Pickering, William H.
William H. Pickering. (Source: IEEE History Center) William H. Pickering was born 24 December 1910, in Wellington, New Zealand, and emigrated to California as a young man to attend the California Institute of Technology. There he obtained both Bachelor's (1939) and Master's (1933) degrees in Electrical Engineering and a Ph. D. in Physics (1936), became a member of the faculty, and worked under Nobel Laureate Robert A. Millikan in a worldwide program of high-altitude and cosmic ray research. During World War II he conducted applied research in electronics at Caltech, MIT, and other laboratories. In July 1944 he organized the electronics effort at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to support guided missile research and development. He became project manager for Corporal, the first operational missile developed by JPL.
As JPL Director, Pickering was involved in U.S. Army proposals for earth satellite launchings, and in 1957/58, for the development and operation of the early Explorer satellites and Pioneer space probes. Explorer I, launched January 31, 1958, was the first U.S. artificial satellite and followed Sputnik I into Earth orbit by four months. Following these projects, he led JPL into the new NASA as a major contractor responsible for unmanned lunar and planetary flight projects and the supporting science and technology.
JPL managed unmanned lunar flight projects for NASA which preceded the manned Apollo moon landings: the Ranger lunar photo-reconnaissance missions in 1964/65 and the Surveyor lunar soft landers of 1966/68. The Laboratory also initiated interplanetary space flight in 1962 with the Mariner II mission to Venus. Mariner II revealed an 800 degree Fahrenheit surface temperature. Five years later, Mariner V data contributed to the revelation that Venus' atmospheric pressure is nearly 100 times greater than Earth's. Martian craters were discovered by Mariner IV in 1965, and, in 1969, Mariners VI and VII photographed Mars from an altitude of about 2000 miles providing scientists with high resolution pictures of the planet's varied and peculiar terrain.
Under Pickering's direction, Mariner 9 was launched in May 1971 on a 5 1/2 month flight to Mars, where it became the first spacecraft to orbit another planet. With a basic orbital life of 90 days, the spacecraft, in its first three weeks, had already taken historic photos of the two Martian satellites, detected signs of extensive water vapor content in the atmosphere, and identified areas of possible volcanic activity during past ages. Although an unprecedented dust storm restricted operations, it was hoped that the dust would settle sufficiently to permit photo-mapping of the surface.
Pickering has been Professor of Electrical Engineering at Caltech since 1946; he was the first president of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics in 1963, and president of the International Astronautical Federation in 1965/66. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and National Academy of Engineering, and the Royal Society of New Zealand, among others.
He is an advisor to the University of California and the University of Washington. He has been a member of the Army Scientific Advisory Panel and was a charter member of the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board. He has published a number of articles and technical papers in the fields in which he is active, and has received NASA's Distinguished Service Medal, the Army's Distinguished Civilian Service Award, the British Interplanetary Society's Special Award, the Columbus Gold Medal of Italy, the James Wyld Memorial of the American Rocket Society, the Robert H. Goddard Memorial Trophy of the National Space Club, the Prix Galabert of France, Italy's Order of Merit, and the IEEE Edison Medal in 1972 "For contributions to telecommunications, rocket guidance and spacecraft control, and for inspiring leadership in unmanned exploration of the solar system", among others.
Pickering resides with his wife, the former Muriel Bowler, in California. They have two children, William Balfour and Anne Elizabeth. He is an expert gardener and amateur horticulturist. His property glows with the brilliance of the roses, gardenias, and chrysanthemums that he enjoys cultivating in his spare time.
An accomplished angler, Pickering delights in fishing waters that range form his native New Zealand to the trout streams of western America. He and Mrs. Pickering share an enthusiasm for visiting archeological ruins and the sites of ancient civilizations -an interest developed during his early experience as an instructor in history at Caltech. For years he was an active hiker in the high country of the West, once traversing the entire length of the John Muir Trail along the crest of the Sierra Nevada.
Since his youth in New Zealand, Pickering has been a stamp collector, concentrating on issues from British Oceania and, currently, space-associated stamps. He is an amateur photographer of considerable skill, his travels having enabled him to pursue this interest in many exotic parts of the world. (Editor's Note: Pickering passed away on 17 March 2004, aged 93, at his home in Flintridge, CA.)
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