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NATIONAL RADIO ASTRONOMY OBSERVATORY ARCHIVES
Finding Aid to the Papers of A. Richard Thompson, 1972-2001
Title and dates of the collection: Papers of Anthony Richard Thompson, 1972-2001 Size of the collection: 5 linear feet Papers/records created by: Anthony Richard Thompson, 1931- Short description of collection: These papers document the work of A. Richard Thompson, beginning with his 1973 appointment at National Radio Astronomy Observatory, and including his work on both the Very Large Array (VLA) and Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) during their construction, as well as his work with national and international groups concerned with radio frequency allocations and radio interference. Also included in the collection are manuscripts, notes, and correspondence related to the publication of the several editions of Interferometry and Synthesis in Radio Astronomy, by A.R. Thompson, J.M. Moran, and G.W. Swenson (Wiley 1986, 2nd ed. 2001; Russian translations, Mir 1989 and 2003; Kreiger 1991, 1994 and 1998 reprints of 1st edition).
Biography: A. Richard Thompson was born in Hull, Yorkshire, England, on April 7, 1931. He received the B.Sc degree with honors in physics from the University of Manchester, England. From 1952 to 1956 he was engaged in graduate studies in radio astronomy at Jodrell Bank Experimental Station of the University of Manchester, and in 1956 received his Ph. D. degree. From 1956 to 1957 he worked with E.M. I. Electronics Ltd., Feltham, Middlesex, on missile guidance and telemetry problems. He joined the staff of Harvard University, and was Research Associate until 1961 and Research Fellow from 1961-1962. He worked in solar radio astronomy at the Fort Davis, Texas, Radio Astronomy Station of Harvard College Observatory. He was at Stanford University from 1962-1972, where he was involved in design and construction of the five-element synthesis array, and from 1966-1972 held a concurrent visiting appointment at Owens Valley Radio Observatory. In January 1973 he joined the National Radio Astronomy Observatory. He was Project Engineer for the VLA Project until February 1974, and from February 1974 through February 1978 was Assistant-Head and then Head of the VLA Project’s Electronics Division. From January 1975 through December 1980 he served as Deputy Project Manager for the construction phase of the VLA Project. From June 1978 to August 1984 he was Systems Engineer and Frequency Coordinator for the VLA Project. While working on the VLA Project, Thompson was at various times responsible for the detailed design of parts of the IF and local oscillator sub-systems, performed systems studies to determine design tolerances in many areas of electronics; after the array was completed in December 1980, he was responsible for testing and investigation of systems problems, and for frequency coordination. In August 1974 Thompson moved from Socorro NM to Charlottesville VA to work on the VLBA Project, first as Head of the VLBA Electronics Division (August 1984-1986), then as Systems Engineer (March 1986-1988), and from July 1987 through 1992 was Deputy Manager of the VLBA Project. He was responsible for the system design, construction, and testing of the receiving electronics for the VLBA, including management of the engineering group involved. From July 1988 until his retirement on July 30, 1999 he was Scientist with Continuing Appointment, and served as Deputy Head of the Central Electronics Laboratory, 1992-1998. In November 2001 he was awarded the title of Emeritus Scientist. From 1978 forward he has been active in frequency coordination for radio astronomy through the International Telecommunications Union R (ITU-R) [formerly CCIR, International Radio Consultative Committee], Committee on Radio Frequencies (CORF) of the National Academy of Sciences, and Interunion Commission on Frequency Allocations for Radioastronomy and Space Science (IUCAF), and served from 1986-1989 as the American Astronomical Society’s representative to the U.S. National Committee of the International Union of Radio Scientists (URSI). He chaired CORF’s Radio Astronomy Subcommittee from 1980-1986, and was IUCAF Secretary from 1982-1988. He was the International Astronomical Union’s representative to ITU-R (November 1985-2000) and to IUCAF (August 1991-August 2000). He chaired the Local Organizing Committees for IAU Symposium 97 on Extragalactic Radio Sources, held in Albuquerque NM in 1981, and for the NRAO Workshop on Synthesis Imaging held in Socorro NM in 1982. With co-authors George W. Swenson and James M. Moran, he wrote two editions of Interferometry and Synthesis in Radio Astronomy (A.R. Thompson, J.M. Moran, and G.W. Swenson. Wiley 1986, 2nd ed. 2001; Russian translations, Mir 1989 and 2003; Kreiger 1991, 1994 and 1998 reprints of 1st edition). Accession history: Materials donated to National Radio Astronomy Observatory Archives in January 2006. Access to collection: No restrictions. The Archives are open part-time; contact the Archivist for appointment. Restrictions on use of collection: Copyright on Interferometry and Synthesis in Radio Astronomy and on any material that forms a part of the published text is held by the publisher, John Wiley and Sons. Copyright on the Russian translation is held by Mir (Moscow). No restrictions on the remainder of the collection. Processing notes: The collection was processed by Ellen N. Bouton. Arrangement, description, indexing, foldering and boxing of this material was begun in January 2006 and completed in August 2006.
These papers document the work of A. Richard Thompson, beginning with his 1973 appointment at National Radio Astronomy Observatory, and including his work as Deputy Manager of the VLA program during the initial construction period, as Head of the VLBA Electronics Division and then Deputy Manager of the VLBA Project, and his work with national and international groups concerned with radio frequency allocations and radio interference. Also included in the collection are manuscripts, notes, and correspondence related to the publication of the several editions of Interferometry and Synthesis in Radio Astronomy, by A.R. Thompson, J.M. Moran, and G.W. Swenson (Wiley 1986, 2nd ed. 2001; Russian translations, Mir 1989 and 2003; Kreiger 1991, 1994 and 1998 reprints of 1st edition). |
![[Dick Thompson, 1973]](thompson_thumb.jpg)
![[Cover, Interferometry and Synthesis in Radio Astronomy, 2nd ed]](isra2nded_cover_thumb.jpg)
![[VLA]](VLA729_lo_thumb.jpg)
![[Fort Davis VLBA antenna]](FortDavis_lo_thumb.jpg)
