IN
MEMORIAM
ARCHIE W. STRAITON
Archie
Waugh Straiton, Ashbel Smith Professor Emeritus, was born in Arlington,
Texas, on August 27, 1907, and passed away on July 22, 2000, at the
age of 92.
He
received a BS in electrical engineering and an MS in physics from
The University of Texas at Austin in 1929 and 1931, respectively.
He then took a teaching job at Texas A&I College in Kingsville,
where he remained for four years. He returned to UT Austin to continue
his graduate study and received a PhD in physics in 1939.
In
1943, Dr. Straiton joined the faculty of the Department of Electrical
Engineering at UT Austin, where he had a distinguished career as teacher,
researcher, and administrator. In 1945 he founded the Electrical Engineering
Research Laboratory at the Balcones (now Pickle) Research Center and
served as its director until 1970. Over the years the center provided
the facilities for the funded research activities of many UT faculty,
and many undergraduate and graduate students.
Dr.
Straiton was a pioneer in the study of how radio waves interact with
various constituent gasses of the earth s atmosphere. His measurements
of the absorption of millimeter wave signals by oxygen and water vapor
are still considered to be the definitive database for the field of
millimeter wave propagation. These studies also led to the development
of specialized instruments that were used for both local and remote
sensing of the micrometeorological properties of the atmosphere itself.
Data obtained from these instruments provided a better understanding
of the dynamics of the wind, temperature, and humidity in the atmosphere.
Professor Straiton regularly published the results of his research
findings and was author or coauthor of well over 100 technical articles.
Dr.
Straiton was also responsible for the design and construction of a
16-foot parabolic antenna with reflector surface tolerances so small
that it could operate effectively as a radio telescope at millimeter
wave frequencies. At the time it was constructed this antenna had
the largest ratio of aperture diameter to surface tolerance of any
radio telescope in the world. In addition to being used to map the
radiation profiles of the sun and planets in our solar system, the
telescope was used at the McDonald Observatory site by radio astronomers
from all over the world in the discovery of many new millimeter radio
wave sources throughout the universe.
Dr.
Straiton s achievements as both a researcher and an educator received
national recognition when he was elected to membership in the National
Academy of Engineering. This was followed by his receiving the prestigious
Edison Medal from the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers
(IEEE), a professional organization of which he was also named a Fellow.
The citation for the Edison Medal reads for an outstanding career
in electrical engineering with significant contributions in the field
of radio propagation and astronomy, and in engineering education.
At the University he received a Presidential Citation and was named
a Distinguished Engineering Graduate.
Dr.
Straiton was an outstanding teacher at both the undergraduate and
graduate levels. During his tenure on the faculty many, if not most,
of the graduate students in electrical engineering took his popular
course on electromagnetic theory. He was extremely active in graduate
student supervision. At the time of his retirement he had supervised
more graduate students than any other faculty member in the department.
His teaching accomplishments were recognized by the University when
he received a lifetime teaching excellence award.
Dr.
Straiton gave unselfishly of his time to the University, the community,
and his profession. He served as chair of the Department of Electrical
Engineering, and was acting vice president and dean of the Graduate
School from 1972 to 1974. He served on numerous committees and advisory
boards of the IEEE and other organizations, including the National
Bureau of Standards and NASA. He was also a member of the board of
directors of Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio. In the community
he served as chairman of Austin s Energy Conservation Commission.
He was an active member of the University Area Kiwanis Club and served
a term as its president. Following his retirement he became an active
member and participant in LAMP, the acronym for Learning Activities
for Mature People.
Over
the years Dr. Straiton made substantial monetary donations to the
University. Following the 1983 death of his wife, Esther, Dr. Straiton
made a donation to establish an endowed presidential scholarship in
her memory. Several years later he donated funds to establish a second
endowed presidential scholarship in memory of his close associate
and research partner, Charles W. Tolbert. He also made donations to
the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Dr. Straiton was a humble and caring
man. He cared for his students, his faculty colleagues, and his
family. He was always calm and seemed never outwardly bothered
by any situation. He never raised his voice or said a bad word
about anyone. He gave with his whole heart and he did not expect
anything in return; he was the perfect example of a kind gentleman.
He will be greatly missed. At the time of his death, he was survived
by his two daughters, Janelle and Carolyn, and their husbands,
six grandchildren, and ten great-grandchildren.
<signed>
Larry R. Faulkner,
President
The University of Texas at Austin
<signed>
John R. Durbin, Secretary
The General Faculty
This memorial resolution was prepared by a special committee consisting
of Professors Francis X. Bostick (chair), Edward J. Powers, and
Baxter F. Womack.
