Albert P. Crary
Encyclopedia
Albert Paddock Crary was a pioneer polar geophysicist
and glaciologist
. He made it to the North
(on May 3, 1952, together with Joseph O. Fletcher
and William P. Benedict) and then to the South
Pole on February 12, 1961 as the leader of a team of eight. The south pole expedition had set out from McMurdo Station
on December 10, 1960, using three Snowcat
s with trailers. Crary was the seventh expedition leader to arrive at the South Pole by surface transportation (the six others before him were—in sequence— Amundsen
, Scott
, Hillary
, Fuchs
, a Russia
n expedition in 1959/60 from Vostok base, and Havola). He was widely admired for his intellect, wit, skills and as a great administrator for polar research expeditions.
Born into a farming family in northern New York state, he was the second oldest in a family of 7 children. He was a Physics major and Geology student at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. He graduated in 1931 Phi Beta Kappa from St. Lawrence University
and then went on to Lehigh University
for a masters degree in physics. After spending years completing and facilitating research at both poles, Crary eventually settled in the Washington, D.C.
area with his wife and their son.
In 1991, the National Science Foundation
(NSF), which manages the U.S. Antarctic Program (USAP), honoured his memory by dedicating a state-of-the-art laboratory complex in his name, the Albert P. Crary Science and Engineering Center
(CSEC) located in McMurdo Station
. He was also honored to have the Crary Mountains
(76 degrees 48' S, 117 degrees 40' W) and the Crary Ice Rise
in the Antarctic named for him as well.
Dr. Crary contributed in a variety of important ways to his field including:
He worked with many notable scientists and famous institutions:
Geophysics
Geophysics is the physics of the Earth and its environment in space; also the study of the Earth using quantitative physical methods. The term geophysics sometimes refers only to the geological applications: Earth's shape; its gravitational and magnetic fields; its internal structure and...
and glaciologist
Glaciology
Glaciology Glaciology Glaciology (from Middle French dialect (Franco-Provençal): glace, "ice"; or Latin: glacies, "frost, ice"; and Greek: λόγος, logos, "speech" lit...
. He made it to the North
North Pole
The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
(on May 3, 1952, together with Joseph O. Fletcher
Joseph O. Fletcher
Joseph Otis Fletcher was an American Air Force pilot and polar explorer.-Biography:Born outside of Ryegate, Montana, the family moved to Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl. Fletcher started studying at the University of Oklahoma and then continued his studies in meteorology at the MIT. After...
and William P. Benedict) and then to the South
South Pole
The South Pole, also known as the Geographic South Pole or Terrestrial South Pole, is one of the two points where the Earth's axis of rotation intersects its surface. It is the southernmost point on the surface of the Earth and lies on the opposite side of the Earth from the North Pole...
Pole on February 12, 1961 as the leader of a team of eight. The south pole expedition had set out from McMurdo Station
McMurdo Station
McMurdo Station is a U.S. Antarctic research center located on the southern tip of Ross Island, which is in the New Zealand-claimed Ross Dependency on the shore of McMurdo Sound in Antarctica. It is operated by the United States through the United States Antarctic Program, a branch of the National...
on December 10, 1960, using three Snowcat
Snowcat
A snowcat is an enclosed-cab, truck sized, fully tracked vehicle designed to move on snow. Snowcats are often referred to as 'trail groomers' because of their use for grooming ski trails or snowmobile trails...
s with trailers. Crary was the seventh expedition leader to arrive at the South Pole by surface transportation (the six others before him were—in sequence— Amundsen
Roald Amundsen
Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He led the first Antarctic expedition to reach the South Pole between 1910 and 1912 and he was the first person to reach both the North and South Poles. He is also known as the first to traverse the Northwest Passage....
, Scott
Robert Falcon Scott
Captain Robert Falcon Scott, CVO was a Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery Expedition, 1901–04, and the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–13...
, Hillary
Edmund Hillary
Sir Edmund Percival Hillary, KG, ONZ, KBE , was a New Zealand mountaineer, explorer and philanthropist. On 29 May 1953 at the age of 33, he and Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the first climbers known to have reached the summit of Mount Everest – see Timeline of climbing Mount Everest...
, Fuchs
Vivian Fuchs
Sir Vivian Ernest Fuchs FRS was an English explorer whose expeditionary team completed the first overland crossing of Antarctica in 1958.- Biography :...
, a Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n expedition in 1959/60 from Vostok base, and Havola). He was widely admired for his intellect, wit, skills and as a great administrator for polar research expeditions.
Born into a farming family in northern New York state, he was the second oldest in a family of 7 children. He was a Physics major and Geology student at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. He graduated in 1931 Phi Beta Kappa from St. Lawrence University
St. Lawrence University
St. Lawrence University is a four-year liberal arts college located in the village of Canton in Saint Lawrence County, New York, United States. It has roughly 2300 undergraduate and 100 graduate students, about equally split between male and female....
and then went on to Lehigh University
Lehigh University
Lehigh University is a private, co-educational university located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the United States. It was established in 1865 by Asa Packer as a four-year technical school, but has grown to include studies in a wide variety of disciplines...
for a masters degree in physics. After spending years completing and facilitating research at both poles, Crary eventually settled in the Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
area with his wife and their son.
In 1991, the National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
(NSF), which manages the U.S. Antarctic Program (USAP), honoured his memory by dedicating a state-of-the-art laboratory complex in his name, the Albert P. Crary Science and Engineering Center
Albert P. Crary Science and Engineering Center
The Albert P. Crary Science and Engineering Center , located at McMurdo Station, was dedicated in November 1991 by the National Science Foundation . The laboratory is named in honor of geophysicist and glaciologist Albert P. Crary...
(CSEC) located in McMurdo Station
McMurdo Station
McMurdo Station is a U.S. Antarctic research center located on the southern tip of Ross Island, which is in the New Zealand-claimed Ross Dependency on the shore of McMurdo Sound in Antarctica. It is operated by the United States through the United States Antarctic Program, a branch of the National...
. He was also honored to have the Crary Mountains
Crary Mountains
Crary Mountains is a group of ice-covered Antarctic mountains, long, rising to 3,655 m at Mount Frakes and including Mount Rees, Mount Steere and Boyd Ridge. The mountains are located SW of Toney Mountain in Marie Byrd Land....
(76 degrees 48' S, 117 degrees 40' W) and the Crary Ice Rise
Crary Ice Rise
Crary Ice Rise is an Antarctic ice rise in the south-central part of the Ross Ice Shelf. At 82°56'S, it is the southernmost ice rise. The feature was investigated by the USARP Ross Ice Shelf Project in the 1970s. The name came into use among USARP workers and honors Albert P. Crary , American...
in the Antarctic named for him as well.
Dr. Crary contributed in a variety of important ways to his field including:
- Chief Scientist for Arctic ice island T3, 1952 - 1955
- Established the United States Geological Headquarters for the International Geophysical YearInternational Geophysical YearThe International Geophysical Year was an international scientific project that lasted from July 1, 1957, to December 31, 1958. It marked the end of a long period during the Cold War when scientific interchange between East and West was seriously interrupted...
, 1955 - Deputy Leader of United States science during the International Geophysical Year, 1957
- Leader of the U.S. seismic traverse of Ross Ice Shelf, 1957-58
- Leader, geophysical traverse W from Little America V, up Skelton Glacier to the Victoria Land plateau and W along the 78 parallel to c. 13130E, 1958-59
- Leader, geophysical traverse from McMurdo Station via Skelton Glacier to the South Pole, 1960-61
- Chief Scientist, United States Antarctic Research Program, 1960 - 1968
- Deputy then Director, Division of Environmental Sciences, National Science Foundation, 1969 - 1978
- Member of ACAN, 1961-76 (Chairman, 1974–76)
He worked with many notable scientists and famous institutions:
- Dr. Maurice EwingMaurice EwingWilliam Maurice "Doc" Ewing was an American geophysicist and oceanographer.Ewing has been described as a pioneering geophysicist who worked on the research of seismic reflection and refraction in ocean basins, ocean bottom photography, submarine sound transmission , deep sea coring of the ocean...
of Columbia UniversityColumbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
and Woods Hole Oceanographic InstitutionWoods Hole Oceanographic InstitutionThe Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is a private, nonprofit research and higher education facility dedicated to the study of all aspects of marine science and engineering and to the education of marine researchers. Established in 1930, it is the largest independent oceanographic research... - Assisted Dr. James Peoples at MOGUL (Project MogulProject MogulProject Mogul was a top secret project by the US Army Air Forces involving microphones flown on high altitude balloons, whose primary purpose was long-distance detection of sound waves generated by Soviet atomic bomb tests. The project was carried out from 1947 until early 1949...
) as the Field Operations Director using meteorological balloons to experiment with different types of equipment to collect and transmit sound waves in the upper atmosphere (Roswell, New MexicoRoswell, New MexicoRoswell is a city in and the county seat of Chaves County in the southeastern quarter of the state of New Mexico, United States. The population was 48,366 at the 2010 census. It is a center for irrigation farming, dairying, ranching, manufacturing, distribution, and petroleum production. It is also...
Incident- see http://muller.lbl.gov/teaching/Physics10/Roswell/USMogulReport.html)
External links
- Crary's trip to the South Pole with an image and a map.
- Picture of Crary when he was Deputy Chief Scientist of the NAS's US-IGY Antarctic program, shown reading a seismograph record.
