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40-553: Its staff conduct research and provide support and facilities for the solar-terrestrial physics research community. Topics covered include solar physics , the heliosphere , and the effects of space weather on Earth's magnetosphere , ionosphere , and upper atmosphere . HAO was originally founded in 1940 as a branch of the Harvard College Observatory , was transferred to the University of Colorado in

80-1033: A Summer Visitor's program and a Scientific Computing Facility), the High Altitude Observatory (HAO), the Facilities Division (which included the Research Aviation Facility, the Scientific Balloon Facility, a Library, Machine and Electronics Shops, and Field Observing Support for the Marshall Field Site, the Low-level Sounding System, and Radar Observations), and the Administrative and Support Services Division. In an oral interview in 1987, Roberts “discusses how he came to be NCAR's first director,

120-465: A detailed study of the declination near London by watchmaker George Graham resulted in the discovery of irregular magnetic fluctuations that we now call magnetic storms, so named by Alexander Von Humboldt . Gauss and William Weber made very careful measurements of Earth's magnetic field which showed systematic variations and random fluctuations. This suggested that the Earth was not an isolated body, but

160-467: A height around 110 km. Geiger counters on board the second Soviet satellite, Sputnik 2 , and the first US satellite, Explorer 1 , detected the Earth's radiation belts, later named the Van Allen belts . The boundary between the Earth's magnetic field and interplanetary space was studied by Explorer 10 . Future space craft would travel outside Earth orbit and study the composition and structure of

200-767: A lecture he was accused of attending. An FBI report dated 7/1/47 states “ROBERTS, scientist and Director of the Climax Observatory, Climax, Colorado entertained Russian scientists, A. SERVANY and O. MELNIKOV at Climax 2/17-20/47.” After two redacted lines, the report continues “11/29/46; ROBERTS” articles in “Denver Post” secured and forwarded to Bureau. Informant reports ROBERTS plans to visit Russia shortly. Informants describe ROBERTS as publicity seeker; brilliant scientist; firm believer in international scientific exchange, especially with Russia of all atomic information; international do-gooder. ROBERTS stated that he sees little difference in economy of U.S.S.R. and U.S. ROBERTS

240-428: A map of the "isochasms" or lines of constant magnetic field. In the late 1870s, Henri Becquerel offered the first physical explanation for the statistical correlations that had been recorded: sunspots must be a source of fast protons. They are guided to the poles by the Earth's magnetic field. In the early twentieth century, these ideas led Kristian Birkeland to build a terrella , or laboratory device which simulates

280-540: Is Chairman of Rocky Mountain Committee on Nuclear Energy, such Committee contains persons known to be Communist and Communist sympathizers. ROBERTS listed as a speaker for Denver Council of American-Soviet Friendship.” Walter Orr Roberts was ultimately cleared by the committee and given top secret security clearance in 1950. Roberts was an elected member of both the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and

320-461: Is studied using direct in situ measurements by sounding rockets and spacecraft, indirect remote sensing of electromagnetic radiation produced by the plasmas, and theoretical magnetohydrodynamics . Closely related fields include plasma physics , which studies more fundamental physics and artificial plasmas; atmospheric physics , which investigates lower levels of Earth's atmosphere; and astrophysical plasmas , which are natural plasmas beyond

360-531: Is the study of naturally occurring plasmas within Earth's upper atmosphere and the rest of the Solar System . It includes the topics of aeronomy , aurorae , planetary ionospheres and magnetospheres , radiation belts , and space weather (collectively known as solar-terrestrial physics ). It also encompasses the discipline of heliophysics , which studies the solar physics of the Sun , its solar wind ,

400-612: Is to: Perform world-leading science to understand fundamentally and with predictive capability the sources and nature of solar and geospace variability; Provide scientific leadership and facilities to serve the wider community in common pursuit of these science objectives, and both support and benefit from the NCAR community; Support the education and training of early-career researchers in solar-terrestrial physics and instrumentation; and Provide advocacy for solar-terrestrial physics, promoting its results, and articulating its societal importance, to

440-463: The coronal heating problem , solar energetic particles , and the heliosphere . Space physics is both a pure science and an applied science , with applications in radio transmission , spacecraft operations (particularly communications and weather satellites ), and in meteorology . Important physical processes in space physics include magnetic reconnection , synchrotron radiation , ring currents , Alfvén waves and plasma instabilities . It

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480-546: The 2017 Eclipse Walter Orr Roberts was a graduate student under Donald Menzel at Harvard, and helped him set up a solar telescope at the Oak Ridge Station of Harvard College Observatory. In 1939, Menzel located a site for a western station in the Colorado mountains. In his unpublished memoirs, Menzel writes: “I returned the following summer, supervised the building of the observatory and an observer’s residence [on

520-741: The Advancement of Science Walter Orr Roberts (August 20, 1915 – March 12, 1990) was an American astronomer and atmospheric physicist, as well as an educator, philanthropist, and builder. He founded the National Center for Atmospheric Research and took a personal research interest for many years in the study of influences of the Sun on weather and climate. Walter Orr Roberts was born on August 20, 1915, in West Bridgewater, Massachusetts, to Ernest Marion Roberts and Alice Elliot Orr. He

560-809: The Astronomical Council of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Moscow 1983 – Tanjung Kodok, Indonesia 1988 - Mindanao, Philippines In Provocation No. 214 , Dr. Roberts discusses the High Altitude Observatory (HAO) expedition to the Philippines to observe the eclipse of March 18. HAO expedition staff included Dick Fisher, Kristy Rock, Mike McGrath, and Lee Lacey. 1991 - Mauna Loa, Hawaii HAO in collaboration with Rhodes College, Tennessee 1994 - Putre, Chile 1998 – Curaçao, Dutch Antilles 2012 – Palm Cove, Queensland, Australia 2017 - Preparing for

600-406: The Earth's magnetic field in a vacuum chamber, and which uses a cathode ray tube to simulate the energetic particles which compose the solar wind. A theory began to be formulated about the interaction between the Earth's magnetic field and the solar wind. Space physics began in earnest with the first in situ measurements in the early 1950s, when a team led by Van Allen launched the first rockets to

640-620: The Flatirons just south of Boulder (known as Table Mountain) for the new center. I.M. Pei was selected as the architect in 1961. The resulting Mesa Laboratory, NCAR's flagship building, is considered an architectural masterpiece. By 1965, as the director of both UCAR and NCAR, Walter Orr Roberts presided over five branches of NCAR: the Advanced Study Program, the Laboratory of Atmospheric Sciences or LAS (which included

680-558: The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) beginning in 1947. After failing to obtain a security clearance in 1950, he spent a day and a half at the Pentagon where he was “accused of having a close and sympathetic association with known Communist fronts”. His lawyer advised him to write his autobiography and obtain affidavits (which included a letter from Albert Einstein) proving he didn't attend

720-856: The Program of Food, Climate, and the World's Future at the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies. He taught a course in world environmental problems, which was conducted by computer communications, for the Western Behavioral Sciences Institute in La Jolla, California, from 1982–1990. The Climate Club: A Collection of 299 Provocations Written by Walter Orr Roberts as They Appeared in WBSI Teleconferences Between May 1984 and February 1990

760-689: The Solar System. Space physics can be traced to the Chinese who discovered the principle of the compass , but did not understand how it worked. During the 16th century, in De Magnete , William Gilbert gave the first description of the Earth's magnetic field , showing that the Earth itself is a great magnet, which explained why a compass needle points north. Deviations of the compass needle magnetic declination were recorded on navigation charts, and

800-713: The University of Colorado under CU President Robert L. Stearns's tenure and was renamed the High Altitude Observatory (HAO). At that time, he became the founding director of the High Altitude Observatory (HAO), and remained the director until 1961. HAO launched an Institute of Solar-Terrestrial Relations in January 1956 for a four-year period “to study the effects of the sun on weather with the hope that from this work would come an improvement in weather or climate forecasting based on analysis of variations in

840-789: The construction of the observatory and residence on the mining property of the Climax Molybdenum Company. The observatory was installed with a coronagraph in 1940, which had been developed and tested at the Oakridge Station of Harvard College Observatory (it was patterned after one developed by Bernard Lyot in the 1930s in France). At the Harvard College Observatory in Climax (elevation 11,520 feet), Roberts observed and concluded that changes in

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880-641: The corona affected radio communications, and in fact these changes provided advance warning of communication disturbances. This became important for WWII wartime security and the observatory work was classified and overseen by the Navy during this period. In 1945, after WWII, the National Bureau of Standards contracted the observatory for reports on solar activity. In 1946, the Climax Harvard College Observatory incorporated with

920-417: The corona itself rotated with the same period as the solar surface, in something over twenty-five days. He initiated a study of the fine structure of the solar atmosphere, determining the behavior of what he called “spicules,” a phenomenon that I had myself briefly discussed while at Lick Observatory. These studies formed the basis for his doctorate thesis submitted for the degree a year or two later.” Work at

960-542: The emissions from the sun.” Subsequently he was the founding president of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) and first director of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). In the fall of 1956, Walter Orr Roberts was named head of the newly created Department of Astro-Geophysics in the graduate school by the Regents of the University of Colorado; instruction began in

1000-640: The fall of 1957. In 1960 after the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) incorporated, Roberts was elected its first president. Boulder was chosen as the site for NCAR, and Roberts was named its inaugural director in 1960 (while continuing to direct HAO). The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) was established by UCAR in partnership with the National Science Foundation (NSF). “The basic purposes of NCAR are: (1) to conduct fundamental research on

1040-435: The late 1940s, before becoming part of NCAR when the latter was founded in 1960. HAO's mission is to understand the behavior of the Sun and its impact on the Earth, to support, enhance, and extend the capabilities of the university community and the broader scientific community, nationally and internationally, and to foster the transfer of knowledge and technology. As articulated in its Strategic Plan for 2011–2015, HAO's vision

1080-423: The mining property of Climax Molybdenum Company at Climax, Colorado], and started the installation of the equipment. “This branch of the Harvard College Observatory informally opened on 8 September 1940 at Climax Colorado (elevation 11,520 ft.). Its sole purpose was to study the sun, using the first coronagraph in the western hemisphere.” Walter Roberts and his wife arrived in the summer of 1940, and remained at

1120-445: The observatory for 7 years (throughout WWII and beyond). Menzel continues: “In the summer of 1940, however, Walter and I quickly solved the problems of our coronagraph. After I left, he soon had it working properly. He obtained daily records of the spectrum of the corona, which furnished us with a valuable index of solar activity. At Climax, Walter Roberts quickly proved observationally what most astronomers had previously suspected, that

1160-427: The observatory was classified during WWII because of its value in predicting radio disturbances from the study of the corona. "The wartime work of the observatory was done under the auspices of the Navy, although overall direction remained in the hands of Harvard.” Post WWII, The National Bureau of Standards contracted the observatory for reports on solar activity. In 1946, CU Boulder became a joint sponsor with Harvard of

1200-608: The observatory, while the Central Radio Propagation Laboratory (CRPL) of the NSB funded HAO's operational costs. The headquarters of HAO was moved to Boulder in 1947. The founding director of the High Altitude Observatory was Walter Orr Roberts . The current director is Scott McIntosh. A list of all HAO directors since the founding of the observatory is given below. Solar-terrestrial physics Space physics , also known as space plasma physics ,

1240-483: The processes of the atmosphere on a scope beyond that yet attempted; (2) to provide, or arrange for the provision of, research facilities, to be open to all scientists, that are beyond the capacity of universities or most research groups to acquire or maintain; (3) to provide a center at which various groups in the atmospheric sciences and closely related fields may meet to define goals and plan programs.” The Colorado Legislature appropriated $ 250,000 to buy 500 acres beneath

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1280-451: The purpose for creating a national center, the process for identifying NCAR's initial priorities, the issue of competition between NCAR and university programs, the debate regarding NCAR's focus on research with practical applications, and NCAR's early facilities. Roberts reflects on characteristics of a successful research center, his ideas about administration, and the importance of interdisciplinary research and international cooperation among

1320-505: The rest of NCAR, the NSF, the university community, and the public. HAO's telescopes are located at its Mauna Loa Solar Observatory , near the summit of that volcano on the big island of Hawaii . NCAR's solar observatory shares space on the campus of NOAA's larger Mauna Loa Observatory . HAO's researchers are based at NCAR headquarters, in Boulder, Colorado . 1952 - Khartoum, Sudan This

1360-476: The scientific community.” Walter Orr Roberts was a pivotal figure in making Boulder, Colorado, a center for scientific research. Boulder attracted such institutions as HAO, UCAR, NCAR, the Central Radio Propagation Laboratory (CRPL) of the National Bureau of Standards, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), JILA, LASP, IBM, Ball Aerospace, and NOAA during the 1940s – 1970s. “Walt

1400-852: The solar wind in much greater detail. These include WIND (spacecraft) , (1994), Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE), Ulysses , the Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) in 2008, and Parker Solar Probe . Other spacecraft would study the sun, such as STEREO and Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). Walter Orr Roberts Hodgkins Medal , Smithsonian Institution , 1973 International Environmental Leadership Medal, United Nations, 1982 1956–1990 Professor of Astrogeophysics, University of Colorado (active, on leave or emeritus) 1960–1968 Director, National Center for Atmospheric Research 1960–1973 Chief Executive Officer and President, University Corporation for Scientific Research 1968–1969 President, American Association for

1440-787: Was a joint HAO – Naval Research Laboratory expedition, which obtained 50 spectra of the eclipse features of the sun. 1958 – Pukapuka, Cook Islands in the Pacific This was a joint HAO – Sacramento Peak expedition that was unable to obtain a single photo due to rainstorms. 1959 – Fuertaventura, Canary Islands of Spain A joint HAO – Sacramento Peak expedition 1962 – Lae, New Guinea 1963 – Alaska and Canada 1965 – Bellingshausen Island, South Pacific 1966 – Pulacayo, Bolivia 1970 - San Carlos Youtepec, Mexico 1972 – Cap Chat, Canada 1973 – Loiengalani, Kenya 1980 – Palem, India HAO in collaboration with Southwestern at Memphis College, Tennessee 1981 – Tarma, Siberia, USSR HAO in collaboration with

1480-505: Was enormously helpful in bringing a lot of very ambitious and competing scientific groups together.” In 1979, Roberts and Henry Lansford published The Climate Mandate , which discussed climatic variation and its implications. Greenhouse Glasnost, which was discussed at a 1989 Sundance Symposium on Global Climate Change, was one outcome of this international exchange. Climate and climate change remain important areas of study for NCAR scientists. From 1974–1981, Roberts served as Director for

1520-427: Was influenced by external forces – especially from the Sun and the appearance of sunspots . A relationship between individual aurora and accompanying geomagnetic disturbances was noticed by Anders Celsius and Olof Peter Hiorter in 1747. In 1860, Elias Loomis (1811–1889) showed that the highest incidence of aurora is seen inside an oval of 20 - 25 degrees around the magnetic pole. In 1881, Hermann Fritz published

1560-490: Was published by the Western Behavioral Sciences Institute in 1990. For decades, Roberts argued for action to halt anthropogenic global warming . In 1984, he published The Cold and the Dark with Paul R. Ehrlich , Carl Sagan , and Donald Kennedy . Throughout his career, Roberts sought cooperation and exchange with international (including Soviet) scientists. Some of these professional contacts caused him to be investigated by

1600-622: Was the oldest of three children. He attained a Bachelor's degree in Physics from Amherst College in 1938, and a Masters and PhD in astronomy from Harvard University in 1940 and 1943. In 1940 he married Janet Smock. From 1940 to 1946 Roberts was superintendent of the Climax Observing Station, Harvard College Observatory, in Climax Colorado. This site was chosen by Donald H. Menzel in 1939; Menzel also supervised

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