Bradford and Barbara Washburn, the married couple who pioneered aerial photography and led mapping expeditions to the top of Mt. Everest and the bottom of the Grand Canyon, will speak about their adventures Friday, April 5 at 6 p.m. in Room 10- 250.
Brad and Barbara, married for 61 years, are legendary explorers, mountaineers and cartographers. They have led mapping expeditions and pioneered aerial photography, beginning with early surveys of Mount McKinley from the open door of a ski plane in the 1930s. Definitive maps of the Grand Canyon and Mount Washington are among their achievements.
Under the guidance of Brad Washburn as director, Boston's Museum of Science became the progenitor of the modern science museum devoted to public curiosity and young people. It was the first museum in the world to bring natural history, physical and medical sciences, and a planetarium together under one roof.
Barbara Washburn, a veteran of countless major ascents and wilderness trips, is the first woman to climb Mount McKinley.
In 1998, the Washburns shared the National Geographic Society's Centennial Award for a lifetime of exploration, discovery and cartography, one of countless awards and honorary degrees they received for their inspiring achievements and their commitment to science and exploration.
Students, families, faculty, staff and friends of MIT are invited to attend the Friday evening lecture.
A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on April 3, 2002.
