Albert A. Michelson:
U. S. NAVAL ACADEMY AND THE NAVY
President Ulysses S. Grant awarded Albert A. Michelson a special
appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy in 1869. During his four years
as a midshipman at the Academy, Michelson excelled in optics, heat
and climatology, and drawing. After his graduation in 1873 and two
years at sea, he returned to the Academy to become an instructor
in physics and chemistry, from 1875 to 1879. During this time in
Annapolis he conducted his first experiments of the velocity of
light, as part of a class demonstration in 1877.
Although Michelson resigned from the Navy in 1881 to pursue a career
in physics, he remained dedicated to and involved with the Navy.
From 1891 to 1919, Michelson designed for the Bureau of Ordnance
optical range-finders and ear protectors, which were patented and
later used for ear protection during gunfire. From 1895-1900, he
served as commander of the First Battalion of the Illinois Naval
Reserve, which he helped organize. During World War I, Michelson
was the head of the scientific research committee at the University
of Chicago and served as a lieutenant commander with the Bureau
of Ordnance as a scientific consultant. Moreover, Michelson enrolled
in the United States Naval Reserve Force on June 28, 1918 for four
years. In May 1919, Michelson was promoted to Commander in the Naval
Coast Defense Reserve Class 4.
|
 |
Letter from A. A. Michelson to Major Millikan, November
6, 1917 regarding Michelson's ear protectors. [621K]
|
|
|
Cadet Midshipman Albert A. Michelson in 1873, U. S. Naval Academy.[635K]
One of Michelson's five patents for optical range -finders, patented
on May 11, 1909, designed for the Bureau of Ordnance. [1190K]
During World War I, Michelson was on active duty in the U. S. Navy,
n.d. [633K]
|
|