Pioneers

of National Reconnaissance

Rod J. Dallaire

& Michael G. Price, Ph.D.

2020
-BSupr a Et Ultr a

Pioneers 

of National Reconnaissance
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June 2021

The National Reconnaissance Pioneer Program recognizes and honors individuals who 

have made significant and lasting contributions to national reconnaissance—pioneering 

contributions that were innovative, remarkable, and changed the direction and scope of the 

discipline and its practice. It is the highest honor in the field of national reconnaissance.

The Director of National Reconnaissance, Dr. Christopher Scolese, selected Mr. Rod 

Dallaire and Dr. Michael Price, whose pioneering innovations have had a profound and 

lasting effect on NRO’s national and tactical missions. 

The June 2021 Pioneer Recognition Ceremony formally inducts Mr. Dallaire and Dr. Price, 

the NRO’s Pioneer honorees, into the Pioneer Hall. NRO’s Pioneer Hall is a collection of 

commemorative medallions, one for each of NRO’s Pioneers of National Reconnaissance. 

The medallions serve as enduring tributes to the pioneers’ trailblazing contributions to the 

discipline of national reconnaissance. This booklet includes the words that appear on Mr. 

Dallaire’s and Dr. Price’s medallions and briefly explains the nature of Pioneers specific 

contribution. Mr. Dallaire’s and Dr. Price’s medallions now join the other 95 medallions 

that commemorate the contributions of Pioneers over the years. When you visit the Pioneer 

Hall, I encourage you to review the citations on the medallions to gain a sense of the scope 

of the Pioneers’ contributions and the lasting impact they had on the NRO and our nation’s 

national security.

Dr. James Outzen

Director, Center for the Study of National Reconnaissance

Foreword
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Mr. Rod J. Dallaire pioneered radar payload designs, discovered hardware 

failures that saved satellites, and invented numerous ground processing 

techniques that significantly improved image quality. Additionally, he led 

technology improvement programs that transitioned cutting-edge software 

and hardware to system program offices for integration into on-orbit satellite 

flight programs.

Medallion Citation

Rod J. Dallaire

Period of Pioneering Contribution: 1973
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Career in National Reconnaissance: 1973 – Present

Mr. Dallaire’s pioneering contribution, which began in the 1970s, enabled the success of 

today’s NRO radar imagery satellite collection. During the Pioneer Recognition Ceremony 

for Mr. Dallaire’s induction into the NRO’s Pioneer Hall, he will be presented with a 

commemorative plaque citation, which states:

Since the 1970s Mr. Rod J. Dallaire has pioneered the technologies that enabled 

current high quality Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR). He pioneered radar payload 

designs and discovered hardware failures that saved satellites. Mr. Dallaire developed 

a Gold Standard algorithm and invented numerous ground processing techniques that 

significantly improved image quality. Additionally, he led technology improvement 

programs that transitioned cutting-edge software and hardware to system program 

offices for integration into on-orbit satellite flight programs. Mr. Dallaire holds patents 

on several advanced processing techniques, most notably as co-inventor of technology 

used on processed SAR imagery.

Mr. Dallaire currently serves as a Senior Systems Engineer and Radar Subject Matter Expert 

in GEOINT/R&T at IAI. He began his career as a Technician at Burroughs Corporation, 

where he designed the company’s first modem. He joined Bendix Aerospace in 1970 as an 

Engineer where he worked on reliability assessment, parts failure and worse case analysis, 

and designed a portion of the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiment Package central station and 

designed the digital signals processing for the Mars Viking Seismometer. From 1973 – 2005, 

Mr. Dallaire worked as a Systems Engineer for Veridian and General Dynamics AIS (formerly 

Environmental Research Institute of Michigan). In 2005 he joined SRS as a Senior Systems 

Engineer working on the Space Radar Program, where he worked until 2010.

Rod J. Dallaire
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Dr. Michael Price pioneered targeting-level geolocation accuracy for nearreal-time Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA)-based ELINT processors 

using combined data from NRO spacecraft. His work on bias estimation 

and removal has improved many of the NRO’s overhead SIGINT systems in 

operations today.

Medallion Citation

Michael G. Price, Ph.D.

Period of Pioneering Contribution: 2000
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Career in National Reconnaissance: 1986 – Present

Dr. Price’s pioneering contribution, which began in the first decade of the 21st century, has 

improved many of the NRO’s overhead SIGINT systems in operations today. During the 

Pioneer Recognition Ceremony for Dr. Price’s induction into the NRO’s Pioneer Hall, he will 

be presented with a commemorative plaque citation, which states:

Dr. Price pioneered technologies that enabled targeting-level geolocation accuracy 

for an NRO satellite. He was a pioneer in the thought-leadership, advocacy, 

Concept of Operations (CONOP) development, design, implementation, and 

execution of this critical national reconnaissance activity. Dr. Price realized that 

no one contractor, company, or NRO organization could successfully deploy such 

a capability. He enlisted the help of the geolocation community through NRO/NSA 

Geolocation Conferences, which enabled the necessary critical communication 

and idea-sharing between subject matter experts. He published memoranda on 

bias-correction, optimal estimation, algorithms, and CONOPs for improved 

geolocation. His work on bias estimation and removal has improved many of the 

NRO’s overhead SIGINT systems in operations today.

Dr. Price his began his career in 1986 working in Research and Development (R&D) as a 

Systems Engineering and Technical Assistance Officer (SETA) in NRO’s Program C (Navy) 

and has continued to work in NRO R&D throughout his career. He organized the first and 

subsequent NRO/NSA Geolocation Conferences, beginning in 1995. Dr. Price is the author of 

over 170 technical memoranda and one book, dealing with geolocation and related topics.

Michael G. Price, Ph.D.
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2020

Rod J. Dallaire

Michael G. Price, Ph.D.

2019

Carol A. Staubach

2018

Edward C. Mahen, Jr.

2017

Timothy J. Barnes

2016

Thomas R. Reinehr

2015

L. Porter Davis

2014

Thomas C. “Chris” Fitzsimmons

John. R Stavlo

2013

William G. Montgomery

Donald N. Simkins, Ph.D.

2012

Robert P. O’Donnell, Ph.D.

2011

Thomas A. Brackey

Joseph J. Eash III, Col, USAF (Ret)

Michael N. Parker, Ph.D.

John W. Shipley, Ph.D.

Richard C. Van Wagoner

2010

Robert H. Dumais

Jack A. Gibbs, Brig Gen, USAF (Ret)

Richard J. Randazzo, Col, USAF (Ret)

2009

James P. Campbell, Ph.D.

Lacy G. Cook

Michael F. Maguire

2008

Raymond E. Anderson, Col, USAF (Ret)

Howard G. Brotherton

Hilliard W. Paige, Sr.

2007

Paul G. Kaminski

Sun Yet Wong

2006

Ingard M. Clausen

Fred V. Hellrich

David L. Klinger, Ph.D.

Jane A. Wood

2005

Robert E. Eisenhauer

Roger C. Marsh

Edward A. Miller, Ph.D.

Wayne L. Proffitt

2004

M. Sam Araki

Harvey Cohen, Lt Col, USAF (Ret)

Robert G. Kaemmerer

James W. McAnally

Pioneers of National Reconnaissance
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2003

Carl L. Ferdensi, Jr.

David Raspet, Col, USAF (Ret)

James W. Stoner, Ph.D.

Charles C. Tevis

2002 

Vance D. Coffman, Ph.D. 

Lee M. Hammarstrom 

Robert L. Paulson, Col, USAF (Ret)

2001

Donald L. Cromer, Lt Gen, USAF (Ret) 

A.J. (Tony) Iorillo 

Vincent S. Rose 

John Walton 

2000

James G. Baker, Ph.D. 

C. Lee Battle, Jr., Col, USAF (Ret)

John T. Bennett 

John W. Browning, Col, USAF (Ret) 

Jon H. Bryson, Col, USAF (Ret) 

A. Roy Burks 

Frank S. Buzard, Col, USAF (Ret) 

Cornelius W. “Connie” Chambers 

John O. Copley, Col, USAF (Ret) 

Robert H. Crotser 

John J. Crowley 

James C. de Broekert

Gary S. Geyer, Col, USAF (Ret) 

Thomas O. Haig, Col, USAF (Ret) 

Frederick H. Kaufman 

Robert J. Kohler 

Ellis E. Lapin 

Lloyd K. Lauderdale, Ph.D.

Richard S. Leghorn, Col, USAF (Ret)

Walter J. Levison 

Howard O. Lorenzen 

Frank J. Madden 

James T. Mannen, Col, USAF (Ret) 

Paul W. Mayhew, Ph.D. 

Reid D. Mayo 

James E. Morgan 

Mark N. Morton 

Alden V. Munson, Jr. 

Charles L. Murphy, Col, USAF (Ret) 

Frederic C.E. “Fritz” Oder, Col, USAF (Ret)

John Parangosky

Julius P. “Val” Peline, Ph.D. 

Robert M. Powell 

Edward H. Reese 

Osmond J. “Ozzie” Ritland, 

Major General, USAF (Ret) 

Lee W. Roberts, Col, USAF (Ret) 

Charles R. “Charlie” Roth 

Robert W. “Rob” Roy, Col, USAF (Ret) 

Charles P. Spoelhof 

Forrest H. Stieg 

Marvin S. Stone, Ph.D. 

Don F. Tang 

Albert D. “Bud” Wheelon, Ph.D. 

Peter G. Wilhelm 

Roy H. Worthington, Col, USAF (Ret) 

Robert W. Yundt, Col, USAF (Ret)
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Pioneer Hall

National Reconnaissance Office

Chantilly, Virginia 
-9-
NRO| MSC 21-89660