Jerry Chris Elliott High Eagle (born 1943) is a physicist and was one of the first Native Americans who worked at

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

. He is most known for his contributions as the lead retrofire officer during

Apollo 13 Apollo 13 (April 1117, 1970) was the seventh crewed mission in the Apollo space program and the third meant to land on the Moon. The craft was launched from Kennedy Space Center on April 11, 1970, but the lunar landing was aborted aft ...

, where his actions saved the lives of the three astronauts on board. Elliott's work awarded him the

Presidential Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award of the United States, along with the Congressional Gold Medal. It is an award bestowed by the president of the United States to recognize people who have made "an especially merito ...

, the highest civilian honor awarded by the President of the United States.

Early life

High Eagle, from the age of five, had a vision of assisting astronauts to get to the moon. While supported by some members in his family and community, he was faced with opposition due to his race. After graduating from

Northwest Classen High School Northwest Classen High School is a public high school serving students in grades 9–12 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. History Northwest Classen High School was built in 1955 to accommodate the growing population in the northwest corridor of Okla ...

, he was accepted into the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

at the age of 18. While in university, he faced a degree of culture shock, facing disrespect and misunderstandings towards him as a Native American. He faced racial discrimination from his professors, and was unable to pursue graduate studies due to the passing of his stepfather and an overall lack of funding. He received a degree in physics with a minor in mathematics, April, 1966, being the first indigenous native to obtain one from the University of Oklahoma, Department of Physics.

Career at NASA

Starting his space career early in the Gemini Program, Elliott joined NASA in April 1966 as a flight mission operations engineer, serving at the Mission Control Center in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, Texas. He was Program Staff Engineer at the NASA Headquarters in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan ...

during the Apollo–Soyuz Program. He served as a Senior Technical Manager in the Management Integration Office of the Space Station's Program Office. Elliott and his team provided ground support equipment and space hardware for

Skylab Skylab was the first United States space station, launched by NASA, occupied for about 24 weeks between May 1973 and February 1974. It was operated by three separate three-astronaut crews: Skylab 2, Skylab 3, and Skylab 4. Major operations in ...

, the United States' first space station. While at NASA, Elliott pushed for furthering telecommunications infrastructure between reservations. Implemented the American Indian Telecommunications Satellite Demonstration Project linked the All-Indian Pueblo Council and the

Crow Indian Reservation The Crow Indian Reservation is the homeland of the Crow Tribe. Established 1868, the reservation is located in parts of Big Horn County, Montana, Big Horn, Yellowstone County, Montana, Yellowstone, and Treasure County, Montana, Treasure counties ...

with the federal government at Washington, D.C. His testimony before

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

culminated in the establishment in the First Americans Commission for Telecommunications (FACT). During the Apollo program he held several important management and leadership positions including the lead Retrofire Officer on Apollo 13 mission, he was the only indigenous native person on the control team. He served on the mission control team during

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 (July 16–24, 1969) was the American spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC, an ...

's successful moon landing. Elliott played an instrumental role in computing the trajectory and successful recovery back to Earth during the events of

. His efforts during the events of the disaster awarded him the

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

for his role in saving the lives of the three endangered astronauts. Accomplishing his boyhood vision of landing men on the moon, Elliott continued work at NASA for a total of four decades,. Some of Elliott's personal papers during the Apollo era are held at the Oklahoma History Center.

Personal life

Elliott is fluent in the English, and proficient in Russian, Spanish, and Osage languages. His name "High Eagle" was given to him when he turned 41, by native elders. Elliott cites his mother and

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theory ...

as his personal heroes. He enjoys playing the guitar and Indian flute. His work in music has led to him performing in the

National Symphony Orchestra The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1930, its principal performing venue is the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. It also performs for the annual National Mem ...

in Washington, D.C. He has also played roles on the film ''

Houston, We've Got a Problem ''Houston, We've Got a Problem'' is a 1974 American made-for-television drama film about the Apollo 13 spaceflight, directed by Lawrence Doheny and starring Ed Nelson in the role of NASA Flight Director Gene Kranz. Technical and historical accu ...

'', where he played himself, along with an appearance on the television show ''

Walker, Texas Ranger ''Walker, Texas Ranger'' is an American action crime television series created by Leslie Greif and Paul Haggis. It was inspired by the film ''Lone Wolf McQuade'', with both this series and that film starring Chuck Norris as a member of the Texa ...

''. In 1977, he was a founder/incorporator of the

American Indian Science and Engineering Society The American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit professional association with the goal of substantially increasing American Indian, Alaskan Native, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, First Nation and other ...

, Inc., along with two other founders, George Thomas (Cherokee), and Alex Labadie (Osage). The society pursues further Native American involvement in the sciences. He is the founder and CEO of High Eagle Technologies, Inc, a native company dedicated to cancer research and treatment with patented technology he was awarded in 2019. Mr. Elliott authored the Congressional legislation for Native American Awareness Week, 1976, for the first historic week of observance for the American Indian in the history of the United States. The legislation was passed by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Gerald R. Ford.

Awards and recognition

*Cherokee Medal of Honor *Navajo Medal of Honor *

* Medal of Honor Award, highest national honor bestowed by The National Society of the

Daughters of the American Revolution The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) is a lineage-based membership service organization for women who are directly descended from a person involved in the United States' efforts towards independence. A non-profit group, they promote ...

, for high ethical conduct and contributions to humanity, 1991. * State of Tennessee Special Proclamation by Governor and Tennessee Legislature honoring meritorious achievements in science, music and contributions to humanity, February 7, 2007. * Ely Samuel Parker Award, highest honor bestowed by the American Indian Science & Engineering Society (AISES), Inc., for lifetime career achievements and community service. * Bausch and Lomb National Science Award. * Science and Engineering National Achievement Award, presented by the American Indian Art and Cultural Exchange, 1976. * National Chairperson, Native American Awareness Week, October 10-16, 1976. He authored congressional legislation signed by President Gerald R. Ford. * Bronze Halo Award by the Southern California Motion Picture Council for outstanding contributions to humanity, 1983. * Special Achievement Award by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Lewis Research Center (now Glenn Research Center), Cleveland, Ohio, for meritorious achievements, and exceptional contributions to research, planning, organization and conduct of responsibilities relating to space and technology programs. 1978. * Group Achievement Award by NASA Langley Research Center, 1981. * National Science Spectrum Trailblazer Award, 2006, for significant, quantifiable, personal impact on industry and their communities in maintaining a powerful position of influence regarding public policy. * Sequoyah Fellow Honor, American Indian Science & Engineering Society, 2003 * Teacher Award, presented by the American Indian Science & Engineering Society, Inc., 2004 * Science Spectrum Trailblazers Award, presented by Science Spectrum Magazine, 2006 * Oklahoma 2011 Indian Elder Distinguished Honoree, bestowed by the American Assoc. of Retired, for outstanding achievements/contributions to his tribe, community and state, 2011 * Poet Laurette, Nominated for distinction of State of Oklahoma, Poet Laurette, 2017 * NWC Hall of Fame, inducted November 1, 2019, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 2019 * Nominated for the Technical Excellence Award, American Indian Science & Engineering Society, Inc., 2020.

References

External links

Oral history interview transcript with Jerry C. Elliott-High Eagle on 2 October 2020, American Institute of Physics, Niels Bohr Library & Archives
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elliott, Jerry C. Cherokee Nation people (1794–1907) Osage_people Native American scientists NASA people Apollo 13 People from Oklahoma City Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients University of Oklahoma alumni 20th-century American physicists 1943 births Living people Scientists from Oklahoma Northwest Classen High School alumni