The Rand History Project Interviews constitute one of several oral history projects conducted within the National Air and Space Musuem's Department of Space History. The principal investigator for this project was Martin Collins and the following individuals were interviewed: Bruno Augenstein, Robert Bacher (with Lee DuBridge), Edward Barlow, Robert Belzer, Paul Blasingame, Edward Bowles, Frank Collbohm, Merton Davies, Richard Frick, Lawrence Henderson, Charles Hitch, Amrom Katz, Scott King, Burt Klein, David Novick, Malcolm Palmatier, Ernst Plessett, Edward Quade, Arthur Raymond, Ben Rumph, Robert Salter, Bernard Schriever, Gustave Shubert, Robert Specht, Hans Speier, George Tanham, Crawford Thompson, and Albert Wohlstetter.
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of the compact audio cassettes and transcripts for the Rand History Project interviews, which is a dual institutional study of the RAND Corporation and its military sponsor, the Air Force. This collection covers the period 1945 though the early 1960s and consists of 104 hours of interviews with 29 individuals. The RAND interviews were conceived as another angle of inquiry on the relations between expert knowledge and the military in the early Cold War. RAND drew together engineers, scientists, and mathematicians whose specialties were oriented toward military hardware design and the physical sciences and sociologists, political scientists, economists, psychologists, and other social science and humanities specialists. All were organized within a single institution to study the problem of warfare in the cold War, especially from the perspective of the Air Force.
Arrangement:
The RAND History Project Interviews are arranged alphabetically by interviewee. Series I (boxes 1-9) contains interviews on audio cassette tapes. Series II (boxes 10-12) contains the transcripts.
Biographical/Historical note:
This collection contains the interviews for the RAND History Project Interviews. These interviews explore the non-profit research firm's efforts to study the various problems of U.S. national security during the Cold War, in particular, from the perspective of the U.S. Air force (USAF). RAND brought together physical scientists, political scientists, sociologists, engineers and mathematicians and organized them within this single institution to pursue such research efforts. The RAND Project constitutes one of a number of oral history endeavors conducted by the National Air and Space Museum's (NASM) Department of Space History. The principal (though, by no means the only) interviewer for this project was Martin Collins, and the interview set consists of 104 hours of interviews with 38 individuals. The following people were interviewed for this project: Bruno Augenstein, Robert Bacher (with Lee DuBridge), Edward Barlow, Robert Belzer, Paul Blasingame, Edward Bowles, Charles Carey, Frank Collbohm, Merton Davies, Robert Davis, James Digby, Gene Fisher, Richard Frick, Olaf Helmer, Lawrence Henderson, Charles Hitch, Victor Jackson, Amrom Katz, Scott King, Burt Klein, Charles Lindblom, Hugh Miser, David Novick, Malcolm Palmatier, Ernst Plessett, Edward Quade, Arthur Raymond, Ben Rumph, Robert Salter, Bernard Schriever, Lloyd Shapley, Gustave Shubert, Robert Specht, Hans Speier, George Tanham, Crawford Thompson, and Albert Wohlstetter.
Related Materials:
Similar materials, specifically a series of videohistories on the same topic, are housed in the Smithsonian Institution Archives in the The Research and Development (RAND) Corporation Interviews, local collection number SIA 9536.
Provenance:
Department of Space History, NASM, Transfer, 1999, NASM.1999.0037, Varies.
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests.
This collection consists of Kallmann-Bijl's professional files, The material consists of correspondence, photographs, and newspaper and magazine articles, as well as research files covering her professional career (1949-68). The collection also includes copies of a number of Kallmann-Bijl's publications.
Scope and Content Note:
The collection contains copies of published and unpublished technical papers written by Dr. Kallmann-Bijl and other scientists dealing with the atmosphere and space exploration. There are also correspondence, awards, handwritten notes, calculations, newspaper articles, photographs, negatives and two slides. In addition, there is some material regarding Dr. Kallmann-Bijl's involvement with various professional organizations such as the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). This material includes copies of technical papers, programs and proceedings from these organizations.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as follows:
Series 1
Dr. Kallman-Bijl's personal papers
Biographical information
Series 2
Technical papers written by other scholars
Technical papers by unknown authors
Series 3
Organizations
Series 4
Miscellaneous materials
Biographical Note:
Dr. Hildegard Gertrud Helen Korf Kallmann-Bijl (1908-1968) was one of the most active pioneers in her examination of the physics of high atmosphere for the flight calculations of satellites. Before the first satellite reached its orbit, she had calculated a theoretical extrapolation of a model of the atmosphere which gave physicists a whole year's lead. The lifespan of the satellite could be predicted with the "Kallmann Atmosphere." Dr. Kallmann then made satellite measurements in relation to this atmospheric model, again to perfection. In 1961, she published a paper on the International Reference Atmosphere. With this foundation, she was able to forecast the landing spot with accurate precision for the astronauts and cosmonauts.
Hildegard Korf was born on September 18, 1908 in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. She was raised in the Catholic faith and educated in Catholic boarding schools. By 1929, Ms. Korf had earned the equivalent of her bachelor's degree at the University of Berlin, in Philosophy. She then enrolled in classes at the Technische Hoch Schule and majored in Metallurgy. While attending school, Ms. Korf volunteered her free time to work for the Journalism Institute at the University of Berlin where she gained experience in the editorial business. She later worked three years as an editor for the Deutscher Press Publishers.
While at the university, Hildegard Korf became friends with Julie Braun. It was she who developed in Ms. Korf a sensitivity for Goethe and the worlds of science and art. However, Julie Braun was forced to leave Germany because of her Jewish faith. The Korfs were not persecuted because they were considered three quarters "Aryan" and one quarter "non-Aryan," but by the 1930's the Korfs were not allowed full political freedom. Julie Braun left her estate in Zehlendorf in the care of Ms. Korf and her attorney, Curt Kallmann. There was little Curt Kallmann could do to protect Julie's property because he too was Jewish. One evening in 1939, Kallmann called Hildegard Korf and told her that the Gestapo was on their way to arrest him. With the help of Dr. Benno Hahn, Ms. Korf was able to get herself and Curt Kallmann out of Germany and on their way to Sweden. The Dresden Zeiss Works, where Ms. Korf had worked since 1936, asked her to return and "guaranteed" that no action would be taken against her, but Hildegard Korf felt that she had burned her bridge behind her and never went back to Germany. Kallman suffered a nervous breakdown while in Sweden, and since he was unable to travel alone to the United States, the American Council suggested to Ms. Korf that she travel as his wife. Because of laws existing then, it took an intervention of a Catholic Bishop in Sweden to bring about their marriage. They made the journey to America and their marriage lasted until 1958. Dr. Hildegard Kallmann divorced Curt Kallman but continued to support him until her death.
Dr. Hildegard Kallmann later married Jan Bijl, a Dutchman who had spent several years in a German concentration camp for acting as a Dutch courier while in exile in London. At the time of their marriage, Bijl was the Vice-President of Fokker Aviation at Shiphol near Amsterdam. Unfortunately, Jan Bijl died on December 9, 1963. Dr. Hildegard Kallmann-Bijl died suddenly of a heart attack on November 7, 1968.
Between the years of 1949-1963, Dr. Kallmann-Bijl published approximately 35 papers on ionospheric research, meteor research, high altitude research, solid propellant research, national space research and international space research. Dr. Kallmann-Bijl will always be remembered for her contributions in early astrophysical studies at national and international laboratories.
[Technical reports on flow and drag due to supersonic jets discharging upstream into a supersonic flow, competition in the procurement of military hard goods, hyperbolic navigation, fatigue, evaluation of transport aircraft, and the role of air transport in the harmonious evolution of underdeveloped countries]
