Syvertson
Encyclopedia
Clarence A. "Sy" Syvertson is the retired Center Director of the Ames Research Center of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, located at Moffett Field, California.
Syvertson was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota
in 1926. He graduated from the University of Minnesota
with a Bachelor of Aeronautical Engineering (with Distinction) in 1946 at age 20. After serving in the US Army in 1946 - 1947, he returned to the University and earned a Master of Science in the same field in 1948. He also did graduate work at Stanford University
and the Harvard Business School
. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering
, a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
, of the American Astronautical Society
, and of the California Council on Science and Technology (emeritus), a member of Tau Beta Pi
and Tau Omega honorary societies.
In 1948, Syvertson joined Ames, then known as the Ames Aeronautical Laboratory of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
(N.A.C.A.). For the first decade he was engaged in aerodynamic research in the high supersonic
and hypersonic
speed ranges. His research led to some significant results including the design of the first lifting body
entry vehicle, the NASA M2-F1
, a research precursor to the Space Shuttle
. Earlier work included development of the aerodynamic concept on which a Mach
3 experimental bomber, the XB-70 Valkyrie
, was based. Only two XB-70s were ever built; one was lost in a mid-air collision and the other is now in the Air Force museum at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
in Dayton, Ohio. The potential threat of a force of Mach-3 Bombers led the Soviets to build an expensive defense system.
Syvertson also developed a new aerodynamic theory widely used to predict the stability of slender vehicles flying at Mach numbers from 3 to 6 including missiles and small launch vehicles, such as the Aerobee-Hi. Early in his career at Ames he also developed new methods for the design of nozzle contours for supersonic wind tunnels. These methods improved, significantly, the quality of flow in supersonic wind tunnels and were used to design the nozzle contours for most of the supersonic wind tunnels at Ames as well as many at other institutions. Syvertson's research contributions are contained in more than 30 technical reports which he authored or co-authored during this period. For his research, he received, in 1957, the Lawrence Sperry Award, which is given by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics to the outstanding young man in aeronautics.
In the late 1950s, Syvertson moved into management when he became responsible for the aerodynamic design and initial operation of the Ames 3.5 feet (1.1 m) Hypersonic Wind Tunnel which provides a test environment for vehicles traveling at Mach numbers from 5 to 14. After successfully completing this assignment, he established, staffed, and directed the Mission Analysis Division, a small "think-tank" organization created to study the research requirements of advanced aircraft and spacecraft and of missions of future interest to NASA. In this position, Syvertson first reported to Ames and later to NASA Headquarters. From this position, he went on to head the Astronautics Directorate at Ames, directing research in space physics, planetary atmospheres, entry aerothermodynamics, and hypersonic aerodynamics. He also had management responsibility for an advanced magnetometer
experiment carried to the surface of the moon on an early Apollo program mission. In 1969, he was named Deputy Director of Ames with primary responsibility for institutional management of the Center. As Deputy Director, Syvertson supervised the development of many of the management and budgeting systems used by Ames today; some of these systems have been adopted by other NASA centers.
In 1970, Syvertson was asked to serve as the Executive Director of the Civil Aviation Research and Development (CARD) Policy Study. The resulting CARD report was considered a milestone in national policy for civil aviation research and development. For his efforts, Syvertson was awarded the NASA Exceptional Service Medal.
In 1978, Syvertson was named Director of Ames, a post he held until his retirement in 1984. During this period Ames developed and flew the XV-15 Tilt Rotor Research Aircraft, research precursor to the V-22 Osprey
. It expanded its research program in Human Factors and developed a related facility, the Manned Vehicle Systems Research Facility. The 40- by 80 feet (24.4 m) Wind Tunnel was modified with a new 80- by 120 feet (36.6 m) test chamber added, making the facility the largest wind tunnel in the world. During Syvertson's tenure, the center developed the telescope for the highly successful Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS), a joint project of the Netherlands, Great Britain, and the United States. Ames also provided comprehensive test support for the development of the Space Shuttle. In 1981, NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base
in the Mojave
desert was merged with Ames and Syvertson assumed management responsibility for both Ames Moffett and Ames Dryden. Syvertson received many awards for his leadership of Ames including the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, NASA's highest award, and election in 1981 to the National Academy of Engineering
. In addition, the Regents of the University of Minnesota voted in 2003 to grant Syvertson the University's highest award, the honorary degree of Doctor of Science.
Syvertson passed away on September 13, 2010.
Syvertson was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
in 1926. He graduated from the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
with a Bachelor of Aeronautical Engineering (with Distinction) in 1946 at age 20. After serving in the US Army in 1946 - 1947, he returned to the University and earned a Master of Science in the same field in 1948. He also did graduate work at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and the Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School is the graduate business school of Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts, United States and is widely recognized as one of the top business schools in the world. The school offers the world's largest full-time MBA program, doctoral programs, and many executive...
. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering
National Academy of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering is a government-created non-profit institution in the United States, that was founded in 1964 under the same congressional act that led to the founding of the National Academy of Sciences...
, a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics is the professional society for the field of aerospace engineering. The AIAA was founded in 1963 from the merger of two earlier societies: the American Rocket Society , founded in 1930 as the American Interplanetary Society , and the Institute...
, of the American Astronautical Society
American Astronautical Society
Formed in 1954, the American Astronautical Society is an independent scientific and technical group in the United States dedicated to the advancement of space science and exploration. AAS supports NASA's Vision for Space Exploration and is a member of the Coalition for Space Exploration and the...
, and of the California Council on Science and Technology (emeritus), a member of Tau Beta Pi
Tau Beta Pi
The Tau Beta Pi Association is the oldest engineering honor society in the United States and the second oldest collegiate honor society in America. It honors engineering students who have shown a history of academic achievement as well as a commitment to personal and professional integrity...
and Tau Omega honorary societies.
In 1948, Syvertson joined Ames, then known as the Ames Aeronautical Laboratory of 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...
(N.A.C.A.). For the first decade he was engaged in aerodynamic research in the high supersonic
Supersonic
Supersonic speed is a rate of travel of an object that exceeds the speed of sound . For objects traveling in dry air of a temperature of 20 °C this speed is approximately 343 m/s, 1,125 ft/s, 768 mph or 1,235 km/h. Speeds greater than five times the speed of sound are often...
and hypersonic
Hypersonic
In aerodynamics, a hypersonic speed is one that is highly supersonic. Since the 1970s, the term has generally been assumed to refer to speeds of Mach 5 and above...
speed ranges. His research led to some significant results including the design of the first lifting body
Lifting body
A lifting body is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration in which the body itself produces lift. In contrast to a flying wing, which is a wing with minimal or no conventional fuselage, a lifting body can be thought of as a fuselage with little or no conventional wing...
entry vehicle, the NASA M2-F1
NASA M2-F1
The NASA M2-F1 was a lightweight, unpowered prototype aircraft, developed to flight test the wingless lifting body concept. It looked like a "flying bathtub," and was designated the M2-F1, the "M" referring to "manned" and "F" referring to "flight" version. In 1962, NASA Dryden management approved...
, a research precursor to the Space Shuttle
Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle was a manned orbital rocket and spacecraft system operated by NASA on 135 missions from 1981 to 2011. The system combined rocket launch, orbital spacecraft, and re-entry spaceplane with modular add-ons...
. Earlier work included development of the aerodynamic concept on which a Mach
Mach number
Mach number is the speed of an object moving through air, or any other fluid substance, divided by the speed of sound as it is in that substance for its particular physical conditions, including those of temperature and pressure...
3 experimental bomber, the XB-70 Valkyrie
XB-70 Valkyrie
The North American Aviation XB-70 Valkyrie was the prototype version of the proposed B-70 nuclear-armed deep-penetration strategic bomber for the United States Air Force's Strategic Air Command...
, was based. Only two XB-70s were ever built; one was lost in a mid-air collision and the other is now in the Air Force museum at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Greene and Montgomery counties in the state of Ohio. It includes both Wright and Patterson Fields, which were originally Wilbur Wright Field and Fairfield Aviation General Supply Depot. Patterson Field is located approximately...
in Dayton, Ohio. The potential threat of a force of Mach-3 Bombers led the Soviets to build an expensive defense system.
Syvertson also developed a new aerodynamic theory widely used to predict the stability of slender vehicles flying at Mach numbers from 3 to 6 including missiles and small launch vehicles, such as the Aerobee-Hi. Early in his career at Ames he also developed new methods for the design of nozzle contours for supersonic wind tunnels. These methods improved, significantly, the quality of flow in supersonic wind tunnels and were used to design the nozzle contours for most of the supersonic wind tunnels at Ames as well as many at other institutions. Syvertson's research contributions are contained in more than 30 technical reports which he authored or co-authored during this period. For his research, he received, in 1957, the Lawrence Sperry Award, which is given by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics to the outstanding young man in aeronautics.
In the late 1950s, Syvertson moved into management when he became responsible for the aerodynamic design and initial operation of the Ames 3.5 feet (1.1 m) Hypersonic Wind Tunnel which provides a test environment for vehicles traveling at Mach numbers from 5 to 14. After successfully completing this assignment, he established, staffed, and directed the Mission Analysis Division, a small "think-tank" organization created to study the research requirements of advanced aircraft and spacecraft and of missions of future interest to NASA. In this position, Syvertson first reported to Ames and later to NASA Headquarters. From this position, he went on to head the Astronautics Directorate at Ames, directing research in space physics, planetary atmospheres, entry aerothermodynamics, and hypersonic aerodynamics. He also had management responsibility for an advanced magnetometer
Magnetometer
A magnetometer is a measuring instrument used to measure the strength or direction of a magnetic field either produced in the laboratory or existing in nature...
experiment carried to the surface of the moon on an early Apollo program mission. In 1969, he was named Deputy Director of Ames with primary responsibility for institutional management of the Center. As Deputy Director, Syvertson supervised the development of many of the management and budgeting systems used by Ames today; some of these systems have been adopted by other NASA centers.
In 1970, Syvertson was asked to serve as the Executive Director of the Civil Aviation Research and Development (CARD) Policy Study. The resulting CARD report was considered a milestone in national policy for civil aviation research and development. For his efforts, Syvertson was awarded the NASA Exceptional Service Medal.
In 1978, Syvertson was named Director of Ames, a post he held until his retirement in 1984. During this period Ames developed and flew the XV-15 Tilt Rotor Research Aircraft, research precursor to the V-22 Osprey
V-22 Osprey
The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey is an American multi-mission, military, tiltrotor aircraft with both a vertical takeoff and landing , and short takeoff and landing capability...
. It expanded its research program in Human Factors and developed a related facility, the Manned Vehicle Systems Research Facility. The 40- by 80 feet (24.4 m) Wind Tunnel was modified with a new 80- by 120 feet (36.6 m) test chamber added, making the facility the largest wind tunnel in the world. During Syvertson's tenure, the center developed the telescope for the highly successful Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS), a joint project of the Netherlands, Great Britain, and the United States. Ames also provided comprehensive test support for the development of the Space Shuttle. In 1981, NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located on the border of Kern County, Los Angeles County, and San Bernardino County, California, in the Antelope Valley. It is southwest of the central business district of North Edwards, California and due east of Rosamond.It is named in...
in the Mojave
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...
desert was merged with Ames and Syvertson assumed management responsibility for both Ames Moffett and Ames Dryden. Syvertson received many awards for his leadership of Ames including the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, NASA's highest award, and election in 1981 to the National Academy of Engineering
National Academy of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering is a government-created non-profit institution in the United States, that was founded in 1964 under the same congressional act that led to the founding of the National Academy of Sciences...
. In addition, the Regents of the University of Minnesota voted in 2003 to grant Syvertson the University's highest award, the honorary degree of Doctor of Science.
Syvertson passed away on September 13, 2010.