Talk:Jet Propulsion Laboratory

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Text and/or other creative content from Outer Planets Mission Analysis Group was copied or moved into Jet Propulsion Laboratory with this edit. The former page's history now serves to provide attribution for that content in the latter page, and it must not be deleted as long as the latter page exists.

Stone as director

I am awful sorry, but to the best of my knowledge Stone was director until 30 April 2001 and Elachi from 1 May 2001 onwards : see [[1]] On [[2]] it says "In January 2001, Dr. Elachi was ***appointed*** as the Director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Vice President of Caltech.

Don't call something vandalism lightly. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.201.53.150 (talk) 23:34, 21 January 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Well we do get a lot of anonymous-IP vandals, and some of them specialize in arbitrarily altering data, including numbers and dates. It would have been helpful to have included that URL as part of your original edit summary instead of just a blank edit summary. If you were a signed-in user, I would have been more careful about calling it vandalism, but since there is no person's reputation associated with a random IP address, it is helpful to flag a suspicious edit as vandalism in the edit summary in case others see it later and wish to investigate other contributions by the same IP. I did indeed investigate and find an apparently supporting URL before reverting, so I didn't do it lightly, but your clarification explains it. -- Curps 00:02, 22 Jan 2005 (UTC)

Allright Curps. You sure did not do it lightly and it could have been vandalism. I am not registered on the English Wikipedia because I do not work on it very often. Long live Wikipedia. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.201.53.150 (talk) 00:20, 22 January 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Tsien Hsue-shen as director

Was Tsien Hsue-shen really director from 1949–1955? That would overlap the claimed dates for Frank Malina and Louis Dunn, if so, which seems a little unexpected. If it's accurate, then maybe a mention of co-directorship should be noted? -- Bovineone 05:22, 26 October 2005 (UTC)[reply]

I've removed this line from the Directors section: "Dr. Tsien Hsue-shen, 1949 – 1955." According to [3] he is not listed as any of the directors. According to the wikipedia page on that person, he was also deported in 1955. -- Bovineone 05:36, 7 December 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Qian Xuesen help to found JPL, his name needs to be somewhere in this article. --68.83.239.229 (talk) 19:54, 14 December 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Feel free to suggest your intended edit. Ckruschke (talk) 16:25, 17 December 2013 (UTC)Ckruschke[reply]

Location of JPL

JPL is in PASADENA not LA CANADA ... JPL is sandwiched between La Canada, Pasadena, Altadena and the LA National forest ... I hope to correct the article in due time — Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.226.18.131 (talk) 05:01, 9 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

That is an extremely common misperception, partly because of the association with Caltech in Pasadena, and partly because, as you point out, it is near several boundaries. The final contributing factor is that JPL has a Pasadena mailing address (Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, California 91109), but that is just the mailing address. Here is a quote from a JPL pres release: "The Laboratory is located near the 210 Freeway in La Canada Flintridge, about 2 miles north of the Pasadena Rose Bowl." [4]

Check your Thomas Guide, p. 535 E4, for example, and you will clearly see that JPL is in La Cañada Flintridge, California and not in Pasadena. I checked three online map sources, and unfortunately none of them show city boundaries, so you will have to check your Thomas Guide. ^Blank ^Verse 12:41, 9 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

It was once explained to me that the front signage for the JPL campus is actually what is in Pasadena (the sign that most local TV reporters do their interviews in front of), and most of the campus lies across the city border in La Cañada.-- Bovineone 23:00, 9 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

@69.226.18.131 You are wrong. JPL is located in La Cañada Flintridge. Only the postal code is Pasadena. This is not uncommon. For example, if your address has a Beverly Hills postal code, it does not necessarily mean the property is located within the city boundaries of Beverly Hills. Ask any realtor. Even check the real estate ads. You will commonly see "Los Angeles Property with Beverly Hills Postal Code." Also, take a look on Google Maps. If you open street view and look at the northeast corner of Oak Grove Drive and Foothill Blvd, you will notice large green sign that reads, "Welcome to the City of La Cañada Flintridge - Home of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory." — Preceding unsigned comment added by Ducati748 (talk • contribs) 03:45, 6 April 2012 (UTC)[reply]

JPL describes itself as being located in Pasadena. People on here can argue all they want, Wikipedia requires that we use common usage. Most articles describe JPL being in Pasadena and the Lab says it is in Pasadena. Adding a note that much of the campus is actually in La Cañada Flintridge can be added a a side note. Much of this is local politics of La Cañada Flintridge trying to make a name for the city. That is not the use of Wikipedia. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 166.170.39.99 (talk) 00:43, 17 July 2015 (UTC)[reply]

It does not describe itself as being in Pasadena. It simply has a Pasadena address due to a need to use a larger post office system. It physically lies within the La Canada boundaries. ^[1]^[2] Apriestofgix (talk) 22:18, 17 February 2016 (UTC)[reply]

@Aracali The source you provided actually disproves your own edit^[3]. JPL is located in La Canada as they have a La Canada street address, and are physically located in La Canada (see above comments). They use a different mailing address due to the inability of the La Canada postal service to handle the volume of mail required. Further sources validate the La Canada Address. ^[4]Apriestofgix (talk) 22:27, 28 April 2017 (UTC)[reply]

@Apriestofgix: please check this link: http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/science/20160713/why-does-everyone-say-nasas-jpl-is-in-pasadena-when-this-other-city-is-its-real-home in it the JPL historian says: “As far as the lab’s actual land, the original part of the lab (around Building 11) was bought from Pasadena, too. Though most of the current lab property was La Cañada.” JPL is in both Pasadena and La Cañada. As a matter of fact, JPL predates La Cañada; La Cañada Flintridge was incorporated in 1976, decades after JPL was founded. Aracali (talk) 00:02, 29 April 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Check also the official fact sheet: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/fact_sheets/jpl.pdf . See how many times it mentions La Cañada and how many times Pasadena, Aracali (talk) 00:08, 29 April 2017 (UTC)[reply]

This Google map shows the borders of Pasadena superimposed to the buildings of JPL: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Pasadena,+CA/@34.1994586,-118.1779872,3072m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x80c2c2dc38330b51:0x52b41161ad18f4a!8m2!3d34.1477849!4d-118.1445155 Aracali (talk) 00:14, 29 April 2017 (UTC)[reply]

@Aracali: Further background research including articles and editorials at time of LCF incorperation (formally La Canada). The text was deleted as redundant and not a justification of location. The entire debate seems to have an unnecessary amount of debate. "The city of La Cañada Flintridge was incorporated in 1976, well after JPL attained international recognition as a Pasadena institution.", since JPL 4800 Oak Grove Location was still located in the unincorporated La Canada (Census 60,64,68,72,76) and the deleted sentence suggests that prior to 1976 JPL campus the area in debate was Pasadena. Research into the debate at the time indicates numerous factors that are overly simplified and beyond article needs. ^[5];^[6].^[7] This said, there is accuracy in the later statement "There has been occasional rivalry between the two cities over the issue of which one should be mentioned in the media as the home of the laboratory Davcraig75 (talk) 07:41, 7 September 2019 (UTC)".[reply]

References

^ https://www.maptechnica.com/us-city-boundary-map/city/La%20Ca%C3%83%C2%B1ada%20Flintridge/state/CA/cityid/0639003
^ https://unitelcf.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/la-canada-flintridge_lafco-map-spere-of-influence.pdf
^ "Directions and Maps". Retrieved 28 April 2017.
^ http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/readers/2012/08/jpl-mars-curiosity-la-canada-flintridge.html
^ "Pasadena to ask JPL land annexation", Pasadena Star News 11, March 1976;
^ "JPL Faces an identity crisis following incorporation vote", Pasadena Star News, 15 Nov 1976
^ "The great battle for JPL," La Canada Valley Sun 18 Mar. 1976

Article needs expansion

JPL has a facility near Wrightwood, California, named the Table Mountain Facility. Can someone with knowledge of the facility add to the article about it, as well as other "off sight" (outside Pasadena) projects? This article needs much more information. Right now its limited to mostly project names and the like. Michaelh2001 09:56, 7 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I also believe a section on the NEO (near-earth objects) project needs to be added, I couldn't see any reference to it in the article, and what with all the Apophis stories about, it'd be nice to add a link to to it here from the Apophis article. PeterSmithee (talk) 08:36, 19 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Astro Turf

I've added Astro Turf to "Further Reading". It is a recent history of the JPL from a mainstream publisher which received strong reviews in the NYT, Washington Post, etc. In the interests of full disclosure, I know the author personally: MG and I were in the same section of a German class in college. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Jeffreykegler (talk • contribs) 17:03, 26 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

V2 Rocket Analysis

This article claims that V2 rockets were analyzed during WWII, when in fact they were analyzed at the end of the war. From the White Sands Missile Range Website[5]:

In the closing days of the war, America embarked upon its own rocket development program and established White Sands Proving Ground (now White Sands Missile Range) in New Mexico as its principal site for rocket testing and development. In mid-August 1945, 300 railroad freight cars of V-2 components captured in the European Theater of Operations arrived in New Mexico. The Santa Fe Railroad spotted ten cars per day in Las Cruces, NM for unloading and transport by military and German personnel to the east side of the Organ Mountains.

A more appropriate sentence can be found in the article White Sands Missile Range:

V-2 rockets captured in Germany at the end of World War II were taken to WSMR for reverse engineering by the Hermes project, and as part of Operation Paperclip many V-2 rocket scientists were brought as well.

--65.185.61.79 (talk) 21:41, 2 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

What are the names of the classes of people that work there?

Like planetary geologist, planetary cartographer, whatever they call their engineers, etc. Sagittarian Milky Way (talk) 19:16, 4 January 2010 (UTC)[reply]

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Rockets no longer there

The rockets shown in one of the pictures on the page are no longer there. I'm not averse to leaving it there, even though it is outdated; it's a cool picture.

Pgramsey (talk) 01:01, 8 December 2018 (UTC)[reply]

I suppose if you could add a date to when they were moved from this location it would make keeping the picture up a lot less confusing.MaximusEditor (talk) 05:21, 21 February 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Perseverance control room photos

RogerNiceEyes (talk) 11:16, 19 February 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Where is info on William "Bill" Pickering

please included new zealander William "Bill" Pickering and his involvement in jpl from before and afterit joined nasa he was a New Zealand-born aerospace engineer who headed Pasadena, California's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for 22 years, retiring in 1976.[1][2] He was a senior NASA luminary and pioneered the exploration of space. Pickering was also a founding member of the United States National Academy of Engineering. He deserves to be mentioned[3]2404:4404:4129:E300:30AA:DB0F:A242:F496 (talk) 22:53, 2 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]

[1] ttps://www.maptechnica.com/us-city-boundary-map/city/La%20Ca%C3%83%C2%B1ada%20Flintridge/state/CA/cityid/0639003

[2] ttps://unitelcf.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/la-canada-flintridge_lafco-map-spere-of-influence.pdf

[3] "Directions and Maps". Retrieved 28 April 2017.

[4] ttp://latimesblogs.latimes.com/readers/2012/08/jpl-mars-curiosity-la-canada-flintridge.html

[5] "Pasadena to ask JPL land annexation", Pasadena Star News 11, March 1976;

[6] "JPL Faces an identity crisis following incorporation vote", Pasadena Star News, 15 Nov 1976

[7] "The great battle for JPL," La Canada Valley Sun 18 Mar. 1976

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[2]

[3]

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