The Meinels: Aden and Marjorie

This story of Aden and Marjorie Meinel covers the dawn of modern ground and space large telescope astrophysics, space astronomy, and the rebirth of the nascent scientific/engineering field of modern optical sciences. Together they also established the firm engineering foundation for solar thermal energy production in use today. The scientific method requires the cycle: theory, prediction, observation and continuous revision to theory, more prediction, new observations & measurements, etc. In this paper we will review how the “observe and measure” phase of the scientific method cycle accelerated by Aden Meinel as a result of his WW2 military career, charismatic leadership, building an observatory for all astronomers, expanding the astronomy program at the U of A, creating a national center of excellence in the optical sciences and his inspirational collaborations at NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for generations of future explorers of the universe.