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Laurel van der Wal
Laurel van der Wal (September 22, 1924 – August 13, 2009) was an American mechanical and aeronautical engineer and a specialist in the problems of manned space flight. She is known for contributions to bioastronautics, specifically researching biological and medical aspects of human space flight. She developed and led Project MIA (Mouse-in-Able), which sent two mice into space in the nose cones of Thor-Able rockets and studied the psychological effects of U.S. space flight using mice as the test subjects. She also focused on the design of manned spacecraft as well as escape and recovery systems for astronauts.[1] She served on the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners from 1961 to 1967 and during the 1970s worked for the RAND Corporation.[2] She was named the Los Angeles Times's "1960 Woman of the Year in Science" for her contributions to the field.[3] In 1961, the Society of Women Engineers awarded her their highest award, the Achievement Award, for contributions to bioengineering and bioastronautics. When asked if she would want to go into space herself, she answered, "I'd go in a minute, if they'd let me."[4] Early life and educationVan der Wal was born in San Francisco, the daughter of Lillian and Richard van der Wal, both from Spokane, Washington. Her mother was a former teacher and an alumna of the University of Washington; her father was a businessman.[5] She graduated from high school at age 15, and worked as a model, an art instructor, a deputy sheriff, a showgirl, a railroad switch tower operator, and a casino shill as a young woman. "I am impatient with people who do not make full use of all their capabilities," she explained in 1962.[6] She admired pilots and hoped to earn a pilot license, but instead worked as an aircraft mechanic during World War II, at Hamilton Air Force Base. Van der Wal studied mechanical engineering at the University of California Berkeley, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in 1949, with honors.[3] Her graduate education at the University of California, Berkeley, UCLA, and the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden.[4] to study aeronautics was funded in part by a National Research Council fellowship. As part of her fellowship, she attended the Eight International Congress of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (Istanbul, Turkey) and the Third Congress of the International Astronautical Federation (Stuttgart, Germany).[3] Scholarships and Fellowships[3]
CareerAs a young engineer van der Wal worked at Douglas Aircraft as a data analyst on the Nike missile program and later designing missile systems for the Ramo-Wooldridge Corporation. Starting in 1958, she was the project engineer on three MIA (Mouse-in-Able) launches from Cape Canaveral, as head of bioastronautics at Space Technology Laboratories. She was named the Los Angeles Times's "1960 Woman of the Year in Science" for her work. Research and developmentIn 1944, Van der Wal began her technical career as an aircraft engine mechanic with the U.S. Army Air Force at Hamilton Field Air Force Base, California.[3] During her university career (1947–1949) Van der Wal worked on an aerodynamic heating project that evaluated wind tunnel operation, model design and construction and theoretical analysis. She then tackled a Los Pressures Project which examined low-density subsonic and supersonic tunnels. In 1950, Van der Wal joined Douglas Aircraft Company, Inc. as a laboratory research analyst, working on Servomechanism in the Guided Missiles Division. She was involved in control system design and participated in firing program activities at White Sands Proving Ground, New Mexico for the NIKE program. In 1953, Van der Wal moved to New Jersey and began work at Reaction Motors Inc. of Rockaway, New Jersey in the Turbopump Group, Development Section. During her time with Reaction Motors, she worked on theoretical investigations of the starting time of self-sustaining turbopump rocket systems, evaluation of fuel-tank pressurization systems, determination of test area liquid oxygen losses and boil-off loss reduction possibilities. Later in 1953, Van der Wal joined the Rheem Manufacturing Company, Government Products Division, Research and Development Laboratories in Downey, California as a Design Engineer. She was focused on general performance analysis, subsonic and supersonic drones and aerodynamics. She began working on tool design, proposals, design and testing of fuse components for fast-burning rockets before moving to the aircraft engineering department as an aerodynamicist. Here she was involved in analyzing all phases of aerodynamics as applied to the design, performance and operation of aircraft, missiles and drones. In 1956 Van der Walo joined Ramo-Wooldridge where she was involved in the preliminary design of advanced missile and space-probe systems. In 1958, Ramo-Wooldridge changed its name to Space Technologies Laboratories, Inc. and Van der Wal continued her research into bioastronautics and the effects of space on mammals through Project MIA (Mouse-in-Able) and Zero-G experiments. Space Technologies Laboratories became Thompson-Ramo-Wooldridge (TRW) in July of 1965. ConsultingIn the early 1970s, she wrote several reports for the Rand Corporation about planning a more effective transportation system.[7][8] In In 1961, Van der Wal was appointed to the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners and served as a commissioner until 1967.[9] In 1968, she served as Los Angeles International Airport's planner. In 1974 she worked for the Southern California Association of Governments for twelve years and was a noted activist on behalf of slow growth in Santa Monica, California, serving as an advisor to the Santa Monica Coalition for a Liveable City[2][10] AdvocacyVan der Wal was director of the Southern California chapter of the American Rocket Society, where she took particular interest in partnering with Explorer Scouts to teach children about space and aeronautics. "Kids all over the world are excited about space," she explained in 1960, "because this is the challenge to their generation".[11] As the space program gained popularity in the 1960s, she was a popular speaker at women's clubs, teachers' meetings and other events.[12][13][14] In 1968, she explained that the children she taught "... are the most important thing ever to happen to me, ever."[1] Professional Groups[3]
Selected Published Works[3]
LegacyAs head of the bioastronautics at Space Technologies Laboratories (later TRW), Laurel van der Wal proved to be instrumental in the drive to launch humans into space and successfully bring them home. Her research into the engineering problems of manned space flight included a revolutionary experiment called Project MIA. Project MIA, or Mice-In-Able, placed white mice in the nose cones of Thor-Able rockets to measure their heartbeats. This data was telemetered to Earth and provided data on the physiological effects of space flight. Benji and Laska traveled in a “Mouse House” that cradled the mouse and held food, water, and dehumidifying chemicals. Another cylinder contained air puritans and a blower system circulated air through the Mouse House. The total weight of all the MIA equipment was ten pounds.[3] Although the nose cones were not located by recovery ships, telemetry proved that the mice had normal heart rates while traveling at speeds exceeding 15,000 miles per hour, reached a record altitude of 14,000 statute miles, and withstood decelerations well over 60 g’s and nose cone skin temperatures of several hundred degrees Fahrenheit. Both mice survived re-entry. Her work paved the way for manned space flight in 1961.[3] In addition to her work in the field of engineering, Laurel van der Wal was the first woman appointed to the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners, in 1961, and served as a commissioner until 1967.[9] In 1968, she served as Los Angeles International Airport's planner. Awards and Honors
Personal lifeLaurel van der Wal married fellow engineer William Henry Roennau in 1961, in Arlington, Virginia.[17] The Roennaus had two sons, Jonathan and Michael.[18] Laurel and William later divorced. She retired in the late 1980s, and died in August 2009, in Santa Monica.[2] References
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