Space Dynamics Laboratory (SDL) is a nonprofit government contractor owned by Utah State University. SDL is the sole University Affiliated Research Center (UARC) for the United States Missile Defense Agency, and is one of 15 UARCs in the nation for the United States Department of Defense. Together with Utah State University, SDL has completed over 420 successful space missions and deployed over 500 independent hardware and software systems into space.
SDL traces its origins to the earliest US space experiments using German V-2 rockets at the end of World War II. These experiments, which measured electron density in the upper atmosphere, led to the formation of the Upper Air Research Laboratory (UARL) at the University of Utah in 1948 and the Electro-Dynamics Laboratories (EDL) at Utah State University in 1959. The two laboratories frequently collaborated, and in 1970, UARL relocated to Utah State University. In 1982, the laboratories merged to form the Space Dynamics Laboratory.
Source:
This collection contains assorted photographs and negatives from the Space Dynamics Laboratory (SDL), primarily from the 1970s and 1980s. These images detail some of the project equipment, personnel, and locations related to SDL, and were likely collected from the office of Dr. Doran Baker, an SDL founder and professor of engineering at Utah State University. Also included are images related to Dr. Baker's other passion: the history of the western United States, particularly in areas of Cache Valley, Utah. The majority of these images are unidentified; more information will be added in the future.
No restrictions on access, except: not available through interlibrary loan.
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.
Permission to publish material from the Space Dynamics Laboratory photographs must be obtained from the
Doran Baker papers,
Space Dynamics Laboratory reports, contracts, and other materials,
While no documentation exists, these materials were likely donated to USU Special Collections by Doran Baker some time around March 2006.
This collection is divided into two series: images related to the Space Dynamics Laboratory, and images related to western US history.
13 sheets of negatives with accompanying proof sheets. The main subject of these negatives appear to be western US railroad construction in the latter half of the 19th century. Also included are images of Promontory, Utah, and the Golden Spike events of 1869.