Walter Morrow receives Outstanding Public Service Award

Walter E. Morrow, director of MIT Lincoln Laboratory from 1977 to 1998, was honored by the Department of Defense (DoD) with its Outstanding Public Service Award.

Morrow was cited by the DoD for his "exceptionally outstanding public service as Member and Senior Fellow of the Defense Science Board, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (Acquisition, Technology & Logistics), from January 1987 to September 2009."

During his tenure on the Defense Science Board, Morrow led 11 task forces and summer studies, many of which have been used in guiding the direction of defense acquisition and in determining critical DoD investments. He was commended for his broad understanding of national security issues and his ability to access the best science and technical advice, resulting in balanced and thorough recommendations.

Morrow joined Lincoln Laboratory in 1951 and, in 1952, devised what was probably the world's first transistor flip-flop. He was active in the early research and development of ionospheric and tropospheric communication techniques. Included among his many achievements are advances in orbital scatter communication, orbital dipole experimentation, communication satellites, lunar and planetary radar studies, and a patent for a synchronous satellite. He also pursued research in electric power plants using electrolytic cell-fuel cell combinations. Prior to his appointment as director of Lincoln Laboratory, Morrow served as head of the Communications Division and both assistant and associate director of the laboratory. He currently is a director emeritus.

Morrow has served on many advisory committees, notably on the Chief of Naval Operations Executive Panel, the U.S. Air Force Scientific Advisory Board, and the NASA Advisory Council. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Edwin Howard Armstrong Achievement Award from the IEEE Communications Society and the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association Medal of Merit Award. He holds SB and SM degrees in electrical engineering from MIT.