Lyman Spitzer: Making Space For Hubble
- Produced by:
- Paul Morris
- View full credits
His vision came over a decade before the launch of the first satellite, Sputnik, as well as the establishment of NASA itself. While the fundamental concept of sending a large telescope into space wasn’t new, the reality of doing so was.Seventy-five years ago, astronomer Lyman Spitzer envisioned a future for space exploration that deepened humanity’s curiosity about the cosmos.
A visionary behind the Hubble Space Telescope, Spitzer was among the earliest astronomers pioneering a revolutionary way to explore the universe through astronomical satellites. His vision came over a decade before the launch of the first satellite, Sputnik, as well as the establishment of NASA itself. While the fundamental concept of sending a large telescope into space wasn’t new, the reality of doing so was.
For more information, visit https://nasa.gov/hubble.
Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
Paul Morris: Lead Producer
Anisha Engineer: Lead Writer
Grace Weikert: Narration
Image Credits of Dr. Spitzer:
The Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
Don Morton
Denise Applewhite
Music Credits:
"Lead Train" by Sebastian Barnaby Robertson [BMI] and Tristan Calder [ASCAP] via Killer Tracks [BMI], Soundcast Music [SESAC], and Universal Production Music.
Credits
Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. However, please credit individual items as indicated above.
Writer
- Anisha Engineer (NASA)
Producer
- Paul Morris (KBRwyle) [Lead]
Narrator
- Grace Weikert (GSFC Interns)
Technical support
- Aaron E. Lepsch (ADNET)
Missions
This visualization is related to the following missions:Related pages
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Dec. 23rd, 2020
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Oct. 4th, 2018
Read moreThis is a recorded interview from Voice of America. In this program, Dr. Fred Whipple discusses sending a telescope above the earth's atmosphere to transcend the atmosphere's obscuring of the view of space. He talks about plans for the Orbiting Astronomical Observatory (OAO,) which was a precursor to the Hubble Space Telescope.National Archive webpage: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/105636SVS webpage: https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/13059National Archives Identifier: 105636Local Identifier: 306.10-23Creator: U.S. Information AgencyFrom: Record Group 306: Records of the U.S. Information Agency, 1900-2003This item was broadcast 07/10/1959Production Series: New Horizons in Science Discusses the history of telescopes, why we're putting one in space, the basics of astronomy, and how the [Hubble] Space Telescope will work. Interviews with Dr. C. R. O'Dell, Space Telescope Project Scientist; Professor James Westphal, California Institute of Technology; Dr. Carl Sagan, AstronomerNational Archives webpage: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/77180613National Archives Identifier: 77180613Local Identifier: 517-BBG-29508Creator: NASA, Marshall Space Flight CenterFrom: Record Group 517: Records of the Broadcasting Board of GovernorsThis item was produced in 1981Production Series: NASA at Work. "Space Telescope and Spacelab" News story, interview, and b-roll for the [Hubble] Space Telescope. Interview with Riccardo Giacconi, the first director of the Space Telescope Science Institute. National Archives webpage: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/58585National Archives Identifier: 58585Local Identifier: 306-TVSF-4Creator: International Communication AgencyFrom: Video Recordings from the "TV Satellite File" Program Series, Record Group 306: Records of the U.S. Information AgencyThis item was produced in 1983 G89-002 Hubble BDM ProductionApril 10, 1989Created by BDM International, Inc. for NASA HeadquartersAnimation and Special Effects by BDM International, Inc.; Interface Video Systems, Inc.; and Jet Propulsion LaboratoryOriginal Music by Premier Recording/DCA Music, Inc."This Presentation is dedicated to all those who worked to create the Hubble Space Telescope, especially Dr. Lyman Spitzer."08:39 - Space Telescope project engineer Jean Olivier09:15 - Space Telescope principal investigator Professor James Westphal13:24 - Space Telescope program scientist Dr. Ed Weiler17:44 - Space Telescope scientist Dr. Margaret Burbidge22:36 - Space Telescope scientist Dr. Brad Smith November 1, 1989 Footage Science World episode 167 from 1990National Archives webpage: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/77179472National Archives identifier: 77179472Local Identifier: 517-BBG-37120Creator: Broadcasting Board of Governors. International Broadcasting Bureau.From: Record Group 517: Records of the Broadcasting Board of GovernorsEpisode 167 contains: Hubble Space Telescope, little known syndrome, and striper. B-Roll of Hubble in Cleanroom Related pages