History Methods Themes Timeline Why It Matters About Read More
About

About The Author

The High Frontier Computing 1958 to 1982 project is being developed as a potential dissertation.

The Author

Noah Smith

This isn't a detached survey. Its author spent a quarter-century at the University of Texas at Austin — first a software developer on NASA Earth Science work, including Hubble Space Telescope astrometry, then an aerospace engineer at the Center for Space Research. That's the same institution, and much the same lineage of machines, the essay traces from the CDC 6600 to UTOPIA.

Numerical modeling, orbit determination, large-scale data — the through-line of a career is the through-line of the history. High Frontier Computing is an attempt to keep that world of code, machines, and mathematics before it slips from living memory.

Portrait of Noah Smith
Role
Data Scientist
Based in
Austin, Texas & Hamburg, Germany
Contact
noahhsmith@utexas.edu LinkedIn

Nearly four decades on the data wavefront.

Curriculum Vitae

Experience

Nov 2017 – Present

Data Scientist

Wood Mackenzie · Hamburg, Germany

Sep 2015 – Oct 2017

Data Scientist

Voipfuture GmbH · Hamburg, Germany

Sep 2014 – Aug 2015

Data Scientist

Ibeo Automotive Systems GmbH · Hamburg, Germany

Sep 2003 – Aug 2014

Aerospace Engineer

University of Texas at Austin, Center for Space Research · Austin, Texas

Orbit determination and space geodesy — the world of UTOPIA and satellite gravity modeling described in this project.

Sep 1989 – Aug 2003

Software Developer

University of Texas at Austin, NASA Earth Science · Austin, Texas

Numerical and database projects, including NASA Hubble Space Telescope astrometry.

Roughly 25 years at the University of Texas at Austin across the two UT roles.

Education

Education

2003 – 2012

Ph.D., Aerospace Engineering

The University of Texas at Austin

1987 – 1991

B.A., Astronomy

The University of Texas at Austin

Expertise

Skills & Recognition

Top Skills

Data Science Modeling Analytics

Languages

  • English — Native
  • German — Working

Honors & Awards

  • NASA Postdoctoral Fellowship
Selected Publications

Publications

Work in space geodesy and precision attitude determination on NASA's ICESat mission — the modern continuation of the orbit-determination work this project traces.

  1. 2017 Patel, Smith, Bae, Schutz. "Effect of sun shade performance on ICESat-2 laser reference sensor alignment estimation." AAS Advances in the Astronautical Sciences.
  2. 2014 Smith, Bae, Schutz. "Laser reference sensor alignment tracking and star observations." AIAA Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets.
  3. 2014 Smith, Bae, Schutz. "Laser reference sensor alignment estimation using star observations." AIAA Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets.
  4. 2014 Smith, Bae, Schutz. "Laser reference sensor alignment estimation using reference signal observations." AIAA Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets.
  5. 2013 Smith, Bae, Schutz. "NASA ICESat 2 pointing knowledge." NASA Technical Report.
  6. 2012 Bae, Smith, Schutz. "NASA ICESat 1 pointing knowledge." NASA Technical Report.
  7. 2011 Smith, Fowell, Bae, Schutz. "Improved star tracker instrument magnitude prediction from ICESat flight telemetry." AAS Advances in the Astronautical Sciences.
  8. 2010 Smith, Bae, Schutz. "Biased star tracker measurements of forty-nine stars from flight data." AIAA Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets.
  9. 2010 Smith, Bae, Schutz. "Forty-nine biased star positions from ICESat flight data." AAS Advances in the Astronautical Sciences.
  10. 2010 Bae, Smith, Schutz. "ICESat attitude and pointing correction using the laser reference sensor." AAS Advances in the Astronautical Sciences.
  11. 2009 Bae, Ricklefs, Smith, Schutz. "Time tag issues in the star tracker and gyro data for ICESat precision attitude determination." AAS Advances in the Astronautical Sciences.
  12. 2009 Fowell, Smith, Bae, Schutz. "Bad stars." AAS Advances in the Astronautical Sciences.
  13. 2008 Schutz, Bae, Smith, Sirota. "Precision orbit and attitude determination for ICESat." AAS Advances in the Astronautical Sciences.

Read the History

The essay and its summaries trace the code, machines, and mathematics of Texas computing from 1958 to 1982.

Back to Home Read the Summary