Roger Easton

Public release date: 22-Nov-2005
Contact: NRL Public Affairs

202-767-2541
Naval Research Laboratory

President announces Roger Easton recipient of National Medal of
Technology
Nation's highest honor for technology
(Washington, DC · 11/21/05)

President George W. Bush has announced that Roger L. Easton is the
recipient of the National Medal of Technology for his extensive
pioneering achievements in spacecraft tracking, navigation and timing
technology that led to the development of the NAVSTAR-Global
Positioning System (GPS). The White House made the announcement on
Monday, November 14. The Nation's highest honor for technology, the
National Medal of Technology is awarded to individuals who embody the
spirit of American innovation and who have advanced the Nation's global
competitiveness.

Easton, the former head of NRL's Space Applications Branch, Space
Systems Division, retired from NRL and Federal Service in 1980, and
later served as a consultant to NRL to conduct assessment of industry
proposals for upgrading the Naval Space Surveillance System and to
explore his concept for improving GPS geo-locational accuracy from 1994
to 2000. He began his career at NRL in 1943 as a research physicist,
working on radar beacons and blind landing systems in the Radio
Division, and served as an active duty Naval Officer conducting
research aboard the Lab from 1944 to 1945.

He was awarded the National Medal of Technology for "his invention of
the Minitrack satellite tracking system used to track Vanguard
satellites and determine orbits; his development of the Naval Space
Surveillance System still in use today cataloging all known man-made
space objects orbiting Earth; his invention of a "Navigation System
Using Satellites and Passive Ranging Techniques" and his subsequent
development of Time Navigation and Navigation Technology Satellites
that formed the technological basis for modern GPS."

Easton conceived, patented, and led the development of critical
enabling technologies for the United States Global Positioning System
(GPS). GPS today is a constellation of Earth-orbiting satellites
providing precise navigation and timing data to military and civilian
users. Easton, as a scientist and engineer at NRL, developed his
concept for a time-based navigational system with passive ranging,
circular orbits, and space-borne high precision clocks synchronized to
a master clock. The U.S Patent Office received his invention,
"Navigation System Using Satellites and Passive Ranging Techniques," on
October 8, 1970. His earlier work exploiting space-based systems for
geodesy, navigation, and timing laid the foundations for his visionary
leap to the concept he dubbed TIMATION, for time navigation. He tested
his concepts at NRL through development and launch of four experimental
satellites: TIMATION I and II (in 1967 and 1969) and Navigation
Technology Satellites (NTS) 1 and 2 (in 1974 and 1977). NTS-2, the
first satellite to fly in the GPS 12 hour orbit and transmit GPS
signals, flew the first cesium atomic frequency standard in space.
Using time measurements from NTS-2, he experimentally verified
Einstein's theory of relativity. A relativistic offset correction that
he applied is still in use by every satellite in the GPS constellation.


Earlier in his career at NRL, Easton collaborated with Milton Rosen in
1955 to write NRL's Project Vanguard proposal for a scientific
satellite program for the International Geophysical Year. President
Eisenhower announced selection of Vanguard as the United States
national scientific contribution to the International Geophysical Year.
Easton invented the Minitrack System to determine the Vanguard
satellite's orbit.

When the Soviet Union launched Sputnik into orbit, the United States
could not track non-radiating satellites or determine if other launches
occurred. Roger Easton solved this problem by extending Minitrack to
actively follow unknown satellites orbiting Earth. Under his
leadership, the Naval Space Surveillance System became the world's
first system to detect and track all types of Earth-orbiting objects,
thus contributing to America's national security and sense of
well-being during the Cold War. For this invention, Roger Easton
received a U.S. patent in 1964.

Easton conceived the idea of using satellite-carried precise clocks for
passive ranging in 1964. He conducted research, carried out space-based
experiments, and published his findings that accurate, reliable and
instantaneous satellite navigation could be achieved with passive
ranging, circular orbits, and a constellation of space-borne
high-precision clocks synchronized to a master clock, which are in fact
the primary features of modern GPS. While initially designed for use by
the military, GPS has been adapted for civilian use from commercial
airliners to personal in-car systems. So many creative uses for GPS
have been discovered by such a wide variety of users that, according to
an economic study by Allied Business Intelligence, estimated worldwide
sales of GPS equipment and services will grow to more than $34 billion
by 2006.

During his career at NRL he was awarded 11 patents. Major awards
include: The Distinguished Civilian Service Award (1960); 1978, The
Institute of Navigation's Colonel Thomas L. Thurlow Navigation Award
"for outstanding contribution to the science of navigation for the year
1978" (1978); The Naval Space Surveillance Center established the Roger
L. Easton Science and Engineering Award to mark the 30th anniversary of
the Naval Space Surveillance System (1991); National Aeronautic
Association's 1992 Robert J. Collier Trophy presented to the GPS Team
composed of NRL, USAF, Aerospace Corp., Rockwell International and IBM
Federal Systems "for the most significant development for safe and
efficient navigation and surveillance of air and spacecraft since the
introduction of radio navigation 50 years ago" (1993); The Naval
Research Laboratory established the Roger L. Easton Award for
Engineering Excellence "in recognition of the multiple contributions in
engineering excellence achieved at NRL by and under the leadership of
Roger Easton" (1995); Induction by GPS Joint Program Office into GPS
Hall of Fame "for his overwhelming contributions to engineering
applications in navigation satellite technology [that] have made GPS a
reality" (1996); and, The American Philosophical Society, Magellanic
Premium for Navigation "for development of the Global Positioning
System" (1997).

Two years after leaving Federal service in 1980 and retiring to Canaan,
New Hampshire, he was elected to two consecutive terms in the State
Assembly, ran for Governor in 1986, and served three terms on the Board
of the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative.

The National Medal of Technology is the highest honor awarded by the
President of the United States to America's leading innovators.
Established by an act of Congress in 1980, the Medal of Technology was
first awarded in 1985. The Medal is given annually to individuals,
teams, and/or companies/divisions for their outstanding contributions
to the Nation's economic, environmental and social well-being through
the development and commercialization of technology products, processes
and concepts; technological innovation; and development of the Nation's
technological manpower. The purpose of the National Medal of Technology
is to recognize those who have made lasting contributions to America's
competitiveness, standard of living, and quality of life through
technological innovation, and to recognize those who have made
substantial contributions to strengthening the Nation's technological
workforce. By highlighting the national importance of technological
innovation, the Medal also seeks to inspire future generations of
Americans to prepare for and pursue technical careers to keep America
at the forefront of global technology and economic leadership.