SACRED LEGACY ARCHIVES™

Samuel Langley

1834-08-22 – 1906-02-27

Samuel Pierpont Langley, pioneer aviator and 3rd Secretary of the Smithsonian Institute. taken during his tenure at the Smithsonian (1887-1906), and credited to him. It is in the public domain as produced by the United States Government, and also because published before 1923.Credit: Smithsonian Institution; credited to Langley himself by their archive.

Life & Legacy

Samuel Pierpont Langley (August 22, 1834 – February 27, 1906) was an American aviation pioneer, astronomer and physicist who invented the bolometer. He was the third secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and a professor of astronomy at the University of Pittsburgh, where he was the director of the Allegheny Observatory.

Occupation & Career

astronomer, aerospace engineer, astrophysicist, physicist, inventor, military flight engineer, aircraft pilot

Education

Boston English High School; Boston High School

Accomplishments, Inventions & Publications

Rumford Medal; Henry Draper Medal; Janssen Medal; Prix Jules Janssen; National Aviation Hall of Fame; Rumford Prize; John Scott Award; Royal Medal; Foreign Member of the Royal Society; Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society Te Apārangi

Legacy Highlights

Honors & Awards

Foreign Member of the Royal Society · Henry Draper Medal · Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society Te Apārangi · Janssen Medal · John Scott Award · National Aviation Hall of Fame · Prix Jules Janssen · Royal Medal · Rumford Medal · Rumford Prize

Employer

Allegheny Observatory · Harvard University · Smithsonian Institution · United States Naval Academy · University of Pittsburgh

Organizations & Memberships

Academy of Sciences of Turin · Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei · American Academy of Arts and Sciences · American Antiquarian Society · American Association for the Advancement of Science · American Philosophical Society · National Academy of Sciences · Royal Society of London · Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences