James R. Hansen

Dr. James R. Hansen is Professor Emeritus of History at Auburn University in Alabama. An expert in the history of science and technology, Hansen has written books and articles covering a wide variety of topics ranging from the early days of aviation, first nuclear fusion reactors, and Moon landings, to the environmental impact of golf courses. His prizewinning book, FIRST MAN (Simon & Schuster, 2005, 2012), the first and only authorized biography of Neil Armstrong, spent three weeks on the New York Times Bestseller list and garnered major book awards, including the American Astronautical Society's Prize for Astronautical Literature, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics' Outstanding Book Award, and CHOICE magazine's Outstanding Academic Book of 2006. A two-volume Japanese translation of FIRST MAN has been published, with translations into Chinese, Turkish, Croatian, Bulgaria, French, Spanish, and 20 other languages. His book A DIFFICULT PAR: ROBERT TRENT JONES SR. AND THE MAKING OF MODERN GOLF (Gotham Penguin, 2014) was awarded the Herbert Warren Wind Award by the United States Golf Association as the best golf book of the year. An internationally known expert on the history of golf architecture, Hansen has published numerous articles on the subject in golf magazines and given scholarly and public presentations on the history of golf course architecture in the United States, Canada, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Australia, and England. For the past 25 years he has been a golf course rater for Golfweek and serves on the magazine’s Best 100 advisory committee. An avid golfer since youth, Jim played college golf and was co-captain of his team for two years. Much of Hansen’s writing has focused on aerospace history. In 1995 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration nominated his book SPACEFLIGHT REVOLUTION for a Pulitzer Prize, the only time NASA has ever made such a nomination. His book FROM THE GROUND UP(1988) won the History Book Award of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. His scholarship has also been honored with the Robert H. Goddard Award from the National Space Club and certificates of distinction from the Air Force Historical Foundation. His books, THE BIRD IS ON THE WING(Texas A&M University Press) and THE WIND AND BEYOND (NASA) explore the role of aerodynamics in the progress of the airplane in America. The latter is a six-volume series prepared by Hansen and a team of his graduate students for NASA, three volumes of which have been published. In 2005 THE WIND AND BEYOND won the Society for the History of Technology's Eugene Ferguson Prize for Outstanding Reference Work. His 2009 book, TRUTH, LIES, AND O-RINGS: INSIDE THE SPACE SHUTTLE CHALLENGER ACCIDENT, co-authored with the late Allan J. McDonald, is considered by many the most authoritative account of the Challenger accident. Finishing up his work on the life of Neil Armstrong, Jim recently published two volumes DEAR NEIL ARMSTRONG: LETTERS TO NEIL ARMSTRONG and A RELUCTANT ICON. Both books were published by Purdue University, Neil’s alma mater. A native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, he graduated summa cum laude and with Honors from Indiana University-Purdue University at Fort Wayne. He earned his Ph.D. at The Ohio State University in 1981. Jim has taught history at Auburn University since 1986. Both his teaching and his scholarship have received numerous awards from the university including the Teaching Excellence Award in the Humanities, an Alumni Professorship, the Outstanding Teacher in the Core Curriculum, and the Office of the Vice President for Research's Creative Research Award. In 2005, he was inducted into the College of Liberal Arts' Academy of Teaching and Outstanding Scholars. He is Auburn's nominee for U.S. Professor of the Year for 2015. His biography of Neil Armstrong was adapted by Universal Studios in 2018 and made into an Academy Award-winning film, directed by Damien Chazelle and starring Ryan Gosling. Jim served as co-producer of the movie.