Kenneth Franklin
Encyclopedia
Kenneth Linn Franklin was an American
astronomer
and educator. Franklin was the chief scientist at the Hayden Planetarium
from 1956 to 1984 and was co-credited with discovering radio
waves originating on Jupiter
, the first detection of signals from another planet. He was often a local and national media figure including during Apollo 11
, the first manned mission to the moon
, when Franklin was an on-camera astronomy expert for NBC
.
to Myles Arthur and Ruth Linn (Houston) Franklin. He received an A.A.
degree from the University of California, Berkeley
in 1944 and bachelor's degree
in 1948. He married Beverly Mattson on November 29, 1949. He earned a Ph.D.
from Berkeley in 1953 and a research fellow
ship at the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism at the Carnegie Institution of Washington from 1954 to 1956. In 1955, Franklin and Dr. Bernard F. Burke were scanning for space signals when they heard a hissing noise. Originally thinking the noise was a passing vehicle's spark plug, they soon traced it to Jupiter, the first noise ever traced to a specific planet. They presented their findings to the American Astronomical Society
on April 6, 1955. In March 1956, Franklin's wife, with whom he had two daughters, died. Franklin began working at the Hayden Planetarium the same year. On May 18, 1958, he married Charlotte Walton and later legally adopted a daughter from her previous marriage.
Sputnik special in 1957, appeared on CBS for the landing of Surveyor 1
in 1966, and was on NBC for Apollo 8
, Apollo 10
, and Apollo 11
in 1968 and 1969. He became the astronomy editor
for the World Almanac
from 1968 to 1996 and was on the editorial panel of Science Digest
from 1970 to 1985. From 1973 to 1979, Franklin was the Public Affairs Officer for the American Astronomical Society. He taught at several universities and colleges on the American east coast including New York University
, City University of New York
, and Cooper Union
. He also lectured at Columbia School of Journalism and the United States Military Academy
and was an adjunct professor at Rutgers University
for three and a half years. Franklin was part of a visiting lecturer program and in 1973 and 1980, he led tours to Africa
to observe solar eclipse
s. Franklin contributed almanac information including the time of sunrise
to The New York Times
from 1975 to 1997. He also contributed all of the astronomical calculations for the Farmers' Almanac from 1980 to 1992. These were in addition to his regular duties presenting popular planetarium shows from 1956 to 1984 and producing his own radio program.
An asteroid
discovered by Edward L. G. Bowell
in 1981 was named 2845 Franklinken
in Franklin's honor.
Franklin lived in Loveland, Colorado
until his death in Boulder
from heart surgery complications. He was survived by his wife, three daughters, six grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.
He was a member of the all-male literary banqueting club the Trap Door Spiders
, which served as the basis of Isaac Asimov
's fictional group of mystery solvers the Black Widowers
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
astronomer
Astronomer
An astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
and educator. Franklin was the chief scientist at the Hayden Planetarium
Hayden Planetarium
The Hayden Planetarium is a public planetarium, part of the Rose Center for Earth and Space of the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, currently directed by astrophysicist Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson....
from 1956 to 1984 and was co-credited with discovering radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
waves originating on Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
, the first detection of signals from another planet. He was often a local and national media figure including during Apollo 11
Apollo 11
In early 1969, Bill Anders accepted a job with the National Space Council effective in August 1969 and announced his retirement as an astronaut. At that point Ken Mattingly was moved from the support crew into parallel training with Anders as backup Command Module Pilot in case Apollo 11 was...
, the first manned mission to the moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
, when Franklin was an on-camera astronomy expert for NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
.
Early life and discovery
Franklin was born in Alameda, CaliforniaAlameda, California
Alameda is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is located on Alameda Island and Bay Farm Island, and is adjacent to Oakland in the San Francisco Bay. The Bay Farm Island portion of the city is adjacent to the Oakland International Airport. At the 2010 census, the city had a...
to Myles Arthur and Ruth Linn (Houston) Franklin. He received an A.A.
Associate's degree
An associate degree is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by community colleges, junior colleges, technical colleges, and bachelor's degree-granting colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study usually lasting two years...
degree from the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
in 1944 and bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in 1948. He married Beverly Mattson on November 29, 1949. He earned a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
from Berkeley in 1953 and a research fellow
Fellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
ship at the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism at the Carnegie Institution of Washington from 1954 to 1956. In 1955, Franklin and Dr. Bernard F. Burke were scanning for space signals when they heard a hissing noise. Originally thinking the noise was a passing vehicle's spark plug, they soon traced it to Jupiter, the first noise ever traced to a specific planet. They presented their findings to the American Astronomical Society
American Astronomical Society
The American Astronomical Society is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC...
on April 6, 1955. In March 1956, Franklin's wife, with whom he had two daughters, died. Franklin began working at the Hayden Planetarium the same year. On May 18, 1958, he married Charlotte Walton and later legally adopted a daughter from her previous marriage.
Career
After the notable discovery of 1955, Franklin was frequently invited as an astronomical expert on television and radio. He appeared on a CBSCBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
Sputnik special in 1957, appeared on CBS for the landing of Surveyor 1
Surveyor 1
Surveyor 1 was the first lunar soft-lander in the unmanned Surveyor program of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration . This lunar soft-lander gathered data about the lunar surface that would be needed for the manned Apollo Moon landings that began in 1969...
in 1966, and was on NBC for Apollo 8
Apollo 8
Apollo 8, the second manned mission in the American Apollo space program, was the first human spaceflight to leave Earth orbit; the first to be captured by and escape from the gravitational field of another celestial body; and the first crewed voyage to return to Earth from another celestial...
, Apollo 10
Apollo 10
Apollo 10 was the fourth manned mission in the American Apollo space program. It was an F type mission—its purpose was to be a "dry run" for the Apollo 11 mission, testing all of the procedures and components of a Moon landing without actually landing on the Moon itself. The mission included the...
, and Apollo 11
Apollo 11
In early 1969, Bill Anders accepted a job with the National Space Council effective in August 1969 and announced his retirement as an astronaut. At that point Ken Mattingly was moved from the support crew into parallel training with Anders as backup Command Module Pilot in case Apollo 11 was...
in 1968 and 1969. He became the astronomy editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
for the World Almanac
World Almanac
In 1993 Scripps sold the Almanac to K-III .The World Almanac was sold to Ripplewood Holdings' WRC Media in 1999. Ripplewood bought Reader's Digest and the book was then produced by the World Almanac Education Group, which was owned by The Reader's Digest Association...
from 1968 to 1996 and was on the editorial panel of Science Digest
Science Digest
Science Digest was a monthly American magazine published by the Hearst Corporation from 1937 through 1986. It initially had an 8 x 5 inch format with about 100 pages, and was targeted at persons with a high school education level...
from 1970 to 1985. From 1973 to 1979, Franklin was the Public Affairs Officer for the American Astronomical Society. He taught at several universities and colleges on the American east coast including New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
, City University of New York
City University of New York
The City University of New York is the public university system of New York City, with its administrative offices in Yorkville in Manhattan. It is the largest urban university in the United States, consisting of 23 institutions: 11 senior colleges, six community colleges, the William E...
, and Cooper Union
Cooper Union
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, commonly referred to simply as Cooper Union, is a privately funded college in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States, located at Cooper Square and Astor Place...
. He also lectured at Columbia School of Journalism and the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
and was an adjunct professor at Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
for three and a half years. Franklin was part of a visiting lecturer program and in 1973 and 1980, he led tours to Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
to observe solar eclipse
Solar eclipse
As seen from the Earth, a solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, and the Moon fully or partially blocks the Sun as viewed from a location on Earth. This can happen only during a new moon, when the Sun and the Moon are in conjunction as seen from Earth. At least...
s. Franklin contributed almanac information including the time of sunrise
Sunrise
Sunrise is the instant at which the upper edge of the Sun appears above the horizon in the east. Sunrise should not be confused with dawn, which is the point at which the sky begins to lighten, some time before the sun itself appears, ending twilight...
to The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
from 1975 to 1997. He also contributed all of the astronomical calculations for the Farmers' Almanac from 1980 to 1992. These were in addition to his regular duties presenting popular planetarium shows from 1956 to 1984 and producing his own radio program.
An asteroid
Asteroid
Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
discovered by Edward L. G. Bowell
Edward L. G. Bowell
Edward L. G. Bowell , known as "Ted", is an American astronomer. Bowell was educated at Emanuel School London, University College, London, and the Université de Paris....
in 1981 was named 2845 Franklinken
2845 Franklinken
2845 Franklinken is a main-belt asteroid discovered on July 26, 1981 by Bowell, E. at the Anderson Mesa Station of Flagstaff . This asteroid is named for Dr. Kenneth Linn Franklin, a member of the staff of the Hayden Planetarium in New York City, and co-discoverer in 1955 of the radio noise...
in Franklin's honor.
Franklin lived in Loveland, Colorado
Loveland, Colorado
Loveland is a Home Rule Municipality that is the second most populous city in Larimer County, Colorado, United States. Loveland is situated north of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. Loveland is the 14th most populous city in Colorado. The United States Census Bureau that in 2010 the...
until his death in Boulder
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder is the county seat and most populous city of Boulder County and the 11th most populous city in the U.S. state of Colorado. Boulder is located at the base of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains at an elevation of...
from heart surgery complications. He was survived by his wife, three daughters, six grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.
He was a member of the all-male literary banqueting club the Trap Door Spiders
Trap Door Spiders
The Trap Door Spiders are a literary male-only eating, drinking, and arguing society in New York City, with a membership historically composed of notable science fiction personalities...
, which served as the basis of Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov
Isaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...
's fictional group of mystery solvers the Black Widowers
Black Widowers
The Black Widowers is a fictional men-only dining club created by Isaac Asimov for a series of sixty-six mystery stories which he started writing in 1971...
.