Kurt Richard Stehling

Background

Kurt Richard Stehling was born on September 19, 1919, in Giessen, Germany. He was a son of Wilhelm Stehling and Ernestine Diane (de Partier) Stehling.

Education

Stehling received his bachelor's degree from the University of Toronto in 1948. He then obtained his master's degree from Georgetown University in 1957.

Stehling became an honorary Doctor of Science at the Technical University of Berlin in 1977.

Career

Stehling's career began in 1948 when he was appointed by Bell Aerospace Corporation in Buffalo, New York as a group leader in rocket research, staying there till 1955. Simultaneously, he worked at Princeton University as a research associate, for a year from 1953. He joined the United States Naval Research Laboratory as a division chief of Project Vanguard, holding the post for four years from 1955. After that Stehling took the post of a senior scientist at National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA), serving in this capacity till 1962. He was a vice president of the electrooptical department of Xerox Corporation in Pasadena, California from 1963 to 1967. From that same year, Stehling served at the position of a senior staff scientist at the Office of the President in Washington, holding the position till 1971. Beginning from that year, he worked at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as a senior project manager, rising to a senior scientist emeritus in 1986. He retired in 1997.

Stehling was among those scientists who have taken the time to share their joy of learning with a larger audience. He wrote his books Project Vanguard and Skyhooks in 1961 and 1962 respectively. He published the book titled Lasers and Their Applications in 1966. Stehling's book Computers and You was written in 1972. It was followed by the book Bags Up! Stehling was also a contributor to periodicals, including Omni, Smithsonian, Air and Space, Popular Mechanics and Scientific American.

Achievements

• Stehling received the Galbraith Award from Canadian Engineering Institute in 1948. He won the Space Pioneer Medal from the National Space Club in 1966. His other awards included the Liebig Medal from the University of Giessen, which he earned in 1977 and Distinguished Service Award from the American Institute for Aviation and Aeronautics, which he won three years later. Stehling was also awarded the Golden Pin of Honour by Hermann Oberth Space and Rocket Society in 1989.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Computers and you 1972
  • Bags up!: Great ballon adventures 1975
  • Lasers and their applications 1966

Membership

Stehling was a member of the Explorers Club, the Maria Mitchell Association, the Cosmos Club, the Press Club and the International Academy of Aeronautics, as well as a member of council of the Marine Technical Society. He was also an honorary member of the Lighter-than-Air Society.

Interests

• hiking, dramatics, astronomy

Connections

Stehling married Helen Niess Bauer on December 29, 1945. The marriage produced two children - Wendy Joan and Andrew Alan.

Father:

Wilhelm Stehling

Mother:

Ernestine Diane (de Partier) Stehling

child:

Wendy Joan Stehling

child:

Andrew Alan Stehling

Wife:

Helen Niess Bauer