Leonard Reiffel
Encyclopedia
Leonard Reiffel is an American physicist, author and educator. Reiffel has worked for NASA
and the Illinois Institute of Technology
, and has won a Peabody Award
for his work on the radio program The World Tomorrow.
's Institute for Nuclear Studies
, helping Enrico Fermi
construct a 450-inch cyclotron
. From there, Reiffel returned to the university at which he had studied, the Illinois Institute of Technology
. Here, Reiffel was Group Vice President of the IIT Research Institute
(formerly known as the Armour Research Foundation). During his tenure at the university, Reiffel created and patented over fifty different inventions, which earned him four separate R&D 100 Awards.
, a United States Air Force
project intending to detonate a nuclear warhead on the Moon. Reiffel also chaired the Interagency Manned Space Flight Experiments Board for several years, a body which worked alongside NASA, the United States Air Force, and the United States Department of Defense
.
, whilst Reiffel was honored with a Peabody Award
in 1968 for his work on The World Tomorrow.
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
and the Illinois Institute of Technology
Illinois Institute of Technology
Illinois Institute of Technology, commonly called Illinois Tech or IIT, is a private Ph.D.-granting university located in Chicago, Illinois, with programs in engineering, science, psychology, architecture, business, communications, industrial technology, information technology, design, and law...
, and has won a Peabody Award
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations and individuals. In 1939, the National Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement in radio broadcasting...
for his work on the radio program The World Tomorrow.
Universities and inventions
Reiffel began his career at the University of ChicagoUniversity of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
's Institute for Nuclear Studies
Enrico Fermi Institute
The Institute for Nuclear Studies was founded September, 1945 as part of the University of Chicago with Samuel King Allison as director. On November 20, 1955 it was renamed The Enrico Fermi Institute for Nuclear Studies...
, helping Enrico Fermi
Enrico Fermi
Enrico Fermi was an Italian-born, naturalized American physicist particularly known for his work on the development of the first nuclear reactor, Chicago Pile-1, and for his contributions to the development of quantum theory, nuclear and particle physics, and statistical mechanics...
construct a 450-inch cyclotron
Cyclotron
In technology, a cyclotron is a type of particle accelerator. In physics, the cyclotron frequency or gyrofrequency is the frequency of a charged particle moving perpendicularly to the direction of a uniform magnetic field, i.e. a magnetic field of constant magnitude and direction...
. From there, Reiffel returned to the university at which he had studied, the Illinois Institute of Technology
Illinois Institute of Technology
Illinois Institute of Technology, commonly called Illinois Tech or IIT, is a private Ph.D.-granting university located in Chicago, Illinois, with programs in engineering, science, psychology, architecture, business, communications, industrial technology, information technology, design, and law...
. Here, Reiffel was Group Vice President of the IIT Research Institute
IIT Research Institute
IIT Research Institute is a contract research organization located in Chicago, Illinois. IITRI is an independent corporation that operates in collaboration with its parent entity, the Illinois Institute of Technology ....
(formerly known as the Armour Research Foundation). During his tenure at the university, Reiffel created and patented over fifty different inventions, which earned him four separate R&D 100 Awards.
NASA
Reiffel has been involved in several positions in NASA's Apollo program, moving from being a consultant on the possibility of life on the Moon to become deputy director of the project, a post he held from 1965–1969. During this time, Reiffel was also put in charge of Project A119Project A119
Project A119, also known as "A Study of Lunar Research Flights", was a top-secret plan developed in the late 1950s by the United States Air Force. The aim of the project was to detonate a nuclear bomb on the Moon to boost public morale in the United States after the Soviet Union took an early lead...
, a United States Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
project intending to detonate a nuclear warhead on the Moon. Reiffel also chaired the Interagency Manned Space Flight Experiments Board for several years, a body which worked alongside NASA, the United States Air Force, and the United States Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
.
Broadcasting
Reiffel's work on radio and television has included Backyard Safari, Dimensions on Tomorrow's Living and The World Tomorrow. Backyard Safari was nominated for an Emmy AwardEmmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
, whilst Reiffel was honored with a Peabody Award
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations and individuals. In 1939, the National Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement in radio broadcasting...
in 1968 for his work on The World Tomorrow.