Albert Percival Rowe
Encyclopedia
Albert Percival Rowe (1898–1976) was a British physicist
and senior research administrator who had a major role in the development of Radar
before and during World War II.
Rowe was born in Launceston, Cornwall
, and after attending the Portsmouth Naval Dockyard School went to Imperial College, London in 1918, graduating with a first-class honours in physics in 1921, and postgraduate diploma in air navigation in 1922.
In the Air Ministry
he was convinced by 1934 of the need for new methods of air defence, and was secretary of the Tizard Committee which supported the early development of radio-based detection. In 1935, he coined the acronym RDF as a cover for the work, meaning Range and Direction Finding but suggesting the already well-known Radio Directing Finding technology. Rowe replaced Robert Watson-Watt
as Superindentent of the Bawdsey
Research Station where the Chain Home
RDF system was developed, and continued to lead the Telecommunications Research Establishment
(TRE), which carried out pioneering research on microwave
radar.
Putley describes him as a complex character with a strong sense of mission, so, difficult to live with. But he supports Rowe’s decisions in giving priority and most of TRE’s resources to the completion of the Chain Home and Chain Home Low
systems in 1938-39, but also continuing research in 1940 on developing airborne interception (AI) radar and, with the cavity magnetron
, centimetric radar, though microwave systems could have been regarded as too long-term to be useful at that time. Despite opposition, he also led in the development of Oboe
and H2S
.
Rowe was worn out and in poor health after the war, and got a less stressful job in Australia. Recovering, he was the first Scientific Advisor to the Australian government and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Adelaide
. He retired back to England.
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
and senior research administrator who had a major role in the development of Radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
before and during World War II.
Rowe was born in Launceston, Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, and after attending the Portsmouth Naval Dockyard School went to Imperial College, London in 1918, graduating with a first-class honours in physics in 1921, and postgraduate diploma in air navigation in 1922.
In the Air Ministry
Air Ministry
The Air Ministry was a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964...
he was convinced by 1934 of the need for new methods of air defence, and was secretary of the Tizard Committee which supported the early development of radio-based detection. In 1935, he coined the acronym RDF as a cover for the work, meaning Range and Direction Finding but suggesting the already well-known Radio Directing Finding technology. Rowe replaced Robert Watson-Watt
Robert Watson-Watt
Sir Robert Alexander Watson-Watt, KCB, FRS, FRAeS is considered by many to be the "inventor of radar". Development of radar, initially nameless, was first started elsewhere but greatly expanded on 1 September 1936 when Watson-Watt became...
as Superindentent of the Bawdsey
RAF Bawdsey
RAF Bawdsey was an RAF station situated on the eastern coast in Suffolk, England.Bawdsey Manor, dating from 1886, was taken over in March 1936 by the Air Ministry for developing the Chain Home RDF system...
Research Station where the Chain Home
Chain Home
Chain Home was the codename for the ring of coastal Early Warning radar stations built by the British before and during the Second World War. The system otherwise known as AMES Type 1 consisted of radar fixed on top of a radio tower mast, called a 'station' to provide long-range detection of...
RDF system was developed, and continued to lead the Telecommunications Research Establishment
Telecommunications Research Establishment
The Telecommunications Research Establishment was the main United Kingdom research and development organization for radio navigation, radar, infra-red detection for heat seeking missiles, and related work for the Royal Air Force during World War II and the years that followed. The name was...
(TRE), which carried out pioneering research on microwave
Microwave
Microwaves, a subset of radio waves, have wavelengths ranging from as long as one meter to as short as one millimeter, or equivalently, with frequencies between 300 MHz and 300 GHz. This broad definition includes both UHF and EHF , and various sources use different boundaries...
radar.
Putley describes him as a complex character with a strong sense of mission, so, difficult to live with. But he supports Rowe’s decisions in giving priority and most of TRE’s resources to the completion of the Chain Home and Chain Home Low
Chain Home Low
Chain Home Low was the name of a British radar early warning system, detecting enemy aircraft movement at lower altitudes than and summarily used with the fixed Chain Home system which was operated by the RAF during World War II...
systems in 1938-39, but also continuing research in 1940 on developing airborne interception (AI) radar and, with the cavity magnetron
Cavity magnetron
The cavity magnetron is a high-powered vacuum tube that generates microwaves using the interaction of a stream of electrons with a magnetic field. The 'resonant' cavity magnetron variant of the earlier magnetron tube was invented by John Randall and Harry Boot in 1940 at the University of...
, centimetric radar, though microwave systems could have been regarded as too long-term to be useful at that time. Despite opposition, he also led in the development of Oboe
Oboe (navigation)
Oboe was a British aerial blind bombing targeting system in World War II, based on radio transponder technology. Oboe accurately measured the distance to an aircraft, and gave the pilot guidance on whether or not they were flying along a pre-selected circular route. The route was only 35 yards...
and H2S
H2S radar
H2S was the first airborne, ground scanning radar system. It was developed in Britain in World War II for the Royal Air Force and was used in various RAF bomber aircraft from 1943 to the 1990s. It was designed to identify targets on the ground for night and all-weather bombing...
.
Rowe was worn out and in poor health after the war, and got a less stressful job in Australia. Recovering, he was the first Scientific Advisor to the Australian government and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Adelaide
University of Adelaide
The University of Adelaide is a public university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third oldest university in Australia...
. He retired back to England.