Lawrence Edwards
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Lawrence K. Edwards (July 10, 1919 – April 4, 2009) was an American innovator in
aerospace Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial, and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astron ...
and ground transportation. Early in his career, he pioneered technologies for U.S. space and missile defense programs. He went on to invent and promote high-speed Gravity-Vacuum Transit and monobeam rail transit. He obtained a total of fourteen patents in those areas.


Early life and education

Edwards was born in
Delaware, Ohio Delaware is a city in Delaware County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is located near the center of Ohio, about north of Columbus as part of the Columbus metropolitan area. The population was 41,302 at the 2020 census. Delaware ...
. He was the son of a physics professor and was raised in
Oxford, Ohio Oxford is a city in northwestern Butler County, Ohio, United States. The population was 23,035 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A college town, Oxford was founded as a home for Miami University and lies in the southwestern portion ...
. He graduated
Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...
from
Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public university, public research university in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the second-oldest List of colleges and universities in Ohio, university in Ohi ...
where he studied geology, math and physics.


Accomplishments in aerospace

Edwards played a role in the engineering of four of the nation's major aerospace programs: * Talos, a long-range
surface-to-air missile A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed to be launched from the ground or the sea to destroy aircraft or other missiles. It is one type of anti-ai ...
that served as the U.S. Navy's primary anti-aircraft missile for 20 years. Talos was history's first supersonic missile with ramjet propulsion, making it far more fuel-efficient than rockets. Edwards was project engineer for the program at
McDonnell Aircraft The McDonnell Aircraft Corporation was an American aerospace manufacturer based in St. Louis, Missouri. The company was founded on July 6, 1939, by James Smith McDonnell, and was best known for its military fighters, including the F-4 Phantom II ...
Corp., which later became McDonnell Douglas. * Polaris, the first in a succession of submarine-based
Fleet Ballistic Missile A submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) is a ballistic missile capable of being launched from submarines. Modern variants usually deliver multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs), each of which carries a nuclear warhead an ...
s. Edwards managed its preliminary design at Lockheed Missile Systems Division, (now
Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...
) and continued as assistant director for systems engineering during the missile's early development. * Lockheed Agena, which became America's most-used space vehicle. Agena's first use was to support cameras and recoverable film of Corona, history's first
spy satellite A reconnaissance satellite or intelligence satellite (commonly, although unofficially, referred to as a spy satellite) is an Earth observation satellite or communications satellite deployed for military or intelligence applications. The ...
, providing intelligence for four successive Presidents. Additional uses included the first successful cameras to the moon, Venus and Mars and propelling Gemini astronauts to world-record speed and altitude. Edwards was instrumental in debugging the troubled A and B versions of Agena and then initiated the Agena D. *Space Shuttle: Edwards' aerospace achievements paved the way for his appointment as Director of Shuttle Engineering at NASA headquarters. He later became Chief of Advanced Space Transportation. In addition, he served as NASA's primary DOD technical interface for the
Strategic Defense Initiative The Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) was a proposed missile defense system intended to protect the United States from attack by ballistic nuclear missiles. The program was announced in 1983, by President Ronald Reagan. Reagan called for a ...
and on NASA's Inventions and Contributions Board.


Accomplishments in ground transportation

Edwards founded three firms dedicated to his innovations in ground transportation, Tube Transit Corp., Transit Innovations and Futrex Inc. His pursuits in this field include: * Inventing and promoting gravity-vacuum transit, a technology that combines gravity and atmospheric pressure to speed trains through evacuated underground tubes at 250 to 400 mph. Advocated for the New York City region as well as a Boston to Washington line by the
Regional Plan Association The Regional Plan Association is an independent, not-for-profit regional planning organization, founded in 1922, that focuses on recommendations to improve the quality of life and economic competitiveness of a 31-county New York (state), New Yo ...
; the invention was praised by
Secretary of Transportation The United States secretary of transportation is the head of the United States Department of Transportation. The secretary serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters relating to transportation. The secre ...
John Volpe John Anthony Volpe ( ; December 8, 1908November 11, 1994) was an American businessman, diplomat, and politician from Massachusetts. A son of Italian immigrants, he founded and owned a large construction firm. Politically, he was a Republican in ...
as well as editorials in ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' and professional and scientific journals. It was the lead article in the August 1965 edition of ''
Scientific American ''Scientific American'', informally abbreviated ''SciAm'' or sometimes ''SA'', is an American popular science magazine. Many scientists, including Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, have contributed articles to it, with more than 150 Nobel Pri ...
.'' * Inventing and promoting the Project 21 moonbeam, later System 21, the world's only aerial rail system suitable for networks above city streets. Whereas a classical monorail requires a pair of beams for two-way traffic and its switching limitations hinder its ability to run on networks, the mono-beam carries opposite trains alongside a single slender beam; its footprint is smaller, and its breakthrough switching technology enables it to form networks. System 21 was praised by two Secretaries of Transportation and Vice President Al Gore as well as the Regional Plan Association in two federally supported books. In March 1989, the ''
Federal Register The ''Federal Register'' (FR or sometimes Fed. Reg.) is the government gazette, official journal of the federal government of the United States that contains government agency rules, proposed rules, and public notices. It is published every wee ...
'' noted, "This project has high technical merit representing an innovative technology which has a strong possibility of allowing for future reductions in the nation's energy consumption." *Inventing and publicizing Project 32 Slalom, a compact three-wheel vehicle designed for students and suburban commuters. Edwards' patented suspension lets the vehicle lean into turns like a bicycle and, in very sharp turns, dramatically reduces the lateral forces experienced in four-wheel vehicles.


Honors and awards

Edwards was twice nominated by Lockheed executives for the
National Medal of Technology The National Medal of Technology and Innovation (formerly the National Medal of Technology) is an honor granted by the president of the United States to American inventors and innovators who have made significant contributions to the development ...
, the highest honor for technological achievement in the United States. In 1980,
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...
awarded him a team leadership award for his role in the Skylab Reentry Program. His inventions have been publicized in dozens of national newspapers, magazines and books. On three occasions, they were illustrated as "Patent of the Week" in the ''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
''. Edwards received six federal grants for his work in Gravity-Vacuum Transit and System 21.Railway Age, January 1999, Page 29, FUTREX Monobeam Receives Federal Grant Additionally, $1.25 million in Commerce Department funds supported the construction of a functional scale model of System 21 in
Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...
. It was unveiled in 1996.


Professional affiliations

Edwards was a member of the
Society of Automotive Engineers SAE International is a global professional association and standards organization based in Warrendale, Pennsylvania, United States. Formerly the Society of Automotive Engineers, the organization adopted its current name in 2006 to reflect bot ...
and the
Cosmos Club The Cosmos Club is a 501(c)(7) private social club in Washington, D.C., that was founded by John Wesley Powell in 1878 as a gentlemen's club for those interested in science. Among its stated goals is, "The advancement of its members in science, ...
. He was also an associate fellow of the
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is a professional society for the field of aerospace engineering Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecra ...
and a member of the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via "continuing edu ...
,
American Society of Civil Engineers The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is a tax-exempt professional body founded in 1852 to represent members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, it is the oldest national engineering soci ...
, and the
Transportation Research Board The Transportation Research Board (TRB) is a division of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. TRB's mission is to mobilize expertise, experience, and knowledge to anticipate and solve complex transportation-related challe ...
of the
National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Lawrence K. 1919 births 2009 deaths American aerospace engineers American automotive engineers Miami University alumni 20th-century American engineers