William B. Lenoir
Encyclopedia
William Benjamin "Bill" Lenoir (March 14, 1939 – August 26, 2010) was an American
engineer
and a former NASA
astronaut
.
Lenoir was born on March 14, 1939, in Miami, Florida. He was divorced and remarried, and was survived by three grown children. His recreational interests included sailing, wood-working and outdoor activities. He was a descendant of General William Lenoir
.
He was a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
, and a member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
, Eta Kappa Nu
and the Society of Sigma Xi
.
Lenoir received a number of special honors. He was a Sloan Scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
, winner of the Carleton E. Tucker Award for Teaching Excellence at MIT, and recipient of the NASA Exceptional Service Medal
(1974) and NASA Space Flight Medal
(1982).
and graduated from Coral Gables Senior High School in 1957.
He graduated with an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was an active member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon
(SAE). Lenoir continued at MIT, earning a master of science degree in 1962, and a doctor of philosophy degree in EECS
in 1965. From 1964 to 1965, Lenoir was an instructor at MIT; and in 1965, he was named assistant professor of electrical engineering
. His work at MIT included teaching electromagnetic theory and systems theory as well as performing research in remote sensing. He was an investigator in several satellite experiments and continued research in this area while fulfilling his astronaut assignments.
Lenoir was a registered professional engineer in Texas
.
He logged over 3,000 hours of flying time in jet aircraft
.
, Texas.
Lenoir was backup science-pilot for Skylab 3
and Skylab 4
, the second and third manned missions in the Skylab
program. During Skylab 4, he was co-leader of the visual observations project and coordinator between the flight crew and the principal investigators for the solar science experiments.
From September 1974 to July 1976, Lenoir spent approximately one-half of his time as leader of the NASA Satellite Power Team. This team was formed to investigate the potential of large-scale satellite power systems for terrestrial utility consumption and to make program recommendations to NASA Headquarters
. Lenoir supported the Space Shuttle program
in the areas of orbit operations, training, extravehicular activity, and payload deployment and retrieval.
Lenoir flew as a mission specialist
on STS-5
(November 11–16, 1982), the first space shuttle flight to deploy commercial satellites, and logged over 122 hours in space. Following STS-5, Lenoir was responsible for the direction and management of mission development within the Astronaut Office.
Lenoir resigned from NASA in September 1984, to assume a position with the management and technology consulting firm of Booz Allen Hamilton
in Arlington, Virginia. He returned to NASA in June 1989 as the Associate Administrator for Space Flight, responsible for the development, operating and implementation of the necessary policy for the Space Shuttle and all U.S. government civil launch activities.
Lenoir resigned from NASA again in April 1992, to assume the position of Vice President of the Applied Systems Division at Booz Allen Hamilton in Bethesda, Maryland
.
Columbia launched from Kennedy Space Center
, Florida
, on November 11, 1982. This was the first operational flight of the Spaceship Columbia and became known as the "We Deliver" mission. Two commercial communications satellites with Payload Assist Module upper stages (PAM-D) were successfully deployed from the Orbiter's cargo bay, a new first. This activity was shared with the world when the onboard television tape was played to the control center later that evening. In addition to collecting precise data to document the Shuttle's performance during launch, boost, orbit, atmospheric entry and landing phases, STS-5 carried a Getaway Special experiment, three Student Involvement Project experiments, and medical experiments. STS-5 was the last flight to carry the Development Flight Instrumentation (DFI) package to support flight testing.
A planned spacewalk, the first for the Shuttle program, by Lenoir and Allen was postponed by one day after Lenior became ill and then had to be cancelled when the two space suit
s that were to be used developed problems.
The STS-5 crew successfully concluded the 5-day orbital flight of Columbia with the first entry and landing through a cloud deck to a hard-surface runway, demonstrating maximum braking. STS-5 completed 81 orbits of the Earth before landing at Edwards Air Force Base
, California
, on November 16, 1982.
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
and a former NASA
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...
astronaut
Astronaut
An astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft....
.
Lenoir was born on March 14, 1939, in Miami, Florida. He was divorced and remarried, and was survived by three grown children. His recreational interests included sailing, wood-working and outdoor activities. He was a descendant of General William Lenoir
William Lenoir (general)
William Lenoir was an American Revolutionary War officer and prominent statesman in late 18th-century and early 19th-century North Carolina. Both the City of Lenoir, North Carolina and Lenoir County, North Carolina are named for him. Additionally, Lenoir City, Tennessee is jointly named for him...
.
He was a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers is a non-profit professional association headquartered in New York City that is dedicated to advancing technological innovation and excellence...
, and a member of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics is the professional society for the field of aerospace engineering. The AIAA was founded in 1963 from the merger of two earlier societies: the American Rocket Society , founded in 1930 as the American Interplanetary Society , and the Institute...
, Eta Kappa Nu
Eta Kappa Nu
Eta Kappa Nu is the electrical and computer engineering honor society of the IEEE, founded in October 1904 by Maurice L. Carr at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The organization currently has around 200 student chapters and about 3,000,000 members and is headquartered in Chicago,...
and the Society of Sigma Xi
Sigma Xi
Sigma Xi: The Scientific Research Society is a non-profit honor society which was founded in 1886 at Cornell University by a junior faculty member and a handful of graduate students. Members elect others on the basis of their research achievements or potential...
.
Lenoir received a number of special honors. He was a Sloan Scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
, winner of the Carleton E. Tucker Award for Teaching Excellence at MIT, and recipient of the NASA Exceptional Service Medal
NASA Exceptional Service Medal
The NASA Exceptional Service Medal is an award granted to U.S. government employees for significant sustained performance characterized by unusual initiative or creative ability that clearly demonstrates substantial improvement in engineering, aeronautics, space flight, administration, support, or...
(1974) and NASA Space Flight Medal
NASA Space Flight Medal
The NASA Space Flight Medal is a decoration of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. According to its statutes, it is awarded "for significant achievement or service during individual participation as a civilian or military astronaut, pilot, mission specialist, payload specialist, or...
(1982).
Academic career
Lenoir attended primary school in Coral Gables, FloridaCoral Gables, Florida
Coral Gables is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, southwest of Downtown Miami, in the United States. The city is home to the University of Miami....
and graduated from Coral Gables Senior High School in 1957.
He graduated with an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was an active member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Sigma Alpha Epsilon is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity founded at the University of Alabama on March 9, 1856. Of all existing national social fraternities today, Sigma Alpha Epsilon is the only one founded in the Antebellum South...
(SAE). Lenoir continued at MIT, earning a master of science degree in 1962, and a doctor of philosophy degree in EECS
EECS
EECS may refer to:* Electrical Engineering & Computer Science* European Energy Certificate System...
in 1965. From 1964 to 1965, Lenoir was an instructor at MIT; and in 1965, he was named assistant professor of electrical engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
. His work at MIT included teaching electromagnetic theory and systems theory as well as performing research in remote sensing. He was an investigator in several satellite experiments and continued research in this area while fulfilling his astronaut assignments.
Lenoir was a registered professional engineer in Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
.
He logged over 3,000 hours of flying time in jet aircraft
Jet aircraft
A jet aircraft is an aircraft propelled by jet engines. Jet aircraft generally fly much faster than propeller-powered aircraft and at higher altitudes – as high as . At these altitudes, jet engines achieve maximum efficiency over long distances. The engines in propeller-powered aircraft...
.
NASA career
Lenoir was selected as a scientist-astronaut by NASA in August 1967. He completed the initial academic training and a 53-week course in flight training at Laughlin Air Force BaseLaughlin Air Force Base
Laughlin Air Force Base is a facility of the United States Air Force located five miles east of the central business district of Del Rio, Texas.-Overview:...
, Texas.
Lenoir was backup science-pilot for Skylab 3
Skylab 3
Skylab 3 was the second manned mission to Skylab. The Skylab 3 mission started July 28, 1973, with the launch of three astronauts on the Saturn IB rocket, and lasted 59 days, 11 hours and 9 minutes...
and Skylab 4
Skylab 4
Skylab 4 was the fourth Skylab mission and placed the third and final crew on board the space station. The mission started November 16, 1973 with the launch of three astronauts on a Saturn IB rocket, and lasted 84 days, 1 hour and 16 minutes...
, the second and third manned missions in the Skylab
Skylab
Skylab was a space station launched and operated by NASA, the space agency of the United States. Skylab orbited the Earth from 1973 to 1979, and included a workshop, a solar observatory, and other systems. It was launched unmanned by a modified Saturn V rocket, with a mass of...
program. During Skylab 4, he was co-leader of the visual observations project and coordinator between the flight crew and the principal investigators for the solar science experiments.
From September 1974 to July 1976, Lenoir spent approximately one-half of his time as leader of the NASA Satellite Power Team. This team was formed to investigate the potential of large-scale satellite power systems for terrestrial utility consumption and to make program recommendations to NASA Headquarters
NASA Headquarters
Two Independence Square, often referenced as NASA Headquarters, is a low-rise building in the two-building Independence Square complex at 300 E Street SW in Washington D.C. The building houses NASA leadership who provide overall guidance and direction to the US government executive branch agency...
. Lenoir supported the Space Shuttle program
Space Shuttle program
NASA's Space Shuttle program, officially called Space Transportation System , was the United States government's manned launch vehicle program from 1981 to 2011...
in the areas of orbit operations, training, extravehicular activity, and payload deployment and retrieval.
Lenoir flew as a mission specialist
Mission Specialist
A Mission Specialist is a position held by certain NASA astronauts during Space Shuttle missions. A Mission Specialist is assigned to a limited field of the mission, such as for medical experiments or technical quests....
on STS-5
STS-5
STS-5 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission, the fifth shuttle mission overall and the fifth flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia. It was the first shuttle mission to deploy communications satellites into orbit...
(November 11–16, 1982), the first space shuttle flight to deploy commercial satellites, and logged over 122 hours in space. Following STS-5, Lenoir was responsible for the direction and management of mission development within the Astronaut Office.
Lenoir resigned from NASA in September 1984, to assume a position with the management and technology consulting firm of Booz Allen Hamilton
Booz Allen Hamilton
Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. , or more commonly Booz Allen, is an American public consulting firm headquartered in McLean, Fairfax County, Virginia, with 80 other offices throughout the United States. Ralph Shrader is its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. The firm was founded by Edwin Booz in...
in Arlington, Virginia. He returned to NASA in June 1989 as the Associate Administrator for Space Flight, responsible for the development, operating and implementation of the necessary policy for the Space Shuttle and all U.S. government civil launch activities.
Lenoir resigned from NASA again in April 1992, to assume the position of Vice President of the Applied Systems Division at Booz Allen Hamilton in Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda is a census designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House , which in turn took its name from Jerusalem's Pool of Bethesda...
.
Spaceflight experience
STS-5STS-5
STS-5 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission, the fifth shuttle mission overall and the fifth flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia. It was the first shuttle mission to deploy communications satellites into orbit...
Columbia launched from Kennedy Space Center
Kennedy Space Center
The John F. Kennedy Space Center is the NASA installation that has been the launch site for every United States human space flight since 1968. Although such flights are currently on hiatus, KSC continues to manage and operate unmanned rocket launch facilities for America's civilian space program...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, on November 11, 1982. This was the first operational flight of the Spaceship Columbia and became known as the "We Deliver" mission. Two commercial communications satellites with Payload Assist Module upper stages (PAM-D) were successfully deployed from the Orbiter's cargo bay, a new first. This activity was shared with the world when the onboard television tape was played to the control center later that evening. In addition to collecting precise data to document the Shuttle's performance during launch, boost, orbit, atmospheric entry and landing phases, STS-5 carried a Getaway Special experiment, three Student Involvement Project experiments, and medical experiments. STS-5 was the last flight to carry the Development Flight Instrumentation (DFI) package to support flight testing.
A planned spacewalk, the first for the Shuttle program, by Lenoir and Allen was postponed by one day after Lenior became ill and then had to be cancelled when the two space suit
Space suit
A space suit is a garment worn to keep an astronaut alive in the harsh environment of outer space. Space suits are often worn inside spacecraft as a safety precaution in case of loss of cabin pressure, and are necessary for extra-vehicular activity , work done outside spacecraft...
s that were to be used developed problems.
The STS-5 crew successfully concluded the 5-day orbital flight of Columbia with the first entry and landing through a cloud deck to a hard-surface runway, demonstrating maximum braking. STS-5 completed 81 orbits of the Earth before landing at Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located on the border of Kern County, Los Angeles County, and San Bernardino County, California, in the Antelope Valley. It is southwest of the central business district of North Edwards, California and due east of Rosamond.It is named in...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, on November 16, 1982.
Death
Lenoir died August 26, 2010, after suffering head injuries during a bicycle accident near his home in Sandoval County, New MexicoSandoval County, New Mexico
-Indian reservations:Sandoval County has 12 Indian reservations and two joint-use areas lying within its borders, the second most of any county in the United States -Indian reservations:Sandoval County has 12 Indian reservations and two joint-use areas lying within its borders, the second most of...
.