343 



new programs was the international years of the quiet sun (IYQS), 

 held from January 1, 1964, through December 31, 1965, which was 

 organized in much the same fashion as was the IGY but was geared 

 for a period of relatively quiet solar activity. 183 Another was the 

 upper mantle program, held in 1966-70. 164 Other new programs 

 included the global atmospheric research program, the international 

 geodynamics project, the international magnetosphere survey, 165 the 

 world weather watch, Indian Ocean research, and the international 

 biological program. Typical of the long-lasting effects of the IGY 

 is a reference appearing in a 1966 Senate report giving credit to the 

 IGY for providing impetus to the Soviet use of meteorological rockets 



that is still being felt. 166 ____ ___ 



It is worth noting 'Ii^ere^that the^ciehtitic leadershrp~ofTrTe lGY~was~ 

 largely composed o? a distinguished elite having considerable influence 

 within their respective countries. The IGY was effective in helping to 

 consolidate these various national elites into an international elite, 

 the influence of which has not been confined, over the years, to purely 

 scientific matters. Thus, the effect of the IGY on both international 

 science and political affairs upon which international science depends, 

 is doubtless still being felt in many areas today. 



SCIENCE IN FOREIGN AFFAIRS 



Given the wide-ranging character of the IGY in international 

 scientific affairs, it was natural for hopes and expectations to be raised 

 regarding the ability of scientists to function as international diplomats. 

 Their possible success in doing so is difficult to evaluate, but it seems 

 reasonable to assume at least a certain degree of effectiveness. Sullivan 

 has remarked that "The IGY's construction of scientific bridges across 

 political chasms coincided with a general growth of science's role in 

 diplomacy, as well as in national policymaking." He further points 

 out that "Russian academicians, many of them bearers of a venerable 

 humanistic tradition, had reestablished contact with the Western 

 World and had shown the extent — and limitations — of their influence 

 on Soviet policy." 167 George B. Kistiakowsky, science adviser to 

 President Eisenhower, has pointed out that, in terms of its potential 

 impact on political relations, participation in international scientific 

 activities like the IGY remains perhaps the most important role that 

 can be played by scientists today : 



For science is today one of the few common languages of mankind; it can 

 provide a basis for understanding and communication of ideas between people 

 that is independent of political boundaries and of ideologies. Science also provides 

 a sometimes unique opportunity for cooperative endeavors that can contribute 

 in a major way to the reduction of tension between nations and, more positively, 

 to close relations between the United States and other countries. 188 



Sullivan speculates that the IGY "could prove, from the perspective 

 of the future, to have been a turning point in the history of mankind — 



1U For a discussion of the IYQS, see: U.S., Congress, Senate, Committee on Aeronautical and Space 

 Sciences, International Cooperation and Organization for Outer Space, Document No. 66, 89th Cong., 1st sess., 

 Aug. 12, 1965, pp. 95-97, 375; and U.S., Congress, Senate, Committee on Aeronautical and Space Sciences, 

 Soviet Space Programs, 1968-66; Goals and Purposes, Achievements, Plans, and International Implications, 

 89th Cong., 2d sess., Dec. 30, 1966, pp. 627-633. 



1M National Academy of Sciences, Physics in Perspective, vol. I (Washington: National Academy of 

 Sciences, 1972, p. 569. 



"* NAS, Physics in Perspective, p. 509. 



»« Soviet Space Programs, 1962-66, p. 229. 



w Sullivan, Assault, pp. 415, 417. 



>« George B. Kistiakowsky, "Science and Foreign Affairs," Bulletin of the Atomic Scientist* 16 April 

 (1960), p. 115. 



