Draft:Gerald W. Johnson

Dr. Gerald W. Johnson is an American cartographer, surveyor, navigator, and Professor Emeritus of Civil Engineering at the University of Minnesota. He is known for applying and advancing, in a pre-digital era, techniques that allowed surveying and mapping to be conducted in challenging-to-harsh field conditions. These projects centered on navigating for expeditions to the Arctic (before GPS was available for civilian use) and multiple seasons/locations of developing balloon and bipod photography techniques and technology for archeology projects (before drones were available widely). He has taught and written about these topics extensively.

Johnson was born on October 31st, 1932 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In 1955, he graduated from Purdue University with a B.S. in Civil Engineering. In 1960, he earned a M.S. from the Institute of Geodesy, Photogrammetry, and Cartography at The Ohio State University. After receiving his M.S., Johnson acted as a Field Service Engineer for Boeing in Seattle, Washington, where he worked on flight testing for the BOMARC missile. In 1961, he joined the System Development Corporation, serving as a Programmer Analyst and Programming Group Leader for the Duluth Sector of the U.S. Air Force SAGE Air Defense System. In 1965, he became an instructor at the University of Minnesota, and, after receiving his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1969, he joined the University of Minnesota's Civil Engineering faculty full time as an Assistant Professor and later as an Associate Professor. In 2004, Johnson retired and was appointed Professor Emeritus at the University of Minnesota.

In the summer of 1967, Johnson traversed northern Greenland as part of a research project called Blue Ice. Organized by the Arctic Institute of North America (AINA), Blue Ice (66-67), sought to measure seismic activity through the ice cap in order to monitor nuclear testing by the USSR.

During the portion of that expedition known as Blue Trek, Johnson used solar observations to record the latitude and longitude of points between Camp Century and Inge Lehmann Station where researchers were tracking seismic noise levels. He also contributed to the report "Greenland Ice Cap Project Studies Blue Ice," published after the declassification of Blue Ice in 1968.

In August and September of 1968, Johnson participated in Project Nord, an expedition sponsored by the AINA and designed to correct mapping errors in northern Greenland. He rode on small aircraft to observe and photograph the areas around Cape Morris Jesup and Kaffeklubben Island, and he used both astronavigation and satellite navigation to map points in northern Greenland to determine its exact size. Johnson, along with Robert Lillestrand, authored the report, "Project Nord-1968," which concluded that northern Greenland was about 2,500 nautical miles larger than previously calculated.

In the spring of 1979, Johnson joined the Lomonosov Ridge Experiment (LOREX), in which the Canadian Department of Energy, Mines, and Resources (EMR) investigated the nature, location, and origin of the Lomonosov Ridge, a mountain range beneath the Arctic Ocean. He was one of sixty researchers who worked on the project over three months spent near the North Pole (including one trip to the North Pole itself). He used astronavigation to determine the latitude and longitude of his station on the ice cap as it travelled over the Lomonosov Ridge, so researchers could develop a density model for these submarine mountains.

In 1980, 1982, and 1984, Johnson made extended trips to the Barnes Ice Cap Project on Baffin Island in Nunavut, Canada. The project was a 15-year study of the mass balance, velocity, and surface profile of the ice cap. The goal of the final three years was to survey and update the position, latitude, and longitude of each of the 43 control points along a 10-kilometer line that extended from a fixed point just beyond the edge of the ice cap to the high point of the south dome. The project determined that the ice cap melted in some areas yet grew in others, morphing in shape depending on conditions in the Canadian Arctic.

Johnson detailed these expeditions in his series Beyond the Edge. In a documentary about the making of this series, "Exploring Empty Spaces: The Writing of Beyond the Edge," Johnson was asked to convey the feeling of visiting the Arctic for the first time. He explained, "It's hard to describe because you have nothing in your experience to which you can relate it. When you set foot on the Ice Cap, look in all directions, north, south, east, or west, and see nothing but a flat, featureless surface, you begin to realize its immense grandeur..."

Overlapping with his work in the Arctic, Johnson advanced and applied the use of both balloon and bipod photography to archaeology and paleontology field work. Between 1975 and 1999, this work took him to sites in North America, South America, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.

Building on work by architect Julian Whittlesey, Johnson used hydrogen-filled balloons, approximately 3 meters in diameter, to lift 35mm and medium-format cameras to altitudes that ranged from 30-300 meters. Hydrogen was used because it was a common industrial by-product and readily available in most parts of the world. The balloon, gimbal, and camera equipment were relatively easy to transport on passenger airlines and by automobile, creating a unique and affordable option for obtaining vertical aerial documentation of archaeological sites.

To compliment the low-to-mid-altitude photography of the balloon rig, Johnson made use of a bipod system. Using two metal legs that extended to various lengths, a camera was lifted to a height of 3-4 meters. The system was also used to shoot stereo pairs (the result was not unlike that of the commonly known View-Master). The bipod was capable of being broken down to a size that allowed it to be transported by automobile and/or shipped commercially. Notable projects involving balloon photography include the Naukratis Project (Egypt), the Phokis Doris Project (Greece), and Cerro Pintados (Chile). Another application of the bipod system was photographing part of the excavation, by Dr. Jack Horner, of the T. rex that is currently displayed at the Smithsonian.

In addition to geographical mapping, Johnson has also participated in facial mapping. He helped develop a process for physicians to map changes on human faces after undergoing facial reconstruction surgery. This project was undertaken in association with the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry.

In 1969, Johnson was elected to the Explorers Club.

In 1991, the Minnesota Student Association awarded Johnson the "Gordon L. Starr Faculty/Staff Outstanding Contribution Award" for his service to the University of Minnesota community.

In 1992, Johnson received the "Bonestroo, Anderlik, and Associates Award" for "demonstrated interest and commitment to undergraduate students" at the University of Minnesota.

Also in 1992, Johnson was selected as the "Technology Outstanding Professor" in the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Minnesota.

Johnson served as the President of the Minnesota Section of the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing.

Johnson is an honorary member of the Minnesota Society of Professional Surveyors.

Johnson, Gerald W. (2011). Beyond the Edge: The Search for Ultima Thule, the Northernmost Land on Earth. Bascom Hill Publishing Group. ISBN-13: 978-1-935098-16-4.

Johnson, Gerald W. (2016). Beyond the Edge, Volume II: Accounts of Historic, Significant, and Little-Known Expeditions on the Greenland Ice Cap. Mill City Press. ISBN-13: 978-1-63413-762-1.

Johnson, Gerald W. (2020). Beyond the Edge, Volume III: Historic Stories of Polar Navigation. Thule Publishing. ISBN: 978-1-7350857-0-8.