Fowler, William Alfred (Physicist, Nobel Laureate)
Person
Dates
- Existence: 1911 - 1995
Biographical/Historical
Background: Professor of Physics, 1939-1982; Nobel Laureate in Physics, 1983; Caltech alumnus (PhD, 1936).
Biographical/Historical
Description: William A. Fowler was born in Lima, Ohio, and educated at Ohio State University and at Caltech. For much of his career, Fowler was the acknowledged leader in the research area of astrophysics. Fowler's work in nuclear physics began in the 1930s while working with Charles C. Lauritsen and, slightly later, with Fred Hoyle. In 1983, Fowler received the Nobel prize in physics, with Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, for his theoretical and experimental studies of nuclear reactions in the formation of the chemical elements in the universe. During World War II Fowler worked closely with C. C. Lauritsen on Caltech's rocket project for the US navy. In the postwar era, he was head of Project Vista, a study of strategic weapons.
Biographical/Historical
Collection Notes: Oral history, 1983-84; 1986. This 154 page interview covers a broad range of Fowler's professional activities and professional life. A 15-page supplemental oral history completed in 1986 provides further discussion of the climate at Caltech during World War II and the rocket project undertaken for the US navy.
Papers: 213 boxes, 94 linear feet. Papers cover personal and professional life during years 1917-1994. Extensive material from World War II and some coverage of Project Vista.
Photo of William A. Fowler at the Nobel banquet (PhotoNet)
Papers: 213 boxes, 94 linear feet. Papers cover personal and professional life during years 1917-1994. Extensive material from World War II and some coverage of Project Vista.
Photo of William A. Fowler at the Nobel banquet (PhotoNet)
Found in 34 Collections and/or Records:
Air Talk with Lee Browne, Pamela Fong, and William A. Fowler
Digital Record
Identifier: 2018-01-31-000002
Dates:
1989-05-24
AirTalk with Lee Browne, Pamela Fong, and William A. Fowler, 1989-05-24
Item
Scope and Contents
From the Collection:
The collection is divided according to the recording type: audio and video then ordered chronologically. Each recording includes an interview with either Caltech faculty, administrators, staff, students, alumni, JPL scientists or administrators. It also includes features such as Caltech Almanac -a detailed look at some of the many interesting people, places and discoveries in Caltech’s history-, Caltech Calendar -a listing of upcoming public events on campus- and Caltech in the News....
Dates:
1989-05-24
Robert F. Bacher Papers
Collection
Identifier: 10105-MS
Overview
The working papers, correspondence, publications, photos and biographical materials of Robert F. Bacher (1905-2004) form the collection known as the Papers of Robert F. Bacher in the Archives of the California Institute of Technology. Bacher was a nuclear physicist who during World War II worked on radar at the MIT Radiation Laboratory and then from 1943 at Los Alamos on the atomic bomb. He was one of the first members of the US Atomic Energy Commission (1946-49). He served on the faculty and...
Dates:
1924-1994
Cloud chamber made by Willy Fowler
Unprocessed
Identifier: 1995-00109
Electroscope, quartz fiber, Model 1
Unprocessed
Identifier: 1995-00110
Fowler-DuBridge Joint Interview (Non-CIT) with Vernice Anderson
Unprocessed
Identifier: 1990-00086
Dates:
1981-10-20
Fowler Photographs
Unprocessed
Identifier: 1988-00369
William A. Fowler Papers
Collection
Identifier: 10070-MS
Overview
These papers document the career of William A. Fowler, who served on the physics faculty at California Institute of Technology from 1939 until 1982. Focusing heavily on nuclear physics and astrophysics, the Fowler papers form a rich and important collection for the history of physics, and illustrate the politics and sociology of science in the twentieth century. They also contain substantial material on Caltech's World War II rocket developments, plus documents on Project Vista, a Cold-War...
Dates:
1917-1994
Historical File On William Fowler
Unprocessed
Identifier: 1988-00368
Symposium On Nuclear Astrophysics: A Celebration Of Willy Fowler
Unprocessed
Identifier: 1995-00107
Dates:
Date Created
Whoopee Willy: Photo Album
Unprocessed
Identifier: 1989-00168
William A. Fowler World War II Reprint Collection
Unprocessed
Identifier: 2007-00067
Dates:
Date Created
William Fowler Oral History Interview (Non-CIT) with A. B. Christman
Unprocessed
Identifier: 2006-00057
Dates:
1969-01-01
William Fowler Oral History Interview (Non-CIT) with Charles Weiner
Unprocessed
Identifier: 1997-00044
Dates:
Date Created
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