Westphal, James A. (Planetary Scientist)

Dates

• Existence: 1930 - 2004

Biographical/Historical

Background: Caltech Professor of Planetary Science 1971-1998 (Emeritus 1998-); Caltech Senior Research Fellow 1966-1971.

Biographical/Historical

Description: James A. Westphal was born in Dubuque, Iowa, in 1930. He was raised partly in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Little Rock, Arkansas. He received his BS in physics from the University of Tulsa in 1954. After working for seven years in geophysical research for oil companies, he came to Caltech, first as an engineer, then as a research fellow. He was promoted to professorial rank in 1971. At Caltech, Westphal continued to work on projects with the Division of Geological and Planetary Science, as well as in astronomy. In 1977 he was selected to build the Wide Field Planetary Camera for NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, a project which took 17 years. In recent years he has worked mainly in planetary and galactic astronomy in the infrared and visible wavelengths with ground-based telescopes as well as the Hubble Space Telescope.

Biographical/Historical

Collection Notes: Oral History 1998. A 199-page account, with interviewer Shirley K. Cohen, covers biographical and career matters, including the story of the Wide Field Planetary Camera for the Hubble Space Telescope.

Found in 15 Collections and/or Records: