engineering

Smithsonian Institution Shelter

Smithsonian Institution Shelter is a engineering topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Smithsonian Institution Shelter rather than just read about it. In short: The Smithsonian Institution Shelter, also known as the Mount Whitney Summit Shelter and the Mount Whitney Hut, was built in 1909 on the summit plateau of Mount Whitney, in the Sierra Nevada within Sequoia National Park, in California. It is the highest permanent building in the contiguous United States.

Key takeaways

Smithsonian Institution Shelter belongs to engineering; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Smithsonian Institution Shelter to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Smithsonian Institution Shelter from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Smithsonian Institution Shelter, also known as the Mount Whitney Summit Shelter and the Mount Whitney Hut, was built in 1909 on the summit plateau of Mount Whitney, in the Sierra Nevada within Sequoia National Park, in California. It is the highest permanent building in the contiguous United States.

History

The shelter at the summit was proposed after Byrd Surby, a U.S. Fisheries employee, was killed by lightning on the summit in 1904. It was built to house scientists who used the 14,505-foot (4,421 m) summit to study high-altitude phenomena in the era before sustained high-altitude flight became feasible. Samuel Pierpont Langley recommended this location to the government as a prime spot for an observatory following an expedition in the area. Plans to establish a summit shelter were made in 1908. In 1909, the site was utilized by Charles Greeley Abbot, the director of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, to conduct spectroscopic observations of Mars, aiming to investigate the presence of water on the planet. Other studies conducted at the site included observations of cosmic rays and nocturnal radiation. Although the structure was built in part as a shelter from storms, hikers are now warned against seeking shelter there during lightning storms.

Landmark Gustave F. Marsh, the builder of the summit trail, built the shelter with funding from the Smithsonian Institution, with assistance from the Lick Observatory. The mortared granite shelter comprises three rooms in a line with windows in each and doors in the north and south rooms. The roof is corrugated metal on a steel truss frame. The materials to build the shelter were carried to the summit by donkeys. The shelter has a log book that hikers may sign. The site has been considered for National Historic Landmark status, but has not been recommended for submission yet. However, in 1977 the Smithsonian Institution Shelter was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Smithsonian Institution Shelter

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Smithsonian Institution Shelter claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In engineering, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Smithsonian Institution Shelter before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Smithsonian Institution Shelter ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Smithsonian Institution Shelter

In research: Smithsonian Institution Shelter appears in engineering research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Smithsonian Institution Shelter in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Smithsonian Institution Shelter is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1909 establishments in California, Buildings and structures completed in 1909, Buildings and structures in Inyo County, California, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Smithsonian Institution Shelter outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Smithsonian Institution Shelter” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Smithsonian Institution Shelter in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Smithsonian Institution Shelter means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Smithsonian Institution Shelter out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Smithsonian Institution Shelter in simple terms?

Why does Smithsonian Institution Shelter matter?

Because it connects several engineering ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Smithsonian Institution Shelter?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Smithsonian Institution Shelter.