Curriculum vitae ...

Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Senior Honors Thesis and Projects Supervised

Membership in Professional & Academic Societies

Governmental Agencies and International, Federal and State Activities

Special Experience and Responsibilities

Professional Honors and Activities

Rocket Experiments

Documents Referencing My Work

Presentation Venues

Comments on Web Site Status

Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Senior Honors Thesis and Projects Supervised

Membership in Professional & Academic Societies

Governmental Agencies and International, Federal and State Activities

Special Experience and Responsibilities

1. Principal Investigator (PI) for nine mass spectrometer satellite instruments that measured the neutral and ion species densities in the thermosphere between 1967 and 1976 [these satellites were ADCOS (OV3-6), SPADES (OV1-15), OVl-21, S3-1 and S3-2]. Each of the instruments worked well and provided an important part of the data base that was used to develop the US Standard Atmosphere (USSA-76), Air Force Reference Atmospheres, COSPAR International Reference Atmosphere (CIRA), and several ionospheric models, including the International Reference Ionosphere (IRI). I served also as the project scientist for the two the small scientific satellites (S3-1 and S3-2). This included coordination of the scientific interface for pre-launch preparation and system testing of these spacecraft. The effort included the development several unique designs for flight mass spectrometers. An original type of satellite mass spectrometer, a Velocity Mass Spectrometer (VMS) was developed and first flown on the OV1-21 satellite.
2. My research team at the AF Cambridge Research Lab developed the NACS cryo-pumped quadrupole mass spectrometer and obtained the first mass spectrometer measurements of the gas species densities in the mesosphere. In 1970, NACS obtained the first direct measurements of atomic oxygen, argon, carbon dioxide, ozone, and other mesospheric gasses. The first measurements of turbopause height were obtained with the NACS instrument from the Ar/N₂ ratio. We found that the transition from turbulence to molecular diffusion could occur at altitudes slightly less than 90 km to at least 105 km depending upon the atmospheric conditions, based on measurements from several flights. I was PI for the largest US rocket investigation ever undertaken, ALADDIN74, as well as PI or co-PI for several coordinated programs ALADDIN I, ALADDIN II, PCA69, Energy Budget Campaign (EBC), MAPWINE, CAMP, and the AURORAL-E campaigns. We also developed and used a unique piezoelectric accelerometer instrument payload to measure the wind, temperature, and turbulence in the mesosphere and over a range of altitude from 50 to 160 km. The results from these studies provided the highest resolution measurements of the structure parameters in the mesosphere and are still used to define the properties of the mesosphere and lower thermosphere. Measurements from these rocket instruments provided the foundation used to prepare and test many of the middle atmosphere and lower thermosphere models that are used today.
3. We began our development of Raman lidar techniques in 1977 to investigate the tropopause and middle atmosphere structure and dynamical properties, also eventually supplemented measurements of meteorological rockets and balloon sondes. My research group prepared two Raman lidar instruments at the AFGL laboratory, GLEAM and GLINT. The GLEAM lidar was our first large research lidar using an Nd-YAG laser with a 1-meter diameter telescope. It was prepared in the roof-top Lidar Laboratory on the roof of the AFCRL facility at Hanscom AFB. GLINT was made transportable and was deployed at NASA Wallops, VA, Poker Flat Research Range (PFRR) AK, and other locations to investigate the atmosphere and demonstrate its capability to profile the lower and middle atmosphere properties in the region that could only be obtained until then with meteorological balloons and rocket sondes.
4. Scientific efforts have always been linked with a range of specific DoD topics. Between 1966 and 1975, a major part of my effort was focused on understanding the effects of atmospheric plasmas, both man-made and natural, on radio wave propagation. Most of these investigations of ionospheric effects were carried out at high latitude where aurora and energetic particle events provided useful situations for testing these effects. I served on a committee to evaluate how to best correct for the refraction of radio wave path bending and time delay as a basis for the designs that now are our GPS system. The global ionosphere electron distribution provides a formidable problem in determining the path of RF waves. We used several transmitters on satellites at different RF frequencies, together with ground based receivers to develop and evaluate designs that could reliably be analyzed to determine a specific location. During the period 1974 to 1979, it was my responsibility to work on improvements to the reentry vehicle trajectory analysis at Kwajlein Missile Range. This effort resulted in a new capability to make measurements in the reentry corridor to validate new vehicle configurations. Also, we prepared the KMR Reference Model Atmosphere. Between 1978 and 1985, I served as technical advisor for the development and demonstration of a DIAL lidar system that could detect and measure the concentration profiles of the chemical agents. Additional efforts included analysis of the environment effects for the National Aerospace Plane, problems associated with submarine optical communications, effects of atmospheric refractivity on radar beam ducting, analysis of problems associated with atmospheric optical propagation on several systems, and evaluation of chemical and biological agent detection programs.
5. We began developing Raman lidar techniques and extending Rayleigh lidar measurements into the mesosphere in 1977. In 1996, we demonstrated the first operational prototype Raman lidar, LAPS, which was developed for the Navy to supplement and replace most of the balloon sonde use on ships and at coastal sites. This instrument was also designed to provide real time meteorology and RF refractivity data for radar corrections. LAPS instrument was the fifth generation of Raman lidars that we developed for profiling atmospheric properties. During the period 1997 to present, we have focused our major efforts to understand to physical and chemical processes associated with air pollution episodes by applying lidar, together with the instruments of many colleagues, in cooperative research programs.

Professional Honors and Activities

Rocket Experiments

My early challenge at the Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratory (AFCRL) was to develop a new mass spectrometer instrument to measure the gas composition in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere, while assisting Dr. Rocco Narcisi with his work using an ion mass spectrometer. My work resulted in developing the Neutral Atmospheric Composition Spectrometer (NACS) instrument, which made use of the earlier ion instruments design. Several new developments were made in the mechanical and electrical design, a cryosorption pump was designed to maintain low pressure in the analysis volume, and a special electron ionization source for this instrument was designed. Special credits go to three engineers Allen Baily, Raymond Wlodyka, and Frank Federico, who applied their skills to the electrical and mechanical designs of these mass spectrometer instruments, and Edward McKenna who oversaw the design and testing of the rocket payload. The first launch failed because the nose cone did not eject on up leg of the flight. In 1970, we were successful in making the first measurements of the gas composition in the altitude region 50-120 km, which resulted in the first observation the gas separation from mixing at the turbopause based on the Ar/N₂ ratio and we measured the profiles of N₂, O₂, Ar, O₃, CO₂, and gravity waves through that region. Over the next ten years, we successfully measured the gas composition a dozen times at different locations and under a range of conditions.

In 1968, I was asked to lead a major rocket program to study the aurora, as a way of answering several remaining questions about atmospheric plasmas, since this was the only source for atmospheric plasma available to us after the test ban was signed. We conducted a couple of launches in 1968, and prepared to conduct a major investigation in 1969 to launch payloads into a Polar Cap Absorption (PCS) event. These events result in a major pulse of both ion and electron energetic flux into the high latitude atmosphere during what we now refer to as coronal mass ejections from the sun. Based on our statistics from the last solar maximum in 1958 (IGY) we expected that we should get the conditions we wanted in two to three weeks; however, this field program lasted more than three months, with setup in July/August and launch the first week of November. These events usually last three to four days, so we planned to launch salvos of the payloads containing the instruments needed at sunrise, noon, sunset, and midnight for three days. This program was remarkably successful and included the launch about 50 rocket payloads over those three days – this was the only time I did not sleep for three days, even though we did setup cots in the hallways at the launch site (picture of the crew in Images/Memories).

The second major instrument developed for rocket experiments is a piezoelectric accelerometer sphere that measures the total density and wind velocity with exceptional precision. This instrument used a piezoelectric crystal on each side of a thin metal plate in a bimorph configuration. It was positioned in the center of a sphere released from the rocket on up-leg to spin stabilize it at 6 RPS. The accelerometer was able to measure the drag acceleration to less than 10-6 g and wind velocity to a fraction of a m/s between 40 and 160 km altitude. During the mid-1970s we launched about a dozen of these payloads and the engineer working with me on this project Programs have been conducted at Eglin AFB, NASA Wallops Island, Poker Flat Research Range Alaska, ESRANGE Sweden, Andoya Rocket Range Norway, Kwajalein Range, Fort Churchill CA, and White Sands Missile Range.

Documents Referencing My Work

Presentation Venues

Comments on Web Site Status

This web-site is not complete, it is a work in progress. The idea is to turn on the access to the internet now, August 2017, and continue to add the missing items as time permits. The site is missing as many as a dozen of the student’s theses/dissertations and a large number, probably about fifty, of the papers intended for this site. In addition, a significant amount of work remains in adding photos, descriptions, ‘key words’, and other planned pieces of information.

My hope is that this site will serve as a recognition for the bright young people that I have had the opportunity to work closely with during my careers as a professor at Penn State University and NC State University. Many of the thesis/dissertations more than 15-years old are not easy to locate, as the primary archiving was on microfiche film. More recently, most universities have prepared their own internet sites for access to those documents. Also, many of my older papers from 1960-1980, during my career at the AFCRL laboratory, are not generally available. The attempt is to make my papers, and those of my former students available. The materials also include a few papers and student’s theses where I was not the committee chairman, when I made special contributions to the student’s progress through contributions of the data used, financial support, or significant efforts to help them on their path.

This site is also intended to provide my immediate and extended family, friends, and colleagues an opportunity to see some of the work that I have been involved in during the past 60-years. Maybe they will see why I say that “I have been given greatest opportunities to work in many exciting areas, that have been enabled by my family, teachers, mentors, friends, and my education by the teachers at Cary High School, professors at NCSU, and by many great colleagues over these years.”

A special appreciation is due to Al Newberry for his expertise in preparing this web-site. After a long career, which involved computer programming, he has developed several web sites in retirement, including his own, and he has an in-depth understanding for what works. I much appreciate his help with preparing this site and feel fortunate that we met, thru the fact the he is a cousin of my wife that was first contacted through genealogy.