Westwick, Peter J. 1967-

views updated

Westwick, Peter J. 1967-

PERSONAL:

Born 1967. Education: University of California, Berkeley, B.A., Ph.D.

ADDRESSES:

Office—Department of History, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-9410; fax: 805-893-8795. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Academic. California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, senior research fellow in humanities, 2000-04; John M. Olin fellow, International Security Studies, Yale University, 2005-06; University of California, Santa Barbara, lecturer and visiting researcher in history, 2006—.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Forum for the History of Science in America Book Prize, 2004, for The National Labs: Science in an American System, 1947-1974; Eugene M. Emme Astronautical Literature Award, American Astronautical Society, 2006, and Gardner-Lasser Aerospace History Literature Award, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 2008, both for Into the Black: JPL and the American Space Program, 1976-2004.

WRITINGS:

The National Labs: Science in an American System, 1947-1974, Harvard University Press (Cambridge, MA), 2003.

Into the Black: JPL and the American Space Program, 1976-2004, Yale University Press (New Haven, CT), 2007.

Contributor to periodicals and journals, including Diplomatic History, Physics Today, Minerva, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Historical Studies in the Physical and Biological Sciences, and Technology and Culture.

SIDELIGHTS:

Peter J. Westwick is an academic. Born in 1967, he completed a bachelor of arts degree in physics from the University of California, Berkeley. He remained at the university to pursue graduate studies, eventually earning a Ph.D. in history.

Westwick began working at Pasadena's California Institute of Technology in 2000 as a senior research fellow in humanities, stopping his research there in 2004. The following year he became the John M. Olin fellow at the International Security Studies of Yale University, a position he held for one year. In 2006 Westwick began lecturing at the University of California, Santa Barbara, while serving as a visiting researcher in history. His research interests include the history of modern physical science, American technological advances, the role of technology in national security, international relations, the history of American missile defense systems and programs, Southern California's aerospace industry, the Cold War, and the history of surfing.

As a writer, Westwick has contributed to a number of periodicals and academic journals, including Minerva, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Historical Studies in the Physical and Biological Sciences, and Technology and Culture. Westwick published his first book, The National Labs: Science in an American System, 1947-1974, in 2003. The book won the 2004 History of Science Society Forum Book Prize.

In 2007 Westwick published his second book, Into the Black: JPL and the American Space Program, 1976-2004. The book shows the ups and downs of interest in deep-space robotic exploration. Its early history, which started at the Guggenheim Aeronautical Laboratory of the California Institute of Technology (GALCIT) in 1928, received a boost when the U.S. military became interested in the rocket testing the institute was conducting. Aware that their ballistic-missile technology was inferior to the Nazi's during World War II, the U.S. military paired with GALCIT to create the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). In 1956 the Army Ballistic Missile Agency (ABMA) joined the venture, which was once again given an increased sense of urgency after the Soviet's launched Sputnik the following year. Eventually, the civilian-led National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) took over JPL and changed its focus from military rockets to general spacecraft. Westwick outlines the difficulties faced through budget constraints, lack of interest in the program, and conflict between departments and individuals, and how the program managed to push forward through change of leadership and gain aeronautical dominance in the world.

Taylor Dinerman, writing in Space Review, noted that "Into the Black is a basic and academically sound look at JPL's recent history. It would have been better with an appendix covering mission timelines and management responsibilities, but on the whole it will be a useful source for future space historians. It fails, though, to convey the vision that drives so many talented people to work at JPL and in the space industry," adding that "Westwick's book is a good start, but there are many stories out there that still need to be told." David DeVorkin, reviewing the book in the American Scientist, mentioned that "JPL's many successes in missions from Voyager to Pathfinder and then on to Spirit and Opportunity helped to sustain public enthusiasm for space research, if not for NASA itself. Westwick celebrates these well-earned achievements, showing that they were directly responsible for JPL's survival. But he does not hide the many failures, from the early Rangers through the hapless Mars Climate Orbiter and the Mars Polar Lander." DeVorkin concluded that "the book offers a lucid overview of the investigations that were conducted and discusses what those high-profile malfunctions can teach us about which combinations of talent, experience, risk taking and management technique work best. In consequence, I can unreservedly recommend Into the Black to historians and to students and practitioners of aerospace studies."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

American Historical Review, April 1, 2004, Daniel Lee Kleinman, review of The National Labs: Science in an American System, 1947-1974, p. 556.

American Scientist, July 1, 2007, David DeVorkin, review of Into the Black: JPL and the American Space Program, 1976-2004.

Chemical & Engineering News, May 28, 2007, John M. Logsdon, review of Into the Black, p. 41.

Choice: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries, May 1, 2007, W.E. Howard, review of Into the Black, p. 1554.

Historical Studies in the Physical and Biological Sciences, fall, 2003, Alex Wellerstein, review of The National Labs, p. 201; spring, 2007, Norriss Hetherington, review of Into the Black, p. 491.

Isis, June 1, 2004, Allan A. Needell, review of The National Labs, p. 324; December 1, 2007, Stephen Johnson, review of Into the Black, p. 881.

Journal of American History, June 1, 2004, Roger D. Launius, review of The National Labs, p. 303.

Nature, September 18, 2003, Herbert York, review of The National Labs, p. 240.

Physics Today, January 1, 2004, Lillian Hoddeson, review of The National Labs, p. 52.

SciTech Book News, June 1, 2003, review of The National Labs, p. 16.

Space Review, February 19, 2007, Taylor Dinerman, review of Into the Black.

Technology and Culture, April 1, 2004, review of The National Labs,; October 1, 2007, Yasushi Sato, review of Into the Black, p. 893.