Downtown Los Angeles as it might have looked with the Aerospace personal rapid transit system installed above city streets. The system was envisioned as a one-way loop network of grade-separated elevated guideways located above arterial streets in urban areas on which small cars would privately carry a small group of passengers.

Down to Earth: Aerospace Expertise in Support of Civilian Government Agencies

Jon S. Bach

In the 1970s, Aerospace sought to apply its scientific and engineering expertise to projects outside the realm of national security space. Much of that visionary work is as relevant today as it was 30 years ago.

As the eventful decade of the 1960s wound down, America’s young space industry found itself at a turning point. In just a few years, the country had moved beyond the failed launch of the first Vanguard satellite to land the first astronauts on the moon. Having achieved this historic milestone, the space industry no longer had a clear defining mission. And although the Department of Defense (DOD) continued to develop space assets, events on the ground received far more attention. Faced with a potential contraction in the industry, organizations such as The Aerospace Corporation needed to develop new opportunities or risk losing some of their engineering and scientific expertise.

In March of 1969, Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird sent a memo to cabinet-level department heads that recommended using the nation’s Federal Contract Research Centers (precursors of today’s Federally Funded Research and Development Centers, such as the one operated by Aerospace) to address domestic issues. Three months later, Laird announced the cancellation of the Manned Orbiting Laboratory, which then employed about 600 Aerospace personnel and represented roughly 20 percent of the corporation’s work. Aerospace had already been involved with select projects outside the DOD, but as a result of Laird’s decisions, it began to actively seek assignments from other government agencies; in 1970, the company anticipated that 8 percent of its work would be nondefense in fiscal year 1971. The subsequent years became a time of impressive broadening of the contracting base that led the company into a number of technical fields outside of national security space–fields that at first glance seemed an odd fit for an organization with “aerospace” in its name.

Originally, five areas were identified as strong candidates for sources of non-DOD projects: transportation, medical engineering, pollution control, regional planning, and law enforcement. The medical engineering and regional planning possibilities fell by the wayside, but the other fields proved to be very productive choices. In addition, several areas under the broad umbrella of “energy”–resources, systems, and conservation—turned out to be central to the company's nondefense work.

Transportation

Aerospace worked on transportation projects for a number of nondefense agencies. For the Federal Aviation Administration, the company assisted with the Aerosat program, a system for communicating with transoceanic aircraft. For the Department of Transportation, Aerospace participated in studies of heavy-rail systems. For the Federal Energy Administration, the company did studies of energy-saving policies, and for the Federal Railroad Administration, Aerospace worked on the Safety Life Cycle Program for railroad locomotives as well as the Wayside Detection Facility (which used automated sensors to detect railcar defects).

Some of Aerospace's transportation work dealt with air transport. Aerospace was involved in airport planning and air traffic control studies, as well as studies of possible systems, including GPS, for aircraft communication and navigation requirements.

Aerospace worked on a short-haul air operations study for the Western Conference of Councils of State Governments during the period 1968–1972. Transportation projects specific to the Pacific Northwest region were also undertaken, including an airport system plan for Washington state and maritime port development requirements for Washington and Oregon.

Top: Aerospace President Ivan Getting (third from right) attends a demonstration of the personal rapid transit system scale model in summer 1971. Bottom: A one-tenth scale model of the personal rapid transit system was constructed at Aerospace for testing and evaluation.

Personal Rapid Transit

One of the most fascinating of Aerospace's efforts during this period was the personal rapid transit system. Those who were at Aerospace then recall it fondly—and with good reason, given the state of much urban transport today. The freeway infrastructure created during the second half of the twentieth century has been pushed to the limit in recent years, and although some cities (such as Portland, Oregon) have successfully implemented light-rail solutions and others (such as New York City and Washington, DC) enjoy traditional heavy-rail subways, many have done nothing or not enough to make a difference, or have looked to inadequate systems such as buses to handle the problems. Some, such as Los Angeles, suffer nearly constant automobile gridlock in certain areas.

Perhaps for some insightful individuals, it was not difficult to see these difficulties brewing. In 1968, Aerospace Vice President Jack Irving initiated a research program to develop a personal rapid transit system. It consisted of small vehicles that would each hold up to six people (you'd only be traveling with your own party, not with strangers) and move on elevated "guideways" separated from the street and pedestrian traffic. The system would be set up to ferry a party directly from origin to destination without intermediate stops.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development had sponsored a study in 1966 to evaluate potential transportation systems, and personal rapid transit was seen as one that could offer high-quality services. There were, however, questions about its technical and economic feasibility. The Aerospace study was intended to address them. It dealt with issues like vehicle propulsion and control, safety, cost, and network layout. Models and simulations were an important part of the study, including software that simulated traffic management and a physical scale model (one-tenth actual size) for testing.

The Aerospace personal rapid transit study concluded in 1976, but was never implemented. Fortunately, Irving and his team documented their work in a book, Fundamentals of Personal Rapid Transit. The text is quite thorough and includes topics such as passenger security, network configuration, station types, routing, and even "foreign obstacles on guideways."

Even today, more than 30 years later, as people continue to search for practical and economical forms of urban transport, the personal rapid transit concept still has its champions, who are working toward its adoption and who admiringly recall the highly influential work done at Aerospace.

Environment

Aerospace's work in environmental areas was done for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Energy (DOE), the Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA, predecessor of the DOE), the Department of Natural Resources, and the U.S. Forest Service.

Following the Arab oil embargo and subsequent energy crisis of 1973, the U. S. Congress established the ERDA in 1975 to spur efforts to reduce national dependence on foreign energy sources. An initial task mandated by Congress was for ERDA to develop an R&D plan for national energy. On the basis of recognized expertise at Aerospace for objective development of broad systems-engineering development plans, a contract was given to Aerospace to assist in drafting the ERDA plan. From that first contract grew broader Aerospace support to the ERDA Assistant Administrator for Environment and Safety, and establishment of technical offices in Germantown, Maryland, and Washington, DC. Aerospace developed in-depth technical information about many sources of energy, including coal; petroleum; synthetic fuels; natural gas; wind; biomass; and nuclear, solar, geothermal, and hydroelectric energy sources. The environmental impacts felt in response to these forms of energy were also studied. Much of this work was reflected in a 1981 DOE handbook series to draw together technical information for decisionmakers, researchers, and the public on alternative energy sources and their environmental consequences.

Aerospace also looked at the environmental aspects of stationary power sources: there was an assessment of using "fly ash" (a solid-particle residue generated in the burning of coal); a contract to investigate power-plant waste from the desulfurization of flue gas; and studies of combustion research, NOx reduction techniques, and internal combustion engines.

Aerospace studied wildfires, using infrared sensors to locate hot spots and software to predict the spread of fire according to data such as humidity and temperature. To tap forest resources, new logging methods for removing felled trees were explored.

Much of Aerospace's environmental work was in the field of automotive technology. There were studies of the effect of lead additives in gasoline on performance, emissions, and cost; evaluations of gasoline-alcohol combinations to reduce the use of lead in high-octane gas; and emission control studies. Perhaps most intriguing was Aerospace's work with electric and hybrid vehicles, a subject that is as compelling today as it was 30 years ago.

In 1970, the National Air Pollution Control Administration commissioned a six-month study of the feasibility of hybrid engines as low-polluting power sources. In this photo, an early hybrid engine concept undergoes testing at Aerospace.

Electric/Hybrid Vehicles

Hybrid vehicles employing both an electric motor and an internal combustion engine have a long history, extending back before the twentieth century. By the late 1920s, they were gone, but after the Arab oil embargo, people looked to hybrids as a way to offset the high cost and limited availability of gas. The 1970s also brought a heightened awareness of environmental issues, which spurred further interest in vehicles that would not exacerbate the problem of air pollution (half the country's air pollution was said to result from cars).

Thus, Aerospace became involved in quite a bit of work with electric/hybrid vehicles. An Orbiter article in July 1970 announced that the company had been chosen for a six-month study of the feasibility of hybrid engines as low-polluting power sources. The study was commissioned by the National Air Pollution Control Administration (NAPCA), part of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW). In December of that year, NAPCA became part of the newly formed EPA. The $200,000 study was the first Aerospace project in the area of pollution that was financed by an outside agency.

The Nixon administration had announced a program to develop at least two low-pollution alternatives to the traditional gasoline engine, and it seemed that the electric/hybrid vehicle could meet this need. The Aerospace study worked on finding engine/battery/control systems that could be used in developing such vehicles.

More work with electric/hybrid vehicles followed. The Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Research, Development, and Demonstration Act of 1976 tasked ERDA/DOE with researching and developing electric/hybrid vehicles. Although President Gerald Ford vetoed the bill, Congress voted to override the veto, and it was enacted as law. As part of the work it generated, Aerospace was involved in creating computer simulations, designs, and prototypes for electric/hybrid vehicles.

In 1978, DOE's Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Division asked Aerospace to determine a way to include electric vehicles (EVs) in measuring Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE). CAFE is a set of federal regulations for improving the fuel economy of automobiles that was enacted by Congress in 1975 as part of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act. On the basis of Aerospace's study, DOE informed Congress that it supported legislation to include EVs in computing CAFE values as a "crucial incentive to electric vehicle production." In late 1979, the "EV CAFE incentive" was introduced as an amendment to another bill before Congress. That bill passed both houses and was signed into law by the president.

Energy

The DOE Solar Thermal Test Facility in Albuquerque a few months before its June 1978 completion. A field of nearly 200 heliostats (each 37.2 square meters) is in the foreground; a receiver in the 180-foot tower captured 5 megawatts of thermal power for experiments with candidate components of a solar thermal power generation system. Aerospace performed comparative evaluations of alternative systems, which identified the central receiver concept for individual development emphasis. The site is still active, managed by Sandia National Labs.

Aerospace's efforts on electric/hybrid vehicles served not only environmental concerns to reduce pollution, but also energy concerns focused on decreasing dependence on petroleum imports. Energy, of course, was a huge separate area of investigation for Aerospace. The company's work in energy systems, conservation, and resources took the form of projects for ERDA/DOE, the National Science Foundation, the Department of the Interior, the Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the U.S. Forest Service.

The projects included work with renewable energy sources—specifically, the direct generation of electricity from sunlight by photovoltaic devices. Projects also dealt with large solar-based thermal power systems, such as solar thermal applications to irrigation systems and solar total energy systems. Some projects investigated wind as an energy source, including an aqueduct project in California and a project that integrated wind, solar-power, and solar-heating systems. Work with nuclear power systems was performed to evaluate underground nuclear plants and nuclear safety issues. Aerospace wrote an analysis of the much-publicized nuclear accident that occurred at the Three Mile Island nuclear plant near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in 1979.

Some of Aerospace's energy conservation projects were oriented toward vehicle systems. There was consideration of the energy saved from engine shutoff during idling and from fuel shutoff during deceleration. Studies of auto emissions examined the potential for conserving engine heat energy. Other studies looked at the development of light-duty diesel engine technology or focused on nonpetroleum-dependent automotive systems and the use of electric/hybrid vehicles for reduced petroleum consumption.

Projects in the realm of energy resources covered a wide variety of issues. For the USGS, the company analyzed oil drilling structure requirements and logistics problems and produced a software model of structural vibrations induced by ocean waves. The Department of Interior commissioned projects for Alaska, including a gas transport study and an economic policy analysis of the National Petroleum Reserve. Studies of shale and coal as energy sources considered the impact of strip mining, and for DOE's Office of Oil and Gas Policy, there was a "Net National Economic Benefit" analysis.

Strategic Petroleum Reserve

The 1973 oil embargo resulted in a difficult economic situation, with the price of imported crude oil rising sharply. Congress authorized the creation of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as a result, so that if the U.S. oil supply were ever interrupted again, the effect would not be so severe. The goal was to stockpile at least 500 million barrels.

Elliott Katz of the Government Support Operations Strategic Petroleum Reserve directorate explains how oil can be stored in a salt dome in this 1983 photo.

The reserve consists of underground storage areas (salt caverns, actually) for crude oil along the Gulf Coast in Texas and Louisiana. These facilities provide maximum security and affordability for storage. Also, according to the DOE, which manages the program, the Gulf locations "provide the most flexible means for connecting to the Nation's commercial oil transport network."

By 1978, DOE had experienced a number of problems with the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and after a search, selected Aerospace in 1979 to provide general systems engineering and integration. The company opened an office in New Orleans to support the effort, with additional assistance from Aerospace staff in Washington, DC.

Aerospace was involved in many aspects of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, including system design, engineering, quality assurance, reliability, system security and vulnerability, and operational readiness and logistic support. The corporation evaluated pumping systems, performed hydraulic analyses of pipelines, and studied pipeline corrosion phenomena. It also contributed to the preparation of the Drawdown and Distribution Management Manual, a publication dealing with responses to an energy emergency.

By 1984, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve had successfully completed five full-scale drawdown tests, and 400 million barrels had been stored. Aerospace's support of the program was generally regarded as a success, and the company's involvement was phased out by 1986.

Law Enforcement

Another important area of technology applications was the field of security and law enforcement. For the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (established in 1968 within the Department of Justice), Aerospace did research and development in numerous law enforcement equipment and forensic techniques throughout the 1970s: body armor, security alarms, computer-aided voice identification, truck antihijacking systems, bloodstain analysis techniques, gunshot residue detection, illegal explosive detection, and bomb explosives source identification. Aerospace also did security and law enforcement work for the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. The corporation remains active in this area, most notably through its involvement with the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center–Western Region.

Top left: The keyboard data-entry system in a prototype police car is explained to Attorney General Griffin Bell (foreground) by Rainer Sahmel of the Aerospace Law Enforcement and Telecommunications division in this photo from summer 1977. Aerospace developed the prototype under contract to the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration (LEAA). The car served as a test bed for advanced communications systems; data storage, retrieval, and display systems; fuel economy components; and numerous safety features. Top right: Working for the LEAA, Aerospace used a scanning electron microscope with an x-ray analyzer to determine whether gunshot residue could be detected on the hand of a shooter. In this 1975 photo, Robert Nesbitt of the forensic sciences lab operates the equipment. Bottom left: Aerospace performed R&D for the LEAA in numerous equipment and forensic techniques throughout the 1970s, including body armor, as shown here.

Aerospace worked on several law enforcement projects for the city of Los Angeles as well. The company served as technical advisor for a police dispatching system, evaluated a computer system that would recognize criminal activity patterns, and established a communications system for emergency services.

Conclusion

In 1977, the Air Force and Aerospace signed a memorandum of understanding that once again acknowledged the primary importance of national security and the support of Air Force programs. The years that followed saw an overall reduction in the non-defense work, although Aerospace's national security related nondefense work continues today.

By 1986, Aerospace president Eberhardt Rechtin and board chair James Plummer were able to note, in the annual report, how the situation had changed. "The company's staff declined fractionally as work for civil agencies was virtually completed," they wrote. "Civil projects now amount to one percent of all contractual support, down from its high point of 14.2 percent in 1976."

Looking back, it might seem that Aerospace's projects during this era of diversification were "all over the map," but, in fact, they all relied on established technological skills that had been developed through years of supporting national security issues. Consider, for example, the work on energy supply and conservation, alternative fuels, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and law enforcement technologies: Most of these areas are still national priorities. These projects benefited from objective application of a comprehensive systems-engineering approach—traditionally one of Aerospace's core competencies. Moreover, the corporation's work in these important programs fits in with the ongoing tradition of innovative thinking and pioneering development in support of critical national concerns.