15S OCEAN SCIENCES AND NATIONAL SECURITY 



C. FEDERAL SPONSORSHIP OF ANTARCTIC RESEARCH 



Although no cUrect analogy exists insofar as research management 

 is concerned between the conduct of research in the Antarctic, and 

 that in the oceans the manner in which the Antarctic program has 

 been sponsored may be of interest. 



The most recent systematic exploration, beginning in 1956, was 

 coordinated with the much broader program of the International Geo- 

 physical Year (IGY). Actually, this is the third such scientific 

 undertaking and was preceded by international studies of the North 

 Polar regions in 1882-83 and 1932-33. The decision to hold a third 

 such period of observations after a lapse of 25 years is based, to a 

 great extent, on the intervening technical progress and the shift in 

 emphasis to the geophysical study of the entire Earth. The 1957-58 

 date, incidentally, for the IGY was chosen because it was expected 

 to coincide with the maximum in the 11-year sunspot cycle. 



Action which stimulated this program began in 1950 during informal 

 meetings of scientists in the United States. Formal proposals were 

 submitted to the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU), 

 which in 1952 set up a special committee to coordinate the IGY (July 

 1, 1957 to December 31, 1958). In brief, the organization of the Inter- 

 national Geophysical Year was a nongovernmental, although world- 

 wide, effort carried out by scientists through their national and inter- 

 national organizations. Participation by the United States with 

 ICSU has been through the National Academy of Sciences which, 

 beginning in 1953, formed a National Committee for the International 

 Geophysical Year (USNC-IGY) . Detailed planning for the Antarctic 

 program was begun in November 1953. 



The National Academy of Sciences participated and cooperated in 

 the planning and obtained special funds from the Congress for this 

 purpose, beginning in 1954, with a budget of $13 million. In 1955- 

 56, the Congress granted additional funds, primarily to mount the 

 Earth satellite program, for an estimated total of $39 million.^"* 



The Antarctic phase of the program was formed under the direction 

 of Dr. Laurence AI. Gould and Dr. Harry Wexler, who chaired the 

 particular Committee of USNC-IGY concerned. It worked closely 

 with the Department of Defense as well as polar operations groups 

 at the Weather Bureau and coordinated the U.S. activity with that 

 of other countries. 



At the conclusion of this IGY expedition, it was recognized that 

 further scientific observations in the polar regions should be continued 

 for scientific as well as poUtical reasons. Following recommendations 

 by the USNC-IGY, other scientific committees and by the House 

 Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, the National 

 Academy of Sciences formed a Committee on Polar Research, early 

 in 1958, to take over the full operations of the Antarctic program. 



Later in 1958, however, these same responsi])ilities were tlien trans- 

 ferred to the National Science Foundation which had establislied a 

 U.S. Ai-ctic program (USART). The program is now continuing 

 under NSF auspices. 



Some fm-ther details of the responsibilities of the dift'erent organi- 

 zations having cognizance of this Arctic research follow. In the first 



'"< "International Geophysical Year, the Arctic and Arilarctir." JI. Ropt. 134S of (he Committee ou 

 Interstate ancl Foreign Commerce, February 1958, p. 11. 



