Taylor Howard

H. Taylor Howard (1932 - 2002) was an American scientist and radio engineer. Howard is considered to be the "father of satellite television," as he was the first person to achieve amateur reception of TV signals distributed via satellites. In 1976 he demonstrated the possibility of receiving of TV signal from a communication satellite direct to the home of an ordinary householder, using a home-made satellite dish (actually a converted military surplus radar dish) and a self-designed and built analog satellite receiver. He soon brought satellite dishes to the homes of millions of consumers, when he co-founded San Jose, CA-based Chaparral Communications.

Howard was a professor emeritus electrical engineering at Stanford University, and his career there spanned more than 50 years.

Howard died in 2002 when the plane that he was piloting crashed shortly after takeoff.

References

* [http://academiccouncil.stanford.edu/memorial_resolutions/Taylor_Howard_SenD5680.pdf Stanford University Memorial Resolution for H. Taylor Howard]
* [http://www.thehistoryof.net/history-of-satellite-tv.html Article: The History of Satellite Television]