Guide to the Qian Xuesen Papers
Also known as Hsue-Shen Tsien Papers
Penelope Neder-Muro
California Institute of Technology Archives and Special Collections
2022
1200 East California Blvd.
MC B215-74
Pasadena, California 91125
Business Number: (626) 395-2704
archives@caltech.edu
Contributing Institution:
California Institute of Technology Archives and Special Collections
Title: Qian Xuesen Papers
Creator:
Qian, Xuesen (1911-2009)
Identifier/Call Number: QianX
Physical Description:
1.5 linear feet
3 boxes
Date (inclusive): 1946-1954
Language of Material:
English , Chinese .
Biographical / Historical
Qian Xuesen (Tsien Hsue-shen) arrived at Caltech in 1936 as a grad student of Theodore von
Kármán, earning his PhD in 1939 in aeronautics. With Frank Malina, he was involved with the
Suicide Squad, whose research secured military funding to establish the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory (JPL). He was hired at Caltech as the Robert H. Goddard Professor of Jet
Propulsion in 1949. After accusations of communist party affiliation, which resulted in
house arrest and losing his U.S. government security clearance, he left the United States
for China in 1955.
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research. Please contact the Archives to view the collection in
the Archives reading room. The collection has not been digitized.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright has not have been assigned to the California Institute of Technology Archives.
All requests for permission to publish from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the
Caltech Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the California Institute
of Technology Archives as the owner of the physical items and, unless explicitly stated
otherwise, is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which
must also be obtained by the reader
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Qian papers were included with the Frank E. Marble papers donation. They were
discovered while processing the Marble papers.
Processing Information
The collection was processed in 2016 with the Frank E. Marble papers, originally listed as
boxes 37-39. The Archives decided in an effort to increase discoverability and to highlight
individual provenance, the Qian portion was separated into its own collection in 2022.
Scope and Contents
Throughout the collection, and other collections in the Caltech Archives, Qian Xuesen is
referred to as H.S. Tsien or Tsien. The Qian papers contain administrative files,
correspondence, and research performed during Qian's time at Caltech.
Arrangement
The Qian papers were kept in mostly original order, which is alphabetical order by folder
title.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Aeronautical engineers
California Institute of Technology -- Alumni and alumnae
Manuscript Collection
box 1, folder 1
A: correspondence
1947-1950
box 3, folder 15
Administrative correspondence and report
1951-1956
box 1, folder 2
Aerojet consulting (1 of 2)
1947-1950
box 1, folder 3
Aerojet consulting (2 of 2)
1947-1950
box 1, folder 4
American Academy of Art and Sciences
1949
box 1, folder 5
American Rocket Society correspondence
1949 August - 1950 June
box 1, folder 6
American Society of Mechanical Engineers
1949-1950
box 1, folder 7
Applied Mechanics reviews correspondence
1946-1950
box 1, folder 8
B: correspondence
1947-1950
box 1, folder 9
C: correspondence
1947-1950
box 1, folder 10
Courses, schedules, and topics
1951-1954
undated
box 1, folder 11
D: correspondence
1949-1950
box 1, folder 12
E-F: correspondence
1947-1950
box 1, folder 13
The Equations of Gas Dynamics
1951
box 1, folder 14
G: correspondence
1947-1950
box 1, folder 15
H: correspondence
1947-1950
box 1, folder 16
Institute of the Aeronautical Sciences
1947-1950
box 1, folder 17
Jet Propulsion Center administrative
1949-1950
box 1, folder 18
Journal of Mathematics and Physics
1946 December 18 - 1947 September 30
box 1, folder 19
K: correspondence
1949-1950
box 2, folder 1
L: correspondence
1947-1950
box 2, folder 2
Lecture Notes on Applications of Jet Propulsion Power Plants (J.P.
220)
1951-1952
box 2, folder 3
Long Range Rockets
undated
box 2, folder 4
M: correspondence
1946-1950
box 2, folder 5
Manuscript of notes
1951-1953
box 2, folder 6
Mathematical reviews
1946-1950
box 2, folder 7
Meetings and correspondence
1951-1952
box 2, folder 8
Miscellaneous correspondence
1946-1947
1950
1952
box 2, folder 10
Notes on the Aerodynamics of Compressible Fluids, original manuscript (1 of
2)
1948
box 3, folder 1
Notes on the Aerodynamics of Compressible Fluids, original manuscript (2 of
2)
1948
box 3, folder 2
O: correspondence
1949-1950
box 3, folder 3
P: correspondence
1949-1950
box 3, folder 4
Personnel security clearance forms and correspondence
1948-1949
box 3, folder 5
Publishing correspondence
1946-1947
1949
box 3, folder 6
Quarterly of Applied Mathematics
1946-1950
box 3, folder 7
R: correspondence
1948-1950
box 3, folder 8
S: correspondence
1946-1950
box 3, folder 9
Super Aerodynamic Wind Tunnels correspondence
1947
box 3, folder 10
T: correspondence
1947
1949-1950
box 3, folder 11
Tsien correspondence and reports
1947
1952-1953
undated
box 3, folder 12
W: correspondence
1947-1950
box 3, folder 13
Wind Tunnel Design consulting
1947
