William_M._Kaula

William M. Kaula

William M. Kaula

American geophysicist

William M. Kaula (May 19, 1926 – April 1, 2000) was an Australian-born American geophysicist and professor at the University of California, Los Angeles.[1][2][3][4][5] Kaula was most notable for his contributions to geodesy, including using early satellites to produce maps of Earth's gravity.[1] The National Academies Press called Kaula "the father of space-based geodesy".[2] The Los Angeles Times called him "one of the leading planetary physicists of the last four decades".[4]

Quick Facts Born, Died ...

Education and early career

He graduated from West Point (the top military school in the United States) in 1948 with a B.S. in Military Engineering, then served in the Army Corps of Engineers, leading a topographic survey of New Britain, an island in the Pacific. Kaula received a 1953 M.S. degree from Ohio State University in geodesy. In 1958 he was named chief of the Division of Geodesy of the Army Map Service. From 1960 – 1963 Kaula was a research scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.[6]

UCLA professor

Kaula was Professor of Geophysics at the Institute for Geophysics and Planetary Physics, UCLA (1963 – 1992). He was a participant in several NASA missions, including as Laser Altimeter principal investigator on Apollo 15,[7] 16, and 17.[4] Kaula was a member of the National Research Council Space Science Board on two occasions. From 1984 – 1987 he led the National Geodetic Survey in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.[8]

Honors and legacy

He was a fellow (1964) and recipient of the Whitten Medal of the American Geophysical Union, the Brouwer Award of the American Astronomical Society,[2] Guggenheim fellowship (1978),[9] and NASA Medal for exceptional scientific achievement (1983). He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences for his scientific contributions notwithstanding his not having a doctorate, a rare such instance.[2] Asteroid 5485 Kaula is named after him.[10] The American Geophysical Union instituted the William Kaula Award (2003) in his honor.[11]

Selected publications

References

  1. [1]
    William Kaula, 73, Who Drew Maps of Earth Using Satellites, James Glanz, NY Times, April 13, 2000
  2. [2]
    National Academies of Science:Biographical Memoirs:William M. Kaula, By Donald L. Turcotte
  3. [3]
    University of California, IN MEMORIAM, William M. Kaula, Professor Emeritus of Geophysics, Los Angeles, 1926—2000
  4. [4]
    Los Angeles Times:William M. Kaula; Planetary Physicist at UCLA;April 08, 2000
  5. [5]
    West Point Eulogy:William Mason Kaula; West Point, 1948; Be Thou At Peace
  6. [6]
    biography at AIP Physics History Network
  7. [7]
    Laser Altimeter at NSSDC
  8. [8]
    biography at AIP Physics History Network
  9. [9]
    Kaula at gf.org
  10. [10]
    obituary at Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society
  11. [11]
    honors recognition at AGU
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