Before World War II, he taught junior high schools in Mendham and Oradell, New Jersey.

Gordon served in the Army Air Corps (Private to captain) from 1941 to 1945, studying and teaching meteorology at New York University and experimenting with radar coverage under conditions of mirage and looming.

He oversaw the design of the radio telescope and its construction in the karst foothills just south of Arecibo, Puerto Rico.

He retired in 1986 to become Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Space Physics and Astronomy and of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Rice University.

[1] The William E. Gordon Papers range in date from 1947 to 1994, inclusive (bulk 1975–1990), and arranged in three series: Material in the collection includes publications and research reports (many of which concern findings from research conducted at the Arecibo Ionospheric Observatory in Puerto Rico), talks and lectures, reprints, office files, and alphabetical subject files, which include records of professional organizations and activities in which Dr. Gordon participated.