Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, and L. Sprague De Camp at the Navy Yard in 1944
Robert Heinlein was born in 1907, making him one of the older individuals during the United States’ entry into World War II. Isaac Asimov, a younger figure in science fiction, was born around 1920 and was at the prime age for military service. Despite their age differences, both Heinlein and Asimov played crucial roles in the war effort, stationed at the Naval Aviation Experimental Station in Philadelphia. By 1942, Heinlein had established himself as a leading sci-fi writer in America, while the 22-year-old Asimov, then a chemistry graduate student at Columbia, had already made a name for himself in the field. It was Heinlein who invited Asimov to contribute to military research by running a materials testing laboratory at the Yard.
Having previously been a Navy officer before being discharged due to illness, Heinlein eagerly embraced the chance to serve his country once more. During World War II, Heinlein provided significant input on how to integrate data from sonar, radar, and visual sightings, collaborating with his friend Cal Laning, a destroyer captain. Meanwhile, Asimov focused on material testing, particularly on creating dye markers for downed airmen at sea. One memorable creation was a patch of fluorescent chemicals that would form a visible marker around a person in distress, aiding search and rescue efforts.
Notably, testing these dye markers was one of the few occasions in Asimov’s life where he overcame his fear of flying. Both Heinlein and Asimov were part of the “Kamikaze Group,” a team exploring speculative military technologies like invisibility, death rays, force fields, and weather control. Their wartime experiences, as detailed in Paul Malmont’s novel The Astounding, the Amazing, and the Unknown, were both harrowing and imaginative.
Following the war, Asimov was drafted into the Army for nine months before resuming his academic studies and writing. Heinlein also returned to full-time writing and magazine publications, which propelled their careers into different trajectories. Heinlein’s work took on a more militaristic tone over the years, while Asimov’s focused on broader themes of human civilization. The influence of their wartime experiences on their literary works remains a subject of interest for science fiction scholars.
Related Content:
- Sci-Fi Icon Robert Heinlein Lists 5 Essential Rules for Making a Living as a Writer
- Isaac Asimov Recalls the Golden Age of Science Fiction (1937–1950)
- Sci-Fi Writer Robert Heinlein Imagines the Year 2000 in 1949, and Gets it Mostly Wrong
- X Minus One: Hear Classic Sci-Fi Radio Stories from Asimov, Heinlein, Bradbury & Dick
- The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction: 17,500 Entries on All Things Sci-Fi Are Now Free Online
- Read Hundreds of Free Sci-Fi Stories from Asimov, Lovecraft, Bradbury, Dick, Clarke & More
Based in Seoul, Colin Marshall writes and broadcasts on cities, language, and culture. His projects include the Substack newsletter Books on Cities and the book The Stateless City: a Walk through 21st-Century Los Angeles. Follow him on Twitter at @colinmarshall or on Facebook.
