Edward Lee (2 March 1914 – 31 December 2001) was a British

scientist A scientist is a person who conducts Scientific method, scientific research to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, ...

inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...

, and

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

. He was the builder of Britain's first

infrared Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...

spectrometer A spectrometer () is a scientific instrument used to separate and measure spectral components of a physical phenomenon. Spectrometer is a broad term often used to describe instruments that measure a continuous variable of a phenomenon where the ...

, and later served as Director of the

Admiralty Research Laboratory The Admiralty Research Laboratory (ARL) was a research laboratory that supported the work of the UK Admiralty in Teddington, London, England from 1921 to 1977. History During the First World War, the Anti-Submarine Division of the Admiralty ha ...

Education

Lee was educated at

Consett Consett is a town in County Durham, England, about south-west of Newcastle upon Tyne. It had a population of 27,394 in 2001 and an estimate of 25,812 in 2019. History Consett sits high on the edge of the Pennines. Its' name originates in the ...

Grammar School. He earned an MSc from

Manchester University , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...

, where he was a protégé of scientists

Lawrence Bragg Sir William Lawrence Bragg, (31 March 1890 – 1 July 1971) was an Australian-born British physicist and X-ray crystallography, X-ray crystallographer, discoverer (1912) of Bragg's law, Bragg's law of X-ray diffraction, which is basic for t ...

and

Patrick Blackett Patrick Maynard Stuart Blackett, Baron Blackett (18 November 1897 – 13 July 1974) was a British experimental physicist known for his work on cloud chambers, cosmic rays, and paleomagnetism, winning the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1948. ...

. He was headhunted by Sir Gordon Sutherland to build an

at Pembroke College,

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, where he received his PhD.

Second World War career

At the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Lee had won a Commonwealth scholarship to continue his research at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

, but chose instead to remain in Britain to help with the war effort. In 1939, Lee joined the Scientific and Technical Staff at the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

's Admiralty Research Laboratory in

Teddington Teddington is a suburb in south-west London in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. In 2021, Teddington was named as the best place to live in London by ''The Sunday Times''. Historically in Middlesex, Teddington is situated on a long m ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

. He served in the Scientific Research and Experiment Department working on

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance (''ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, w ...

& Type F infrared rays recognition system.

Post-war career

From 1946-1948, Lee served on the staff of the

UK Ministry of Defence The Ministry of Defence (MOD or MoD) is the department responsible for implementing the defence policy set by His Majesty's Government, and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces. The MOD states that its principal objectives are to d ...

. In 1948, he joined the Admiralty's Department of Physical Research. In 1951, he returned to the Admiralty Research Laboratory, and in 1955 he was appointed Director of Operational Research, Royal Naval Scientific Service. In 1958, Lee was appointed Deputy Director of the National Physical Laboratory. In 1960, he was appointed Director, Stations and Industry Division, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research. In 1965, during

Harold Wilson James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, (11 March 1916 – 24 May 1995) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from October 1964 to June 1970, and again from March 1974 to April 1976. He ...

's ''"

white heat of technology James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx, (11 March 1916 – 24 May 1995) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from October 1964 to June 1970, and again from March 1974 to April 1976. He ...

"'', he became Deputy Controller (R) at the Ministry of Technology. In 1970 he was appointed Head of Research Services at the Department of Trade and Industry. From 1971 until his retirement in 1974, Lee served as Director of the

Retirement

In later life, Lee served as Governor of Hampton School, and Captain and President of the Home Park Golf Club at

Hampton Court Hampton Court Palace is a Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chief ...

External links

Obituary
- ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...

''
Royal Navy Civil Officers
- ''unithistories.com'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Edward 1914 births 2001 deaths Alumni of the University of Manchester 20th-century British physicists 20th-century British inventors Civil servants in the Admiralty Civil servants in the Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom) Members of HM Scientific Civil Service People educated at Consett Grammar School 20th-century Royal Navy personnel