The son of a botany professor, born in a small town in Colorado, made his way from Texas to Switzerland to Boston, and then ended up in Hawaii where he would accomplish amazing things.
Walter was serving in the Army Reserve when it was deployed to Kauai to guard the interisland radio system of Hawaii. It was then that he fell in love with the islands, the people and wanted to stay there for the rest of his life. Once he was discharged, he completed his Master’s degree, left for awhile to get his PHD, and then returned to University of Manoa as a faculty member of the physics department.
Walter loved the Haleakala, Mauna Kea, Mauna Loa and other mountains of the area and was curious about what physics research may be able to be done on them. He wanted to do solar studies. In order for a solar study to do well, there needs to be really clear skies. The Clarity that he found in the atmosphere for these mountains was exceptional. His work on them attracted the attention of many other astrologers.
His efforts resulted in observatories on Oahu, Haleakala, and Mauna Kea. While Walter will not take credit for it, he is the way that modern astronomy found its way to Hawaii. He eventually became the chair of the Astronomy and Physics department.
Over time, his eyesight began to fail, and he was not able to get a driver’s license anymore. He was not the type to stay inside, so he go a mo-ped. Recently, he was in an accident that took his life, but his legacy will live on not only through his contributions to the field, and to Hawaii, but to every mind that he influenced.