Guggenheim Aeronautical Laboratory
Encyclopedia
The Guggenheim Aeronautical Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology
(GALCIT), was a research institute
created in 1926, at first specializing in aeronautics
research. In 1930, Hungarian scientist Theodore von Kármán
accepted the directorship of the lab and emigrated to the United States. Under his leadership, work on rocket
s began there in 1936. GALCIT was the first—and from 1936 to 1940 the only—university-based rocket research center. Based on GALCIT's JATO
project at the time, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
was established under a contract with the United States Army in November 1943.
In 1961 the GALCIT acronym was retained while the name changed to Graduate Aeronautical Laboratories at the California Institute of Technology. GALCIT was once again renamed in 2006, taking on the new name Graduate Aerospace Laboratories of the California Institute of Technology, while continuing to maintain GALCIT in order to reflect its reengagement with JPL.
and his son, Harry Guggenheim established the Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics on June 16, 1926. Between 1926 and 1930 the fund disbursed $3 million, making grants that established schools or research centers at New York University, Stanford University, the University of Michigan, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Washington, the Georgia Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Syracuse University, Northwestern University, the University of Akron, and the California Institute of Technology. It was the Guggenheims who, along with Caltech president Robert Andrews Millikan, convinced von Kármán to emigrate to the United States and become director of GALCIT. Eventually, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
(NACA) became so concerned about GALCIT's growing influence over West coast aviation, it erected the Ames Laboratory
in Sunnyvale, California
in part to deter an ever widening aeronautical gap that had formed between NACA and GALCIT.
began part-time work at the GALCIT ten-foot wind tunnel, and in 1935 he became a Graduate Assistant in the lab. In early 1936, with the aid of a graduate assistant to von Kármán, William Bollay, Malina and two rocket enthusiasts -- John W. Parsons and Edward S. Forman -- began the GALCIT Rocket Research Project. They were soon joined by two GALCIT graduate students, Tsien Hsue-shen
and A.M.O. Smith. In October they tested for the first time their gaseous oxygen - methyl alcohol rocket motor. They used an area of the Arroyo Seco on the western edge of Pasadena, "a stone’s throw from the present-day Jet Propulsion Laboratory." After a series of tests, they tested the motor in that location for the last time in January 1937; it ran for 44 seconds at a chamber pressure of 75 psi. In March, Weld Arnold, then an assistant in the Astrophysical Laboratory at Caltech, joined the group as a photographer. Tests of a motor that used nitrogen dioxide as the oxidizer were conducted in the GALCIT lab. A misfire of that motor gained the project the nickname, "The Suicide Squad." During 1938 Smith went to work for Douglas Aircraft. Arnold left Caltech for New York. Tsien devoted more of his time to completing his doctorate. Malina, Parsons and Forman continued with the project.
In early 1939, the National Academy of Sciences provided $1,000 to von Kármán and the Rocket Research Group to research rocket-assisted take-off of aircraft. This JATO
research was the first rocket research to receive financial support from the U.S. government.
asked GALCIT to study the possible use of rockets to propel long-range missiles. In response, Malina and Tsien wrote a report dated 20 November 1943, which was the first document to use the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
name. Von Kármán added a cover memorandum, signing it as "Director, Jet Propulsion Laboratory," but as far as Caltech was concerned JPL did not yet formally exist. In early 1944 the United States Army
asked GALCIT to develop missiles for field use, which led to the development of the Private
, Corporal, and Sergeant missiles. The Army Ordnance Corps
established the ORDCIT Project, and JPL/GALCIT was formally organized to carry out this work.
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
(GALCIT), was a research institute
Research institute
A research institute is an establishment endowed for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research...
created in 1926, at first specializing in aeronautics
Aeronautics
Aeronautics is the science involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of airflight-capable machines, or the techniques of operating aircraft and rocketry within the atmosphere...
research. In 1930, Hungarian scientist Theodore von Kármán
Theodore von Karman
Theodore von Kármán was a Hungarian-American mathematician, aerospace engineer and physicist who was active primarily in the fields of aeronautics and astronautics. He is responsible for many key advances in aerodynamics, notably his work on supersonic and hypersonic airflow characterization...
accepted the directorship of the lab and emigrated to the United States. Under his leadership, work on rocket
Rocket
A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...
s began there in 1936. GALCIT was the first—and from 1936 to 1940 the only—university-based rocket research center. Based on GALCIT's JATO
JATO
JATO is an acronym for jet-fuel assisted take off. It is a system for helping overloaded aircraft into the air by providing additional thrust in the form of small rockets....
project at the time, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center located in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The facility is headquartered in the city of Pasadena on the border of La Cañada Flintridge and Pasadena...
was established under a contract with the United States Army in November 1943.
In 1961 the GALCIT acronym was retained while the name changed to Graduate Aeronautical Laboratories at the California Institute of Technology. GALCIT was once again renamed in 2006, taking on the new name Graduate Aerospace Laboratories of the California Institute of Technology, while continuing to maintain GALCIT in order to reflect its reengagement with JPL.
Founding
Daniel GuggenheimDaniel Guggenheim
Daniel Guggenheim was an American industrialist and philanthropist, and a son of Meyer Guggenheim.-Biography:...
and his son, Harry Guggenheim established the Daniel Guggenheim Fund for the Promotion of Aeronautics on June 16, 1926. Between 1926 and 1930 the fund disbursed $3 million, making grants that established schools or research centers at New York University, Stanford University, the University of Michigan, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Washington, the Georgia Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Syracuse University, Northwestern University, the University of Akron, and the California Institute of Technology. It was the Guggenheims who, along with Caltech president Robert Andrews Millikan, convinced von Kármán to emigrate to the United States and become director of GALCIT. Eventually, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics was a U.S. federal agency founded on March 3, 1915 to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958 the agency was dissolved, and its assets and personnel transferred to the newly created National Aeronautics and...
(NACA) became so concerned about GALCIT's growing influence over West coast aviation, it erected the Ames Laboratory
NASA Ames Research Center
The Ames Research Center , is one of the United States of America's National Aeronautics and Space Administration 10 major field centers.The centre is located in Moffett Field in California's Silicon Valley, near the high-tech companies, entrepreneurial ventures, universities, and other...
in Sunnyvale, California
Sunnyvale, California
Sunnyvale is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States. It is one of the major cities that make up the Silicon Valley located in the San Francisco Bay Area...
in part to deter an ever widening aeronautical gap that had formed between NACA and GALCIT.
Rocket Research Project
Frank J. MalinaFrank Malina
Frank Joseph Malina was an American aeronautical engineer and painter, especially known for becoming both a pioneer in the art world and the realm of scientific engineering.-Early life:...
began part-time work at the GALCIT ten-foot wind tunnel, and in 1935 he became a Graduate Assistant in the lab. In early 1936, with the aid of a graduate assistant to von Kármán, William Bollay, Malina and two rocket enthusiasts -- John W. Parsons and Edward S. Forman -- began the GALCIT Rocket Research Project. They were soon joined by two GALCIT graduate students, Tsien Hsue-shen
Tsien Hsue-shen
Qian Xuesen was a scientist who made important contributions to the missile and space programs of both the United States and People's Republic of China. Historical documents in the U. S. commonly refer to him with the earlier family-name last spelling, Hsue-Shen Tsien or H.S...
and A.M.O. Smith. In October they tested for the first time their gaseous oxygen - methyl alcohol rocket motor. They used an area of the Arroyo Seco on the western edge of Pasadena, "a stone’s throw from the present-day Jet Propulsion Laboratory." After a series of tests, they tested the motor in that location for the last time in January 1937; it ran for 44 seconds at a chamber pressure of 75 psi. In March, Weld Arnold, then an assistant in the Astrophysical Laboratory at Caltech, joined the group as a photographer. Tests of a motor that used nitrogen dioxide as the oxidizer were conducted in the GALCIT lab. A misfire of that motor gained the project the nickname, "The Suicide Squad." During 1938 Smith went to work for Douglas Aircraft. Arnold left Caltech for New York. Tsien devoted more of his time to completing his doctorate. Malina, Parsons and Forman continued with the project.
JATO
JATO is an acronym for jet-fuel assisted take off. It is a system for helping overloaded aircraft into the air by providing additional thrust in the form of small rockets....
research was the first rocket research to receive financial support from the U.S. government.
U.S. Army missiles
In 1943 the Army Air ForcesUnited States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
asked GALCIT to study the possible use of rockets to propel long-range missiles. In response, Malina and Tsien wrote a report dated 20 November 1943, which was the first document to use the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center located in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The facility is headquartered in the city of Pasadena on the border of La Cañada Flintridge and Pasadena...
name. Von Kármán added a cover memorandum, signing it as "Director, Jet Propulsion Laboratory," but as far as Caltech was concerned JPL did not yet formally exist. In early 1944 the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
asked GALCIT to develop missiles for field use, which led to the development of the Private
Private (missile)
The Private was the first U.S. step rocket, combining a Tiny Tim rocket and a 30AS-1000C JATO unit. Tsien Hsue-shen was the JPL section leader who directed research for the Private A....
, Corporal, and Sergeant missiles. The Army Ordnance Corps
Ordnance Corps
The United States Army Ordnance Corps is a Sustainment branch of the United States Army, headquartered at Fort Lee, Virginia.-Mission Statement:The U.S...
established the ORDCIT Project, and JPL/GALCIT was formally organized to carry out this work.
Directors
- 1930-1949, Theodore von KármánTheodore von KarmanTheodore von Kármán was a Hungarian-American mathematician, aerospace engineer and physicist who was active primarily in the fields of aeronautics and astronautics. He is responsible for many key advances in aerodynamics, notably his work on supersonic and hypersonic airflow characterization...
- 1949-1966, Clark Blanchard MillikanClark Blanchard MillikanClark Blanchard Millikan was a distinguished professor of aeronautics at the California Institute of Technology , and a founding member of the National Academy of Engineering....
- 1972-1985, Hans Wolfgang Liepmann
- 1987–2003, Hans G. HornungHans G. HornungHans G. Hornung is an emeritus C. L. “Kelly” Johnson Professor of Aeronautics and Director of the Guggenheim Aeronautical Laboratory of the California Institute of Technology . He received his bachelor and master degrees from the University of Melbourne and his Ph. D. degree in Aeronautics from...
- 2004-2009, Ares J. Rosakis
- 2009–present, Guruswami Ravichandran