others—did not forget him and they sought to demonstrate their appreciation 

with the bestowal of their highest awards.

1 

“In recognition of a distinguished career that pioneered and shaped the 

exploration of our solar system and, for extraordinary contributions to engineering and science,” read the citation for the year 2000 Guggenheim Medal 

awarded to William Pickering by the American Institute of Aeronautics and 

Astronautics at its Honors Night banquet in May 2001. The John F. Kennedy 

Astronautics Award for Public Service is given to an individual who “has made 

an outstanding contribution by promoting the nation’s space programs for the 

exploration and utilization of outer space,” stated the American Astronautics 

Society in their 2002 award of this distinction to William Pickering. 

Accompanied by his wife, Pickering attended the award banquets with obvious 

delight and accepted the accolades with graciousness and inevitably, with an 

appropriate speech of acceptance. 

Less now a bully pulpit for the future of space exploration, institutional 

reform, and the deployment of space technology for the betterment of humankind, Pickering’s occasional speeches turned back to review what had gone 

before and how he had been involved in the opening of the Space Age. The 

speeches were shorter and less technical and, for audience impact, relied largely 

on stunning slide images from the Viking and Voyager missions to Mars, 

Jupiter, and Saturn rather than a mind-bending reiteration of what were, at 

the time, astounding facts of the new technology of space exploration. An 

address to the World Space Congress

2 on early exploration of the solar system 

in October 2002, and an opening address to an international telemetering 

220

Chapter 10: Full Circle 

conference3 in Las Vegas in October 2003 were instances of this trend and 

were in fact to be among the last of his public presentations. 

Like Pickering himself, those who had been old enough to recognize the 

threat of the Soviets’ Sputnik coup and experience the tensions of the Cold 

War era had aged, and indeed many had been replaced by a new generation 

of young technologists for whom space was a given—an established fact—a 

point of departure for even greater achievements in space exploration. The 

space pioneers, Pickering foremost among them, were immortalized in many 

places throughout the country where feats and facts and fiction related to 

America’s achievement in space provided attractions for educators, tourists, 

and, occasionally, fanatics. Pickering’s portrait, achievements, and biography 

occupied prominent positions in the exhibition areas of such places as the 

International Aerospace Hall of Fame at Alamogordo, New Mexico, site of 

the first V2 rocket tests in U.S. and the International Aerospace Hall of Fame 

in San Diego, California, a key center for American aerospace development 

from early aircraft to modern booster rockets. 

Pickering fulfilled a long-standing obligation when he returned to New 

Zealand yet again in March 2002, to attend a rededication ceremony for the 

recently restored Gifford Observatory at Wellington College. He was to be the 

primary speaker and guest of honor. It was an obligation that he gladly accepted. 

“Uncle Charlie” Gifford had been the resident mathematics teacher at the College 

during Pickering’s formative years of 1923 to 1927, when he was a pupil at the 

school, and he had played a major part in establishing young Pickering’s general interest in mathematics and science—physics and astronomy, in particular. 

He forever carried a debt of gratitude to the memory of Charles Gifford, whose 

gift to the school of a 5-inch Zeiss refractor telescope had made the wonders of 

astronomy a reality for generations of students like William Pickering. 

Local media reported 

widely on the presence 

of Dr. Pickering and his 

wife in Wellington and 

the Pickering’s visit very 

quickly expanded into a 

frenzy of public appearances, talks, and lectures 

Headmaster Roger Moses greets 

Dr. and Mrs. William H. Pickering 

at Wellington College, Wellington, 

New Zealand, March 2002 (Photo: 

Neely Collection, Wellington 

College Archives). 

221

William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

interspersed with a public lecture to a crowded Town Hall,

4 the dedication 

for the Gifford Observatory,

5 and an address to the plenary session of the 

Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (IPENZ).

6 Newspaper 

and television interviews vied for time with the city’s distinguished visitor. 

Fuelled by the attraction of his reputation and enhanced by his royal nominal 

(K.B.E.), his popularity in New Zealand could hardly have been greater.

7 

The following year, in March, the final details of John Campbell’s plan for 

the Rutherford-Pickering Memorial in Havelock fell into place, and a date 

for the dedication ceremony was set. Accompanied by his wife and daughter, 

Pickering returned to New Zealand once more, this time as the guest of honor 

for the celebrations in Havelock. 

Return to Havelock 

Late summer in the Marlborough Sounds can be an enchanting time. 

The days are long, clear, and sunny. Gentle winds rather than the howling gales that roar through Cook Strait at other times of the year keep the 

temperatures in a comfortable range. The steep hillsides that cradle the long 

arms of sparkling water connecting to the sea are greened by the occasional 

overnight rain. Around Havelock, a profusion of wild flowers are in bloom 

and dairy cattle browse the lush green pastures. The flood of summer tourists has subsided and the smell of saltwater hints at Havelock’s historic connection to the sea. Saturday, 15 March 2003 was just such a day—picture 

postcard perfect. 

Along the main road that passes directly through the tiny township, several 

of the few shops that comprised the business area of Havelock displayed handprinted signs reading “Welcome home Sir William” and “Havelock honors Sir 

William Pickering” and from the town hall in the center of town flags hung 

listlessly in the bright morning sunshine. 

Up at the modern Havelock Primary School,

8 a short walk beyond the 

town, school children began assembling early for this was to be a special 

event—Havelock’s own, world-famous scientist was coming to town, to their 

school, to talk to them. 

In a short speech, matched perfectly to his juvenile, but very well-informed 

audience, he told stories of his school days at the old Havelock School and 

spoke of the wonderful adventures in space that had been the main part of his 

life. He admired the splendid murals and displays of the solar system that the 

students had prepared for the occasion. He encouraged them to study hard 

and to keep learning, saying that “what you do at school is important for 

what you do after school.” Afterwards he patiently answered questions, signed 

autographs, and planted a tree to his memory. And then it was time to go on 

to the next event. 

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Chapter 10: Full Circle 

Along the main street, the tooting of car horns and shouts of welcome signaled the arrival of the guest of honor. Riding in an antique Ford Roadster, 

William Pickering, accompanied by his wife Inez and daughter Beth, swept 

into town—the ladies waving graciously to the astonished bystanders, the guest 

of honor gallantly acknowledging their welcome with a nod and a smile. 

Following speeches from officials representing civic and Maori interests, 

Pickering spoke of his pride at being honored, along with Lord Rutherford, 

by the splendid memorial. He said: 

This memorial will be seen by many who will wonder who 

these people were . . . and perhaps come to believe that if two 

boys from Havelock can become world figures, perhaps they too, 

should strive to develop their talents. . . . Each in our own way, 

we exemplify man’s insatiable curiosity to learn about his universe. 

Rutherford and I happen to have been in the right place at the right 

time to be able to use the talents we were blessed with to contribute 

to the encyclopedia of knowledge that describes the universe. 

Saying that we now live in an era of instant communications that allow 

ideas and leadership to develop in even the smallest parts of a community, 

Pickering asked, “Who knows which of you will make a singular contribution to mankind and which of you will have a message for the world?”9 

At the appropriate time and, somewhat jostled by the press of curious spectators, photographers, TV crews, and news reporters, Pickering cut a ribbon to unveil the memorial panels and, to a burst of polite applause, the 

Rutherford-Pickering Memorial was declared open. A group of school children sang “God Defend New Zealand,” New Zealand’s national anthem, and 

the ceremonies closed with a magnificent New Zealand country luncheon in 

the nearby town hall. William Pickering’s boyhood friend Ulrich Williams, 

now also 94 years of age, joined him at the luncheon and the two old friends 

enjoyed reminiscing about times long past, while both savored the wonderful 

food that, obviously, included the local seafood delicacy of greenshell mussels.

10 Except for a curious few who lingered to read the panels, the crowd 

dispersed and Havelock township went back to sleep. 

Its moment in the glare of public attention had passed but now, where for 

many years a shipwreck memorial had stood largely ignored and neglected, 

a beautiful new edifice testified to a remarkable coincidence that linked this 

remote spot in faraway New Zealand to seminal events in the world of modern science.

11 The event was widely reported in New Zealand in both press 

and television news programs.

12 

As a complementary part of the celebrations, the University of Canterbury 

had planned a big public function for its illustrious former student. Although 

he had spent only one year at the university prior to moving to California, he 

had developed close ties with the faculty in recent years. Now it planned to 

223

William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

confer the honorary degree of Doctor of Engineering upon him at a formal, 

public graduation ceremony to be held in the Christchurch town hall the day 

following his arrival from the celebrations at Havelock. 

In New Zealand, the Pickering name on a program inevitably guaranteed 

a full attendance and this was no exception. For this occasion the civic auditorium was packed with interested public, students, and enthusiastic young 

people who had come to hear the great man speak. The graduation ceremony 

was conducted with traditional “pomp and circumstance.” Heroic music from 

a grand pipe organ heralded the arrival of the faculty in full academic regalia 

who, led by University Beadle Professor John Campbell, escorted William 

Hayward Pickering to the platform. 

In the course of the proceedings the Chancellor lauded William Pickering, 

describing him as “New Zealand’s greatest gift to America.” The ViceChancellor called Dr. Pickering’s respect for science and engineering and his 

commitment to furthering knowledge through scientific research “inspirational.” In his oration, the Dean of Engineering described Dr. Pickering’s 

career in glowing terms and praised his continuing interest in New Zealand 

and New Zealand students undertaking graduate study at Caltech.

13 “The 

University is proud to be able to honor one of New Zealand’s great engineer/scientists,” he said. 

The Chancellor then conferred the Doctor of Engineering degree upon 

him and Dr. Pickering, now attired in the appropriate academic cap and 

gown, rose to deliver his speech of acceptance. It was quite brief and quite 

simple. He first paid tribute to the quality of New Zealand education that 

had enabled him to qualify to enter 

Caltech. He felt deeply honored by 

the award of this degree noting that 

“there is something very special 

in being honored in one’s original 

home.” He traced his involvement 

in the U.S. space program from the 

first Explorer Earth satellite to the 

latest Cassini mission to Saturn. 

Then, he showed a selection of spectacular slides covering the best of the 

planetary missions and commented 

Dr. William H. Pickering, K.B.E., receives the Honorary 

Doctor of Engineering degree from University of 

Canterbury (Photo: Duncan Shaw-Brown, reproduced 

with permission from the University of Canterbury, 

New Zealand). 

224

Chapter 10: Full Circle 

on each. “This space business has been very exciting and it’s solved a lot of 

questions, but it looks like there’s a lot more work to be done,” Pickering concluded. It was a great performance. At the end, he received a standing ovation 

from the enthralled audience.

14 Simple and direct, that was what the media and 

the public loved about his talks. 

Back in La Cañada, life for William Pickering resumed where it had left 

off, almost as if the circumstances of his “return to Havelock” had never happened at all. But they had and reverberations from the recent events in New 

Zealand would continue to echo through his life for the rest of the year. 

The Royal Society of New Zealand, in which he held the rank of Honorary 

Fellow, decided to strike a new medal to be awarded annually to an exceptionally gifted engineer or technologist. It was to be named the Pickering 

Medal and would carry his profile on the obverse side. 

A few months later, a Caltech friend who had recently returned from a 

tour of New Zealand sent Pickering a photograph of an advertisement carried on the back of a Christchurch city bus. Produced by the University of 

Canterbury it featured William Pickering in full academic regalia with the 

caption “Greatness in the Making.” The obvious innuendo suggested by his 

image on the “back of a bus” was not lost to Pickering’s sense of humor. 

On a hot, smoggy June day in 2003, Bill Pickering was having lunch with 

this author at his home in La Cañada. Inez had prepared a beautiful lunch— 

smoked salmon, scrambled eggs, and fresh rolls—and the chardonnay was cool 

and crisp and the conversation was lively. We were discussing the details of a 

possible book about his life and times when the phone rang. Bill took the call 

at the table and suddenly the mood turned serious. It was the New Zealand 

Ambassador to United States calling to inform William Pickering that he had 

received the honor of Honorary Member of the Order of New Zealand, in the 

recent (June 2003) Queen’s Birthday Honors List. 

New Zealand’s highest civic honor, the Order of New Zealand, was limited by statute to 20 living members at any one time. The citation read “In 

recognition for services to New Zealand.” It was a unique honor that William 

Pickering would value highly and a fitting tribute from his native country 

where his achievements were held in such high regard. 

Letters of congratulation, including one from the Prime Minister, poured in 

from all over New Zealand. Under the headline “Queen’s Birthday Honours; 

Space Pioneer Honoured Again,” one of New Zealand’s leading newspapers 

reported the award of the country’s top honor to William Pickering, describing him as “one of New Zealand’s most famous living scientists.”15 

Rather than require him to return yet again to New Zealand, Ambassador John 

Wood presented William Pickering with the Order of New Zealand at the 

Embassy in Washington, on 22 September 2003, in the presence of a small 

group of family and friends representing Caltech, NASA, and JPL. 

225

William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

Dr. William H. Pickering, O.N.Z., K.B.E., was made 

an Honorary Member of the Order of New Zealand. 

Los Angeles, California, September 2003 (Photo: 

Pickering Family Collection). 

The great public interest engendered by Pickering’s visit and his 

subsequent Order of New Zealand 

award, prompted an enterprising 

young New Zealand film producer to approach him toward the 

end of the year with a request for 

an on-camera series of interviews 

on location in and around JPL. It 

was to be part of a documentary 

on New Zealand’s relationship to 

the Space Age. Pickering readily 

agreed and the filming took place 

at JPL a few months later.

16 

Around the same time, this 

book project began to capture 

Pickering’s interest as the manuscript took shape. The lengthy, in-depth interviews had been completed and by March 2004 when the author began delivering the opening chapters for his approval, Pickering took great pleasure in 

the detailed reconstruction of his early life and in sharing the material with 

Inez. Ever the old egotist, he was clearly looking forward to seeing his name 

on the shiny jacket of a new book—“perhaps a bestseller, perhaps a movie 

someday,” he joked. 

And then, quite suddenly, he was gone. 

William Pickering died of pneumonia at his home in La Cañada-Flintridge, 

California, on 15 March 2004, by a remarkable coincidence one year to the day 

after the dedication ceremony for the memorial in Havelock, New Zealand. 

His untimely death sent shockwaves around the world and was reported 

widely at home and abroad. Wherever his accomplishments in space had been 

recognized throughout the last half of the 20th century, dozens of newspapers, journals, and magazines published accolades to his brilliant career. 

More than any Other . . . 

A few days later, family, friends, and colleagues from many walks of life gathered in the beautiful Beckman Auditorium on the Caltech campus in Pasadena 

226

Chapter 10: Full Circle 

for a quiet memorial service to pay a final tribute to William Pickering. There, 

amid the palm and olive trees, alcoves and columns of the stuccoed Spanishstyle buildings that he loved so well, he would have felt completely at home. 

New Zealand Consul General Darryl Dunn, JPL Director Charles Elachi, and 

former colleagues joined Caltech President Emeritus Thomas Everhart in eulogizing William Hayward Pickering as they remembered him. All perceived the 

character of the man in their individual ways;all praised his gentleness,avid determination to succeed, his concern for humanity, and, above all, they praised him 

for his integrity and adherence to the fundamental principles of scientific enquiry. 

“In his personal life as in his professional life in the world of space science and 

technology,” they said, “William Pickering had set standards of excellence that 

would be an example for all that would surely follow.” 

On an earlier occasion recognizing William Pickering’s achievements, 

President Emeritus Thomas Everhart had written, “More than any other individual, Bill Pickering was responsible for America’s success in exploring the 

planets—an endeavor that demanded vision, courage, dedication, expertise, 

and the ability to inspire two generations of scientists and engineers at the Jet 

Propulsion Laboratory.”17 

That tribute still stood. William Pickering would have liked that—it was 

epitaph enough. 

227

228

William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer
Chapter 10: Full Circle 

Endnotes

1 Pickering W. H., Interview with the author, Part 7C, August 2003. In the Pickering Collection, 

Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

2 Pickering, W. H., “Early Solar System Exploration.” 53rd International Astronautical Congress, 

Houston, Texas, October 2002. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, 

Pasadena, California. 

3 Pickering, W. H., “Opening remarks to the International Telemetering Conference.” 


International Telemetering Conference, Las Vegas, Nevada, October 2003. In the Pickering 


Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California.


4 His subject for the public town hall lecture was “Challenges of Exploring the Solar System with 

Automated Spacecraft.” In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, 

California. 

5 “Gifford Observatory Opened by Inter-Stellar Scientist.” The Lampstand, Wellington College, 

September 2002. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

6 His subject for the IPENZ lecture was “Managing Innovation—Reflections on a Career.” In 

the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, California. 

7 Newspaper reports of his visit to Wellington were carried in The Evening Post, 31 January 

2002; The Dominion, 22 March 2002; and The Evening Post, 21 March 2002. 

8 Some distance away, the old Havelock Primary Schoolhouse that Pickering attended now 

served as a youth hostel for young people visiting the area. 

9 Pickering, W. H., “Havelock, New Zealand,” 15 March 2003; Private correspondence with 


the author, March 2003. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena,


California.


10 McIntyre, Anna, “Old friends reunited at Havelock function.” The Marlborough Express, 17 

March 2003. 

11 Campbell, John, “Exploring the Planets-NZ’s Space Pioneer.” The Marlborough Express, 14 

March 2003. 

12 University of Canterbury, “Canterbury pays tribute to famous space engineer alumnus.” 

Chronicle, vol. 38, no.4, March 2003. 

13 He was alluding to the recently established Pickering fellowship that provided support for that 

purpose. 

14 Henzell, John, “Space man returns to Canterbury.” The Press, Christchurch, New Zealand, 19 

March 2003. 

15 NZPA. “Queen’s Birthday Honours.” New Zealand Herald, 9 June 2003. 

16 The documentary film by Gillian Ashurst titled “Rocketman” was eventually shown on New 

Zealand television TVNZ in September 2004. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum 

of History, Pasadena, California. 

17 Everhart, Thomas E., “Notes for the François-Xavier Bagnoud Aerospace Prize.” Ann Arbor 

Michigan, October 1993. In the Pickering Collection, Pasadena Museum of History, Pasadena, 

California. 

229


Chapter 11: In Retrospect 

Chapter 11 

M

In Retrospect 

It is timely now to consider how history should regard William Hayward 

Pickering and to consider by what criteria and what yardstick his contribution to society should be measured. Should he be judged by the standards of 

his times or the standards of the present, by his contribution to society, or to 

science or human knowledge, by his contribution to his native country or his 

adopted country or the world in general? And what is his legacy to the age of 

space in whose gestation and birth he played such a prominent part? 

William Pickering first came to the attention of the world in January 1958 

when the media triumphantly announced the successful launch of Explorer 

1, the American response to the Soviet deployment a few months earlier of 

the first Earth-orbiting satellite Sputnik. Along with Wernher von Braun and 

James Van Allen, William Pickering shared the limelight and the accolades. 

In that instant of time the Space Age was born and with it the professional 

reputation of William H. Pickering. 

Under Pickering’s leadership, JPL designed, built, and dispatched NASA’s 

first Ranger spacecraft to take close-up pictures of the surface of the Moon. 

Building on its Ranger experience, JPL sent the first spacecraft to Venus and, as 

technology improved, to Mars. The scientific data returns from each successive 

mission greatly increased our understanding of the composition and dynamics of the solar system and its planets. When he retired as Director in 1976, 

Pickering had presided over NASA-JPL’s missions to the Moon, Venus, and 

Mars and laid the basis for the fabulous Voyager Grand Tour of all the planets 

that would sound the praises of NASA-JPL for the next 25 years. Not all of 

the missions were successful, but Pickering accepted the responsibility that 

devolved from his position as Director, regardless of the outcome. 

Why did the achievements for which the media gave him credit make him 

so outstanding and so unique? By current standards, when satellites and planetary missions are relatively commonplace, he would be judged as “one among 

231

William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

many.” But for those few years of 1957 to 1977, missions to the planets were 

not commonplace; they were unique in the extreme and drew an enormous 

amount of worldwide public interest. Judged by the standards of that time in 

the field of space he was indeed “one among few.” 

While Pickering would be quick to acknowledge that he was merely a part 

of the NASA-JPL team that conceived and carried out these exquisite missions to the Moon and planets, the public preferred a hero before a team and 

Pickering had the restrained charisma of a public hero. Rightly or wrongly, he 

became the chosen one to be credited with leading the U.S. struggle with the 

Soviets for eminence in space, specifically in the field of planetary exploration. 

This perception of Pickering as a pioneer in deep space was enhanced by 

his extensive agenda of public speaking. Pickering delivered carefully crafted 

presentations, aided in many cases by a very competent speechwriter, to give 

him a gravitas that extended well beyond the field of advanced aerospace engineering that made such missions possible. 

Among the international community of nations interested in the field of 

deep space exploration, he came to represent a standard of excellence and a 

level of achievement that, emboldened by the awesome resources of NASA 

and enhanced by the enviable reputation of Caltech, none could emulate. For 

his native country he became an icon, a role model of the country lad whose 

basic New Zealand education led him to the esoteric field of cosmic ray physics, and, eventually, to a leading part in opening the new age of space. 

Many of his colleagues perceived an obverse side to Pickering’s attractive public persona that was abrasive, stubborn, and self-centered. Historians 

observed that the hubris that JPL staff, Pickering included, frequently exhibited toward their counterparts at NASA Headquarters were well-founded. 

But Pickering was very loyal to his senior staff that, in reality, formed the 

main engine that drove the Laboratory. They were the real source of power 

and innovation at JPL. Pickering knew that and he realized that they resented 

interference, direction, and judgment from their civil service administrators 

at NASA who some perceived as less than worthy of the position of authority they claimed. To keep his people focused and productive under the JPL 

umbrella, Pickering believed that he had to “protect” them from NASA, and 

to preserve the freedoms associated with the university campus-like environment that attracted them to JPL in the first place. In doing so, he invoked the 

wrath of NASA and came very close to terminating his career at JPL. 

It was not all one-sided, however, and the NASA-JPL working relationship, 

abrasive though it was, did little to impair the successful progress of NASA’s 

planetary programs. As a former NASA Associate Administrator remarked, 

“It took strong efforts by men of good will on both sides to make it work.” 

Apart from several papers dealing with his cosmic ray research at Caltech, 

Pickering published relatively few scientific papers. Most of what he did at 

232

Chapter 11: In Retrospect 

JPL prior to its becoming part of NASA was classified and not available for 

public dissemination. However, as Director of a new NASA facility, he used 

the prestige of his position to give public expression to his ideas, opinions, and 

experience and to further the public and government interest in space. 

To this end, he delivered a great many public lectures where his natural aptitude for public speaking, dramatic subject matter (space exploration), 

sense of humor, down-to-earth demeanor, and unique New Zealand accent 

endeared him to the media and charmed audiences wherever he went. By 

contrast, on a person-to-person level he was rather intimidating. The depth of 

his technical and scientific knowledge, complemented by his extensive practical 

experience, penetrating and logical thought processes, sparse conversation, and 

direct manner made him a formidable manager for his senior staff and a powerful adversary for his NASA detractors. 

Writing on the career of William Pickering in 1965, a leading New York 

newspaper described his efforts to encourage public and government support for 

the nation’s space program and his publicly expressed confidence in the nation’s 

ability to overcome the apparent Russian dominance in space occasioned by 

the 1957 Sputnik affair as his “greatest contribution.” A similar thought was 

reflected in the (1993) remarks of a former Caltech president, “More than 

any other individual, Bill Pickering was responsible for America’s success in 

exploring the planets.” 

For the U.S. space program, his legacy is exemplified by these two opinions written independently 28 years apart, one at the beginning and the other 

at the end of his career. It might be argued that others could have led the U.S. 

into deep space with equal success. Perhaps, but the fact remains that they did 

not and he did. In a word, he was the right man at the right time. 

For humankind’s first venture beyond the constraints of our home planet, 

he led the team that led the way. “To be first” was ever his credo. 

233

234

William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer
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237

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William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer
A Note on Sources 

A Note on Sources 

Much of the background material for this account of the life of William H. Pickering is based 

on Pickering’s interviews with the author extending over the 15-month period that preceded 

his death in March 2004. The tapes and transcriptions of these interviews are referred to in the 

text as “Interviews with Author” and are included with Pickering’s personal papers held by the 

Pasadena Museum of History in its William H. Pickering Collection. The personal papers span 

Pickering’s life from childhood in New Zealand through the end of his business life in the U.S. 

Additional material on the New Zealand aspects of Pickering’s life may be found in the 

Archives at Wellington College, and in the Pickering Collection at the Alexander Turnbull 

Library in Wellington, New Zealand. 

The extensive JPL Archival holdings on William H. Pickering cover his professional life as 

director of JPL, from 1958 through his retirement in 1976. They are arranged in several numbered, processed collections, as follows: 

Pickering (William H.) Collection, 1958-1976, JPL214 

Pickering (William H.) Committee Organizations Collection, 1962–1970, JPL140 

Pickering (William H.) Office File Collection, 1955–1976, JPL186 

Pickering (William H.) Publications Collection, 1932–1971, JPL133 

Pickering (William H.) Records, February 1970 to March 1989, JPL3 

Pickering (William H.) Speech Collection 1955–1975, JPL181 

Pickering (William H.) Speech Reference Collection, 1959–1974, JPL187 

Available online at http://beacon.jpl.nasa.gov/Find/FindHistorical/archlist.htm 

Additional archival material relating to William H. Pickering can be found in the JPL 

Archives History Collection online at http://beacon.jpl.nasa.gov/Find/FindArchivesCat.htm 

The Archives of the California Institute of Technology also contain an extensive processed 

collection of the papers of William H. Pickering spanning the period 1941 to 1970. Titled “The 

Papers of William H. Pickering (1910-present),” the collection was processed by Laurence M. 

Dupray and Joy A. Pinter in June 2001. The collection is arranged serially as follows: 

Series I General Correspondence 

Series II Jet Propulsion Laboratory (includes Caltech and NASA-related items) 

Series III Conferences 

Series IV Professional Organizations 

Series V Committees 

Series VI Awards and Miscellaneous 

Available online at http://archives.caltech.edu/collections.cfm 

The institutional business of JPL and its interaction with NASA and Caltech under the direction of William H. Pickering has been well documented by Clayton R. Koppes in his detailed 

history of JPL, “JPL and the American Space Program,” Yale University Press, 1982. Where 

necessary, the narrative draws on Koppes’ distillation of archival material rather than the primary 

sources to illustrate significant events in the history of the laboratory during the Pickering years. 

239

240

William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer
Index 

Index 

A 

Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), 86, 91


Age of Space, arrives, 88


Air Corps, 42-44


Altadena, California, 49, 59, 67, 114-115, 220


American Astronautical Society (AAS), 103, 173 


American Institute of Aeronautics and 


Astronautics (AIAA), 108, 124, 162, 207 


American Rocket Society, (ARS), 63, 100, 107­


108, 124


Ames Research Center (ARC), 162 


Apollo Program, 109, 155, 163


Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA), 62, 76, 91


Arnold, H. H. “Hap”, General, 42, 48-49


Arthur, George, 103


Arroyo Seco, 42-45, 213, 220 


Arrival, in California, 22


Association of Engineering Societies, 123


Aviation Week, 103 


Awards, citations, distinctions, etc., 123, 138, 


147-148, 155, 159, 173, 186, 205-208, 210, 


220-221, 224-226


B 

Bagnoud, François-Xavier Aerospace Prize, 208-209


Beeman, Arthur, 190


Barraclough, Mr., 6


Berkner, Lloyd, 74, 79


Blagonravov, Anatoly; report to CSAGI, 74


Bouchey, Lt. Homer, 43


British Interplanetary Society, 148, 173


Brown, Harold, 171, 189, 191-192


Burke, James, D., 114 


California Institute of Technology; academic 


achievements at, 23, 26, 33; and JPL, 44, 45, 


50, 160, 171; and NASA, 125, 160-161; origin 


of, 21, 33; professor of electrical engineering at, 


33-34, 49, 50, 59, 189; and William Pickering,


22, 160, 171


Caltech, (See California Institute of Technology) 

Campbell, John, 2, 3, 222, 224


Canterbury, University of, 225; academic achieve­


ments at, 16; origin of, 16; confers honorary 


doctorate, 224


Christchurch, New Zealand, 2, 14-15, 146, 


224-225


Civil Systems, Caltech attitude to, 171; projects 


at JPL (See Technology Transfer), 167, 174; 


impact on JPL, 173, 177-178, 188


Clark, John F.; as general manager at JPL, 158


Cold War Warrior, 41


Columbus Medal, 138


Committee for Space Research (COSPAR), 186


Comité Speciale de l’Année Géophysique 


Internationale (CSAGI), 73 


Coincidence Detectors, (See Cosmic Ray 

Researcher) 

Congressional Reviews; for Ranger 6, 129; for 


Surveyor, 156; and JPL visits, 102


Corporal program; IRBM prototype, 55, 56; 


testing at White Sands, 57-60; “Round 100”, 


60; deployment in Europe, 58 


Corporal research test missile, 45, 47, 50-51, 55 


Cosmic Ray Researcher, 21, 26; cosmic ray 


telescope, 31; Geiger counter tubes, 26-28; 


Coincidence detectors, 27-28, 30; telemetry 


for high altitude balloons, 34; improvements in 


experimental techniques, 26, 27-29; thesis for 


Ph.D., 30-31; search for latitude effect, 31-32; 


limitations of rockets, 62


Cummings, Clifford I., 50, 114


D 

Dabbagh, Abdullah, 199-200


Deep Space Network, 117, 150; founding of, 91, 


92; largest antennas of, 165-166, 181, 184


Departure for California, 17


Department of Defense, 54, 76


Documentary film produced, 226


Douslin, Horace, 10, 13-14, 16-17


Douslin, Kate, 4


Drag Brakes; demonstrating the principle of, 57


241


C
William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

DuBridge, Lee A., 58-59, 76, 95, 104, 126, 158, 


171, 189


Dunn, Darryl; N.Z. Consul-General, 227


Dunn, Louis, 49, 52, 55-56, 58-59


E 

Earth (1969–1976), 167


Earth satellite program; U.S. proposal for IGY, 


63-65 


Echo Balloon; sighting event in Sweden, 105-106


Eisenhower, Dwight D.; U.S. President, 64, 84, 


94, 95, 106, 108


Elachi, Charles, 227


Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), 201 


Electronics; as new branch of electrical engineering, 34


El Paso; escapades in, 57


Energy Research and Development Agency 


(ERDA), 188


Everhart, Thomas E., 209, 227


Explorer-1; named, 79; in orbit 79-80; cel­


ebration of America’s first satellite, 78-79, 


94; Showing Explorer to the world, 81; 


Explorers-2 through 6, 82; America’s response 


to Sputnik, 76-82; secrecy of launch, 78, 79; 


and San Gabriel Valley Amateur Radio Club; 


40th Anniversary of, 212


F 

Fédération Internationale d’Astronautique (IAF), 147


Flight Projects at JPL, authority of, 110


Flopnik, see Vanguard, 77


Ford, Gerald, U.S. President, 205-207


Frajon process, 204


French newspapers; report of Pickering visit, 147


Froelich, Jack, 77-79


Full Circle, 219; memorial unveiled, 223; return 


to Havelock, 222; death of Pickering, 226; 


“More than any other...”, 227 


G 

GALCIT, See Guggenheim Aeronautical 

Laboratory California Institute of Technology 

Geiger Counter Tubes, (See Cosmic Ray 

Researcher) 

German rocket development, 44, 46, 48-49


Gagarin, Yuri, 106


Glennan, Keith, 95


Goddard, Frank, 79


Goddard, Robert H., Memorial Trophy, 148 


Going to college, 8


Guggenheim Aeronautical Laboratory; California 


Institute of Technology, 22, 41-42, 44


Guidance Systems; for missiles, 45-46, 49, 51-52; 


using Doppler radar, 53-54; U.S. patent for, 


53-54


Gravity Assist; new technique for spacecraft 


interplanetary navigation, 182


Greatest Contribution, as referenced in the New 


York Times, 152


Gifford, A. C.; (Uncle Charlie) and influence on 


young Pickering, 13; observatory restored, 221


H 

Hall, Cargill, 99, 131, 133, 145, 149


Hall, Robert King, 197


Havelock; life in, 2, 7, 15; industry in, 1; pri­


mary school, 2, 6, 222; Rutherford-Pickering


Memorial in, 2-3, 222; Pickering returns to, 222


Hayward Family, 5, 7, 10, 146


Heacock, Ray, 148


Hibbs, Al, 79-80, 94, 97 


Hilburn, Earl, D., 129, 149


Horner, Richard, 97


Hydro-electric power generation, interest in, 17, 33


I


India, cosmic-ray observations in, 35-36


Institute of Aerospace Science (IAS), 42, 79, 82, 


124, 208


Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers 


(IEEE), 176, 183, 212


Institution of Professional Engineers New 


Zealand (IPENZ), 206, 222


Intermediate Range Ballistic Missiles (IRBM), 

(See Corporal, Sergeant) 

242

L 

Index 

International Aerospace Hall of Fame, 221


International Geophysical Year (IGY), 63-66, 73, 


77, 80, 95


International Solar System Decade (ISSD), 186


J 

James, Jack L., 110, 112, 138-140 


Japan Prize, Pickering receives, 210-211


Japanese “Vengeance Weapons,” 38


Jet Propulsion Laboratory; founding of, 44; 


growth of, 95; and NASA, 94, 113; NASA 


criticism of, 104-105, 161, 171; organization 


of, 101-102, 104; staff of, 104, 126, 172


Johnson, Lyndon B.; U.S. President, 132, 149, 


153-155


K 

Karth, Joseph, E., (See Congressional Reviews)


Kelley Report, 111


Kennedy, John F., U.S. President, 106, 112-113, 123,


Killian, J. R., 94-95


Kliore, Arvydas, J., 164


Knight Commander of British Empire (K.B.E.), 


186, 205-206


Koppes, Clayton R., 59


Kosmos 419, 179-181


Langley Research Center, 162, 187


Latitude effect, (See Millikan, Robert)


La Cañada-Flintridge, California, 155-156


Leach Springs, 46


Learning curve, 91, 101-110, 121, 147, 154, 167, 181 


Legacy (for Pickering), 231, 233


“Let me reflect on that,” 219 


Letters to his father; from Havelock 7; from 


Wellington, 10-14


Lignetics Corporation, 204, 212-213


Los Angeles Times, 80, 174, 179, 191, 213


Luedecke, Alvin R.; as general manager for JPL, 


134; and Surveyor, 156-158; and relationship 


with Pickering, 158, 161


Luna 1, 92


M 

Malina, Frank J., 41-43, 45, 49 


Management of JPL; relaxed character of, 104, 


125, 126; calls for strong general manager, 125, 


126, 131, 134; Caltech fee, 126, 161 


Mariner Missions; to Jupiter, 182; to Mars, 


150-153, 163-167, 165, 178-183, 180-181; to 


Mercury 178, 183-184; to Venus, 101, 104, 


109-112, 163-165, 178, 184


Mars Climate Orbiter, failure of, 213


Mars Polar Lander, failure of, 213


Matrix organization at JPL, (See JPL, organization of) 

Medal of Science, (See National Medal of 

Science) 

Medaris, John B., 75-76, 79


Melikan, Victoria, 129, 130


Memorial Rutherford/Pickering 3, 222, (See 

also, Havelock) 

Mexico; cosmic-ray observations in, 36


Microlock, 64, 78, 80


Michigan, University of, 209


Millikan, Robert: and Pickering, 23, 25; original 


work, 25-26; cosmic ray studies in upper atmo­


sphere, 34; search for “latitude effect”, 35-37


“Mister JPL”, 190


Monument; The “Ronga,” 1-3


Mudgway, Douglas J., 165, 178, (See also, note on 


front flap)


Murray, Bruce, 178, 184, 191


Mussels, Greenshell, 1, 223


N 

NASA, (See National Aeronautics and Space 

Administration) 

National Academy of Engineering, 146


National Academy of Sciences, 26, 62, 73-74, 


109, 154


National Aeronautics and Space Administration 


(NASA); founded 86, 94; and science community 


94, 98; and planetary program, 101; and JPL,


125, 167 


National Medal of Science, Pickering awarded, 205


243

William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

Naval Air Missile Test Center (NAMTC), 54 

Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), 63, 64 

New Initiatives, (Space, Society, Future), 173 

New university close by, in Pasadena, 17 

Neher, Victor, cosmic ray co-investigator, 25-36 

New York Times, 74, 80, 103, 112, 133-134, 

151-152, 164-165 

New Zealand; amateur radio (circa 1924), 11; 

education system (circa 1916), 6-8; media 

coverage in, 146, 221, 222 

Order of, (See Order of New Zealand (ONZ)); 

Royal Society of, (See Royal Society of N.Z. 

(RSNZ)) 

Newell, Homer E., 75, 98, 104-105, 128, 132 

O 

Office of NAVAL Research, 63 

Order of New Zealand (ONZ), 225, 226 

Ordnance, Department of, 44, 55, 63 

ORD/CIT contract, 45, 50 

P 

Paine, Thomas, 161 

Parks, Robert J., 50, 59, 61, 112, 114, 178, 

Pasadena; city of, 21, 33, 49; Rose Parade, 115, 

121-123, 

Pasadena Star-News, 109, 147 

Pellet Fuel, 204; manufacture of, 204-205 

Pickering, William Hayward; as child in Havelock 

(N.Z.), 6-8; as teenager in Wellington, 8-15; 

U.S. immigrant, 17; as student at Caltech 

(Pasadena), 22-23; as researcher at Caltech, 

34-37; as assistant to Millikan, 34-37; during 

WWII, 37-38; and Malina, 45; and wartime 

technology, 46; and U.S. Army, 49, 55-56; and 

JPL, 54, 59, 171-172, 214; and Caltech, 158; 

becomes a very public figure, 82, 114, 124, 

140, 157; and NASA, 114, 214; and Research 

Institute in Saudi Arabia 190, 197-200; and 

Pickering Research Corporation, 199-204; 

and Lignetics Corporation, 204-205; in the 

closing years, (See Full Circle); revered in New 

Zealand, 3, 224; as Deep Space Pioneer, 232; 

becomes U.S. citizen, 37 

Pickering Family; ancestors of, 5; Albert “Bert” 

(father), 5-6, 7, 35; Balfour (brother) 5; Balfour 

(son), 49, 14; Ann Elizabeth “Beth” (daughter), 

49, 67, 114, 121, 150, 151, 164, 208, 209, 223; 

Elizabeth “Bess” (mother), 5; Inez Chapman 

Pickering, 210, 211, 221, 223, 226; Kate, 

(grandmother) 4, 5; Muriel Bowler 

Pickering, 23-25, 35, 49, 55, 66, 82, 190, 199, 

208; William Senior (grandfather), 4 

Pickering’s coach, 4 

Pickering Research Corporation, 199-204; and 

computer-aided image processing, 202-204; 

nuclear power safety, 201; and power-generation 

industry, 17, 201; and pelletized fuel, 204-205 

Pickering in public, 82, 135, 157, 208, 224 

Pioneer Project, 91 

Pioneer 3-4; and Goldstone, 91-92; and NASA, 95 

Planets, 162 

Point of inflection, 147 

Porter, Richard, 80 

“Private” missile, 45-47 

Project Orbiter, 63-64, 75-77 

Proficiency, certificate of, 7, 8 

Q 

Queen of Outer Space, crowning of, 127, 129, 130 

R 

Ranger; missions to the Moon, 99, 100, 104, 

108-111; and Apollo, 107, 132-133, 145, 147, 

149; Ranger 6, 123, 125, 127-129; Ranger 7, 

131-134, 148, 150; Rangers 8-9, 146-149 

Reagan, Ronald, 208 

Rechtin, Eberhardt, 50, 77, 78, 91 

Red Socks proposal, 76 

Redstone, and ABMA, 76 

Reentry Test Vehicle (RTV), 77 

Retirement, functions for, 189-191 

Retrospective, 231 

Root, Gene, 124, 207 

Royal Society of New Zealand, 173, 206, 225 

Rutherford, Ernest (Lord), 2, 5, 16, 26 

244

Index 

S 

Sagan, Carl, 178


Sagdeev, Roald Z., 186


Samoa, 6, 8, 10


Saudi Arabia; a guy from, 190; University of 


Petroleum and Minerals, 197-199; Research 


institute in, 198-200


Schmitt, Harrison, 157


Schneiderman, Dan, 174


Schurmeier, Harris M. “Bud”, 114, 123, 129, 131, 


132, 136, 149


Seifert, Howard, 103, 105


Sergeant missile, 45, 47, 59-61, 63, 77, 95, 177; 


IRBM weapon system, 61-62


Senate Commerce Committee, Statement to 


Subcommittee on Science Technology and 


Commerce, 176


Short cold peace, 48-49


Silverstein, Abe, 95, 97


Society, 185


Sorenson, Professor Royal, 33-34


Space Age begins, 73


Space race with Soviets, 93, 98, 103, 106, 112, 


133, 136, 146, 152, 166, 179, 181


Space revisited, 212


Sparks, Brian, 127 


Speeches, (excerpts); Business Publications, 124; 

Comments on Recent JPL Failures, 213; 

Communications with a Lunar Rocket, 99; Do 

We Have a Space Program, 100; Education in 

the Space Age, 85; Engineer in the Space Age, 

83; The Engineer and the Next Ten Years, 65; 

Exploration of Deep Space, 124; Exploration 

of Space, 93; Exploration of the Moon, 146­

147; Extraterrestrial Life-The Search Begins, 

187; Faraday Lecture, 65; The Four Reasons, 

86; First year of the Space Age, 87; Frontiers in 

Space Instrumentation, 124; Galena to Silicon, 

205; George Washington Achievement Award 

123; Guidance of Interplanetary Spacecraft, 

136; Homo Sapiens; One of a Kind, 187; 

Islam and Oil, 199; Is there Life on Mars, 

187; Managing Innovation—Reflections 

on a Career, 222; Man at the Threshold of 

Space, 124; Man in Space, 84; Mariner 2 

First Spacecraft to Venus, 124; Neo-Sputnik 

Age of Unreason in Space Exploration, 162; 

Odyssey to the Rim of the Solar System 182; 

The Peaceful Uses of Space, 124; Practical 

Considerations of Technology Transfer, 

173; Project Vanguard, 64; Reflections of 

the 1960’s, 176; Some Reflections on Space 

Research—The challenges and the triumphs, 

209; Return to Havelock, 222-223; Science 

and the Urban Crisis, 167; The Scientific 

Uses of Artificial Satellites and Space Craft, 

100; Scientist vs. the Military, 84; Some 

Thoughts for a Graduating Class, 124; Some 

Thoughts on Guidance Systems, 124; Some 

New Methods for Planetary Exploration, 154; 

Some Problems Associated with a Small Earth 

Satellite, 65; Space—Boon or Boondoggle, 

135; Space and Civilization, 199; Space and 

the Humanitarian, 172; Space—the new 

scientific frontier, 96; The Space Snafu, 102; 

Space, Professional Societies, and the National 

Interest, 107; Space Technology—The New 

Challenge, 210; State of the Laboratory, 183, 

188; Thirty Trillion Bits, 183; Tournament 

of Roses speech, 122; Senate Subcommittee 

on Science, Technology and Commerce, 

176; System Engineering at JPL, 177; Toward 

a New Society, 185; The Next 100 Years, 

185; Digitizing the Social Conscience, 185; 

Inheriting the Future, 185 

Splitting the Atom, (See Rutherford, 16) 

Sputnik, announcement of, 74; public reaction to, 


75-76; Soviets challenge, 77, 96, 100


Starr, Chauncey; and EPRI, 201; and Starr 

Committee, 160


Stever, Guyford, 103


Sullivan, Walter, of the New York Times, 74, 151


Surveyor; missions to Moon, 149, 156-161; and 


Hughes Aircraft Corporation, 149, 156-157; 


and Apollo, 157, 161


Systems engineering, applied to spacecraft, 177


245

V 

William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

T 

Technology transfer and civil systems 167-168; criti­


cism of, 171; city government, 175-176; urban 


transportation, 174-175; medical electronics, 177; 


education and law enforcement, 174


Telemetry Techniques for, high-altitude balloons, 


34; missiles and rockets, 48, 50, 52, 62; IRIG, 


54; interplanetary spacecraft, 54


Terhune, Charles, 158-159


Throop Memorial Unitarian-Universalist 


Church, 55


Time Magazine; and Mariner Venus, 3, 112; 


Mariner Mars, 3, 152-153 


Toftoy, H. N., General, 55 


Toward Mars, 138


Toward the Moon, 91 


Toward space, 62


Toward Venus, 111 


Travel prize, 23-24


Traveling man, 66


V-2 Rocket Tests, at White Sands, New Mexico, 62


Van Allen, James, 62, 77-79; radiation belts, 82, 93


Vanguard, Project, 63-64, 76, 77, 87


Viking, mission to Mars, 183, 187, 188 


Visits, overseas to, New Zealand, 146, 162, 173, 


205, 206-207; China, 203; England, 148, 159, 


173; France, 147, 159; Germany, 48; India, 


35; Italy, 138; Japan, 49, 210-211; Poland, 


136; Saudi Arabia, 206; South Africa, 136; 


Spain, 159; Sri Lanka, 206; Sweden, 105-106; 


Yugoslavia, 162 


von Braun, Wernher, 46, 62-63, 77-82, 95, 105, 


205, 231 


von Kármán, Theodore, 22, 41-46, 48-50, 62, 


128, 131-132, 147-148, 205


Vostock 1, 106 


Voyager; Grand Tour mission to Jupiter and 


Saturn, 187-188 


WAC-Corporal, test vehicle, 47-48, 50, 52, 57


W 

Webb, James E., 112, 126, 160-161 


Wellington City, New Zealand, 5, 6, 8


Wellington College; academic achievements 


at, 10-14; amateur radio, 10-14; athletics, 10; 


beginning “college”, 10; boarder in Firth 


House, 10; boxing, 11; final year, 14-15; 


Gifford Observatory, 13, 221; Headmaster 


J. P. Firth, 9; letters to father, 10-12, 14; 


Military Cadets Corps, 11-12; origin, 8; pupils, 


9; prefect, 15; Natural Science Society, 12; 


school motto, 9; shooting, 10; traditions, 9; 


“Wellingtonian” yearbook, 12


Wheelock, Harold, 135 


White Sands Proving Ground, New Mexico, 47, 57


Williams, Ulric, 223


World War I, 5-6


World War II; education program at Caltech 


during, Navy V-12 program, 37; Engineering, 


Science, and Management for War Training 


(ESMWT), 38


246

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SP-4302, 1970. 


Hallion, Richard P. On the Frontier: Flight Research at Dryden, 1946–1981. NASA SP-4303, 1984. 


Muenger, Elizabeth A. Searching the Horizon: A History of Ames Research Center, 1940–1976. NASA 


SP-4304, 1985. 

Hansen, James R. Engineer in Charge: A History of the Langley Aeronautical Laboratory, 1917–1958. 


NASA SP-4305, 1987. 


Dawson, Virginia P. Engines and Innovation: Lewis Laboratory and American Propulsion Technology. 


NASA SP-4306, 1991. 

250

NASA History Series 

Dethloff, Henry C. “Suddenly Tomorrow Came . . .”: A History of the Johnson Space Center, 

1957–1990. NASA SP-4307, 1993. 

Hansen, James R. Spaceflight Revolution: NASA Langley Research Center from Sputnik to Apollo. 

NASA SP-4308, 1995. 

Wallace, Lane E. Flights of Discovery: An Illustrated History of the Dryden Flight Research Center. 

NASA SP-4309, 1996. 

Herring, Mack R. Way Station to Space: A History of the John C. Stennis Space Center. NASA 

SP-4310, 1997. 

Wallace, Harold D., Jr. Wallops Station and the Creation of an American Space Program. NASA 

SP-4311, 1997. 

Wallace, Lane E. Dreams, Hopes, Realities. NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center: The First Forty 

Years. NASA SP-4312, 1999. 

Dunar, Andrew J., and Stephen P. Waring. Power to Explore: A History of Marshall Space Flight 

Center, 1960–1990. NASA SP-4313, 1999. 

Bugos, Glenn E. Atmosphere of Freedom: Sixty Years at the NASA Ames Research Center. NASA 

SP-2000-4314, 2000. 

Schultz, James. Crafting Flight: Aircraft Pioneers and the Contributions of the Men and Women of NASA 

Langley Research Center. NASA SP-2003-4316, 2003. 

Bowles, Mark D. Science in Flux: NASA’s Nuclear Program at Plum Brook Station, 1955–2005. NASA 

SP-2006-4317. 

Wallace, Lane E. Flights of Discovery: An Illustrated History of the Dryden Flight Research Center. 

NASA SP-4318, 2007. Revised version of SP-4309. 

General Histories, NASA SP-4400: 

Corliss,William R. NASA Sounding Rockets, 1958–1968:A Historical Summary. NASA SP-4401, 1971. 

Wells, Helen T., Susan H. Whiteley, and Carrie Karegeannes. Origins of NASA Names. NASA 

SP-4402, 1976. 

Anderson, Frank W., Jr. Orders of Magnitude: A History of NACA and NASA, 1915–1980. NASA 

SP-4403, 1981. 

Sloop, John L. Liquid Hydrogen as a Propulsion Fuel, 1945–1959. NASA SP-4404, 1978. 

Roland, Alex. A Spacefaring People: Perspectives on Early Spaceflight. NASA SP-4405, 1985. 

Bilstein, Roger E. Orders of Magnitude: A History of the NACA and NASA, 1915–1990. NASA 

SP-4406, 1989. 

Logsdon, John M., ed., with Linda J. Lear, Jannelle Warren Findley, Ray A. Williamson, and 

Dwayne A. Day. Exploring the Unknown: Selected Documents in the History of the U.S. Civil Space 

Program, Volume I, Organizing for Exploration. NASA SP-4407, 1995. 

251 
William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

Logsdon, John M., ed, with Dwayne A. Day, and Roger D. Launius. Exploring the Unknown: 

Selected Documents in the History of the U.S. Civil Space Program, Volume II, External Relationships. 

NASA SP-4407, 1996. 

Logsdon, John M., ed., with Roger D. Launius, David H. Onkst, and Stephen J. Garber. 

Exploring the Unknown: Selected Documents in the History of the U.S. Civil Space Program, Volume III, 

Using Space. NASA SP-4407,1998. 

Logsdon, John M., ed., with Ray A. Williamson, Roger D. Launius, Russell J. Acker, Stephen J. 

Garber, and Jonathan L. Friedman. Exploring the Unknown: Selected Documents in the History of the 

U.S. Civil Space Program, Volume IV, Accessing Space. NASA SP-4407, 1999. 

Logsdon, John M., ed., with Amy Paige Snyder, Roger D. Launius, Stephen J. Garber, and 

Regan Anne Newport. Exploring the Unknown: Selected Documents in the History of the U.S. Civil 

Space Program, Volume V, Exploring the Cosmos. NASA SP-4407, 2001. 

Logsdon, John M., ed., with Stephen J. Garber, Roger D. Launius, and Ray A. Williamson. 

Exploring the Unknown: Selected Documents in the History of the U.S. Civil Space Program, Volume VI: 

Space and Earth Science. NASA SP-2004-4407, 2004. 

Siddiqi, Asif A., Challenge to Apollo: The Soviet Union and the Space Race, 1945–1974. NASA 

SP-2000-4408, 2000. 

Hansen, James R., ed. The Wind and Beyond: Journey into the History of Aerodynamics in America, 

Volume 1, The Ascent of the Airplane. NASA SP-2003-4409, 2003. 

Hansen, James R., ed. The Wind and Beyond: Journey into the History of Aerodynamics in America, 

Volume 2, Reinventing the Airplane. NASA SP-2007-4409, 2007. 

Hogan,Thor. Mars Wars:The Rise and Fall of the Space Exploration Initiative. NASA SP-2007-4410, 2007. 

Monographs in Aerospace History (SP-4500 Series): 

Launius, Roger D., and Aaron K. Gillette, comps. Toward a History of the Space Shuttle: An 

Annotated Bibliography. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 1, 1992. 

Launius, Roger D., and J. D. Hunley, comps. An Annotated Bibliography of the Apollo Program. 

Monograph in Aerospace History No. 2, 1994. 

Launius, Roger D. Apollo: A Retrospective Analysis. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 3, 1994. 

Hansen, James R. Enchanted Rendezvous: John C. Houbolt and the Genesis of the Lunar-Orbit 

Rendezvous Concept. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 4, 1995. 

Gorn, Michael H. Hugh L. Dryden’s Career in Aviation and Space. Monograph in Aerospace History, 

No. 5, 1996. 

Powers, Sheryll Goecke. Women in Flight Research at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center from 1946 

to 1995. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 6, 1997. 

Portree, David S. F., and Robert C. Trevino. Walking to Olympus: An EVA Chronology. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 7, 1997. 

252 
NASA History Series 

Logsdon, John M., moderator. Legislative Origins of the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958: 

Proceedings of an Oral History Workshop. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 8, 1998. 

Rumerman, Judy A., comp. U.S. Human Spaceflight, A Record of Achievement 1961–1998. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 9, 1998. 

Portree, David S. F. NASA’s Origins and the Dawn of the Space Age. Monograph in Aerospace 

History, No. 10, 1998. 

Logsdon, John M. Together in Orbit: The Origins of International Cooperation in the Space Station. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 11, 1998. 

Phillips, W. Hewitt. Journey in Aeronautical Research: A Career at NASA Langley Research Center. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 12, 1998. 

Braslow, Albert L. A History of Suction-Type Laminar-Flow Control with Emphasis on Flight Research. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 13, 1999. 

Logsdon, John M., moderator. Managing the Moon Program: Lessons Learned From Apollo. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 14, 1999. 

Perminov, V. G. The Difficult Road to Mars: A Brief History of Mars Exploration in the Soviet Union. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 15, 1999. 

Tucker, Tom. Touchdown: The Development of Propulsion Controlled Aircraft at NASA Dryden. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 16, 1999. 

Maisel, Martin, Demo J.Giulanetti, and Daniel C. Dugan. The History of the XV-15 Tilt Rotor 

Research Aircraft: From Concept to Flight. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 17, 2000. NASA 

SP-2000-4517. 

Jenkins, Dennis R. Hypersonics Before the Shuttle: A Concise History of the X-15 Research Airplane. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 18, 2000. NASA SP-2000-4518. 

Chambers, Joseph R. Partners in Freedom: Contributions of the Langley Research Center to 

U.S. Military Aircraft of the 1990s. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 19, 2000. NASA 

SP-2000-4519. 

Waltman, Gene L. Black Magic and Gremlins: Analog Flight Simulations at NASA’s Flight Research 

Center. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 20, 2000. NASA SP-2000-4520. 

Portree, David S. F. Humans to Mars: Fifty Years of Mission Planning, 1950–2000. Monograph in 

Aerospace History, No. 21, 2001. NASA SP-2001-4521. 

Thompson, Milton O., with J. D. Hunley. Flight Research: Problems Encountered and What they 

Should Teach Us. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 22, 2001. NASA SP-2001-4522. 

Tucker, Tom. The Eclipse Project. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 23, 2001. NASA 

SP-2001-4523. 

Siddiqi, Asif A. Deep Space Chronicle: A Chronology of Deep Space and Planetary Probes 1958–2000. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 24, 2002. NASA SP-2002-4524. 

Merlin, Peter W. Mach 3+: NASA/USAF YF-12 Flight Research, 1969–1979. Monograph in 

Aerospace History, No. 25, 2001. NASA SP-2001-4525. 

253 
William H. Pickering • America’s Deep Space Pioneer 

Anderson, Seth B. Memoirs of an Aeronautical Engineer: Flight Tests at Ames Research Center: 

1940–1970. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 26, 2002. NASA SP-2002-4526. 

Renstrom, Arthur G. Wilbur and Orville Wright: A Bibliography Commemorating the One-Hundredth 

Anniversary of the First Powered Flight on December 17, 1903. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 

27, 2002. NASA SP-2002-4527. 

No monograph 28. 

Chambers, Joseph R. Concept to Reality: Contributions of the NASA Langley Research Center to U.S. 

Civil Aircraft of the 1990s. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 29, 2003. SP-2003-4529. 

Peebles, Curtis, editor. The Spoken Word: Recollections of Dryden History, The Early Years. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 30, 2003. SP-2003-4530. 

Jenkins, Dennis R., Tony Landis, and Jay Miller. American X-Vehicles: An Inventory- X-1 to X-50. 

Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 31, 2003. SP-2003-4531. 

Renstrom, Arthur G. Wilbur and Orville Wright: A Chronology Commemorating the One-Hundredth 

Anniversary of the First Powered Flight on December 17, 1903. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 

32, 2003. NASA SP-2003-4532. 

Bowles, Mark D., and Robert S. Arrighi. NASA’s Nuclear Frontier: The Plum Brook Research 

Reactor. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 33, 2004. (SP-2004-4533). 

Matranga, Gene J., C. Wayne Ottinger, Calvin R. Jarvis, and D. Christian Gelzer. Unconventional, 

Contrary, and Ugly: The Lunar Landing Research Vehicle. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 35, 

2006. NASA SP-2004-4535. 

McCurdy, Howard E. Low Cost Innovation in Spaceflight: The History of the Near Earth Asteroid 

Rendezvous (NEAR) Mission. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 36, 2005. NASA 

SP-2005-4536. 

Seamans, Robert C., Jr. Project Apollo: The Tough Decisions. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 

37, 2005. NASA SP-2005-4537. 

Lambright, W. Henry. NASA and the Environment: The Case of Ozone Depletion. Monograph in 

Aerospace History, No. 38, 2005. NASA SP-2005-4538. 

Chambers, Joseph R. Innovation in Flight: Research of the NASA Langley Research Center on 

Revolutionary Advanced Concepts for Aeronautics. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 39, 2005. 

NASA SP-2005-4539. 

Phillips, W. Hewitt. Journey Into Space Research: Continuation of a Career at NASA Langley Research 

Center. Monograph in Aerospace History, No. 40, 2005. NASA SP-2005-4540. 

Rumerman, Judy A., Chris Gamble, and Gabriel Okolski, compilers. U.S. Human Spaceflight: A 

Record of Achievement, 1961–2006. Monograph in Aerospace History No. 41, 2007. NASA SP2007-4541. 

254

 NASA History Series

Dryden Historical Studies 

Tomayko, James E., author, and Christian Gelzer, editor. The Story of Self-Repairing Flight Control 

Systems. Dryden Historical Study #1. 

Electronic Media (SP-4600 Series) 

Remembering Apollo 11: The 30th Anniversary Data Archive CD-ROM. NASA SP-4601, 1999. 

Remembering Apollo 11: The 35th Anniversary Data Archive CD-ROM. NASA SP-2004-4601, 2004. 

This is an update of the 1999 edition. 

The Mission Transcript Collection: U.S. Human Spaceflight Missions from Mercury Redstone 3 to Apollo 

17. SP-2000-4602, 2001. Now available commerically from CG Publishing. 

Shuttle-Mir: the United States and Russia Share History’s Highest Stage. NASA SP-2001-4603, 2002. 

This CD-ROM is available from NASA CORE. 

U.S. Centennial of Flight Commission presents Born of Dreams ~ Inspired by Freedom. NASA 

SP-2004-4604, 2004. 

Of Ashes and Atoms: A Documentary on the NASA Plum Brook Reactor Facility. NASA SP-2005-4605. 

Taming Liquid Hydrogen: The Centaur Upper Stage Rocket Interactive CD-ROM. NASA 

SP-2004-4606, 2004. 

Fueling Space Exploration: The History of NASA’s Rocket Engine Test Facility DVD. NASA 

SP-2005-4607. 

Conference Proceedings (SP-4700 Series) 

Dick, Steven J., and Keith Cowing, ed. Risk and Exploration: Earth, Sea and the Stars. NASA SP2005-4701. 

Dick, Steven J., and Roger D. Launius. Critical Issues in the History of Spaceflight. NASA SP-2006­

4702. 

Societal Impact (SP-4800 Series) 

Dick, Steven J., and Roger D. Launius. Societal Impact of Spaceflight. NASA SP-2007-4801. 

255