Merton Davies
Encyclopedia
Merton E. Davies graduated from Stanford University
in 1937 and worked for the Douglas Aircraft corporation in the 1940s. He became a pioneer of spy satellite
technology (including CORONA
) as a member of RAND Corporation after it split off from Douglas in 1948. Although the majority of his work in this regard remains classified, on August 18, 2000 he was acknowledged as one of the founders of national reconnaissance by the National Reconnaissance Office
for inventing the Spin-Pan (torque
compensating) camera used in the CORONA
program satellites and participation on many national reconnaissance committees during the 1950s and early 1960s.
In the late 1960s he turned his expertise in space and satellites to planetary studies and became involved in the Mariner program
, working on interpreting the images of Mars sent back by Mariner probes. He was responsible for creating the geodetic
control net for mapping Mars surface, and eventually of many other solar system bodies. At the time of his death, he was credited with "single-handedly observing more of the solar system than any other human," by Torrence Johnson, project scientist of Project Galileo.
He married Louise Darling in 1948.
The Martian crater Davies
is named after him.
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
in 1937 and worked for the Douglas Aircraft corporation in the 1940s. He became a pioneer of spy satellite
Spy satellite
A spy satellite is an Earth observation satellite or communications satellite deployed for military or intelligence applications....
technology (including CORONA
Corona (satellite)
The Corona program was a series of American strategic reconnaissance satellites produced and operated by the Central Intelligence Agency Directorate of Science & Technology with substantial assistance from the U.S. Air Force...
) as a member of RAND Corporation after it split off from Douglas in 1948. Although the majority of his work in this regard remains classified, on August 18, 2000 he was acknowledged as one of the founders of national reconnaissance by the National Reconnaissance Office
National Reconnaissance Office
The National Reconnaissance Office , located in Chantilly, Virginia, is one of the 16 U.S. intelligence agencies. It designs, builds, and operates the spy satellites of the United States government.-Mission:...
for inventing the Spin-Pan (torque
Torque
Torque, moment or moment of force , is the tendency of a force to rotate an object about an axis, fulcrum, or pivot. Just as a force is a push or a pull, a torque can be thought of as a twist....
compensating) camera used in the CORONA
Corona
A corona is a type of plasma "atmosphere" of the Sun or other celestial body, extending millions of kilometers into space, most easily seen during a total solar eclipse, but also observable in a coronagraph...
program satellites and participation on many national reconnaissance committees during the 1950s and early 1960s.
In the late 1960s he turned his expertise in space and satellites to planetary studies and became involved in the Mariner program
Mariner program
The Mariner program was a program conducted by the American space agency NASA that launched a series of robotic interplanetary probes designed to investigate Mars, Venus and Mercury from 1963 to 1973...
, working on interpreting the images of Mars sent back by Mariner probes. He was responsible for creating the geodetic
Geodesy
Geodesy , also named geodetics, a branch of earth sciences, is the scientific discipline that deals with the measurement and representation of the Earth, including its gravitational field, in a three-dimensional time-varying space. Geodesists also study geodynamical phenomena such as crustal...
control net for mapping Mars surface, and eventually of many other solar system bodies. At the time of his death, he was credited with "single-handedly observing more of the solar system than any other human," by Torrence Johnson, project scientist of Project Galileo.
He married Louise Darling in 1948.
The Martian crater Davies
Davies (crater)
Davies is a crater on Mars located at 46°N 0°E on the fringe of Acidalia Planitia near Arabia Terra. It is approximately 49 km in diameter.It was named in honor of Merton Davies , a pioneer in the cartography of planetary bodies...
is named after him.