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wave propagation, under widely varying conditions 

 of climate and terrain. 



3. Measurement of the reflection coefficients of 



land and sea surfaces over a wide range of angles of 

 incidence, for the entire radar frequency spectrum, 

 with a view to immediate application to radar 

 coverage problems in the services. 



4. Establishment in the immediate future of an 

 agency which could perform the following functions: 



a. Serve as a clearing house for all microwave 

 propagat on information in the United States 

 and organize future conferences of represen- 

 tatives of agencies working in the propaga- 

 tion field. 



b. Review the available knowledge from time 

 to time and recommend any necessary redis- 

 tributions of effort by investigating bodies. 



c. Act as responsible agency for the entire 

 United States propagation investigation in 

 dealing with groups working in similar fields 

 in the United Kingdom and other Allied 

 countries. 



Following this conference, Dr. I. I. Rabi, Head of 

 the Research Division of the Massachusetts Institute 

 of Technology Radiation Laboratory, suggested that 

 Division 14 of NDRC take the initiative in setting 

 up a microwave propagation committee to organize 

 the more adequate program outlined :n paragraph 4 

 of the preliminary conference's conclusions. During 

 a subsequent consultation between Dr. Compton and 

 Dr. Ralph Bown, Radio Research Director of the 

 Bell Telephone Laboratories, Dr. Burrows was sug- 

 gested as chairman of the proposed NDRC Commit- 

 tee on Propagation. Dr. Burrows was chairman 

 of the Radio Wave Propagation Committee of the 

 Institute of Radio Engineers and had made numerous 

 contributions to the knowledge of propagation. 



Under the NDRC Committee on Propagation a 

 nation-wide program was proposed, to coordinate 

 the work of such investigative bodies as the Radia- 

 tion Laboratory, Bureau of Standards, Weather 

 Bureau, various Army and Navy agencies, certain 

 institutions cooperating with Division 13 of NDRC 

 on direction finder problems, the Wave Propagation 

 Committee of the Joint Communications Board 

 [JCB], and such other bodies as the Committee on 

 Propagation, after its official organization, might find 

 helpful in furthering its program. 



On August 24, 1943, Dr. Burrows agreed to accept 

 the chairmanship of the proposed Committee and at 

 once began the work of organization and of surveying 



the activities of groups in the United States already 

 engaged in propagation studies. 



The initial membership of the Committee as 

 proposed by Dr. Burrows, after consultation with the 

 men concerned and heads of the NDRC Divisions 

 directly interested, was as follows: 



Dr. J. A. Stratton, Office of the Secretary of War. 



Dr. J. H. Dellinger, National Bureau of Stand- 

 ards. (Chief of Section 13.2 and representing Divi- 

 sion 13, NDRC.) 



Dr. H. H. Beverage, Radio Corporation of Amer- 

 ica (representing Division 15, NDRC). 



D. E. Kerr, Radiation Laboratory, MIT (repre- 

 senting Division 14, NDRC). 



A recommendation for these appointments was 

 submitted to Dr. James B. Conant on October 5, 

 1943. The Committee on Propagation was originally 

 planned to be a part of Division 14, but shortly after 

 its formation it was raised to the level of an NDRC 

 committee, because the broadened scope of its direc- 

 tive, as issued in November, clearly took in aspects 

 of the propagation problem outside the field of 

 Division 14 alone. Prior to this crystallization of the 

 Committee personnel and while the group was in 

 the formative stage and still under the jurisdiction 

 of Division 14, Professor S. S. Attwood of the 

 University of Michigan also served as a member. 

 Later Prof. Attwood was detached from the Commit- 

 tee to direct the Columbia University Division of 

 War Research Wave Propagation Group [CUDWR- 

 WPG], which was responsible under a contract to the 

 Committee for the preparation of reports. This and 

 other contracts are discussed in Chapter 2. 



During the closing months of 1944, Dr. Stratton 

 resigned from membership. Shortly thereafter the 

 membership was enlarged to include Dr. T. J. 

 Carroll of the War Department and (somewhat later) 

 M. Katzin of the Naval Research Laboratory. 



During the first year the Committee operated 

 without the services of a technical aide. Late in the 

 summer of 1944, Dr. A. F. Murray and S. W. Thomas 

 served temporarily in this capacity until a full-time 

 aide could be obtained. This post was filled by R. J. 

 Hearon from December 1944 until January 1946. 



The Committee retained the services of Dr. C. E. 

 Buell, Chief Meteorologist of American Air Lines, 

 who served as a consultant from March 15, 1944. 

 Following completion of his work as director of the 

 CUDWR-WPG, in October 1945, Prof. Attwood was 

 made a consultant to the Committee. 



