International Polar Year 2007–2008 - WMO

gram management nor complex finances besides the
national program budgets, and political sensitivities
of the Cold War era were always on IGY organizers’
mind (Good 2010; Olson Belanger 2010).
CSAGI held six general meetings or ‘Assemblies’
during the IGY planning and implementation phase:
CSAGI-1 in July 1953 (Brussels), CSAGI-2 in October 1954
(Rome), CSAGI-3 in September 1955 (Brussels), CSAGI-4
in September 1956 (Barcelona), CSAGI-5 in July-August
1958 (Moscow) and CSAGI-6 in May 1959 (Paris). Except
for the first and the last meeting, all Assemblies were
organized as large conferences with parallel sessions
and plenaries. CSAGI also organized four mediumsize
conferences on Antarctic research in 1955, 1956
and 1957; one Arctic conference in 1956; five regional
conferences for Western Hemisphere, Eastern Europe,
Eurasia, Africa and Western Pacific; and meetings of
four CSAGI Working Groups: on Oceanography (1957),
Nuclear Radiation (1957), World Data Centers (1957)
and Rockets and Satellites (1957–Nicolet, 1959).
Also, at CSAGI-2 in 1954, the delegates established
a special body, the Advisory Council of IGY, composed
of one delegate, not a CSAGI member, from each
national IGY committee. The purpose of the Council,
chaired by German geophysicist Julius Bartels, was
to discuss and express views on general IGY matters
besides the scientific program and to facilitate bilateral
arrangements for mutual assistance (Chapman, 1960).
IGY officially lasted for 18 months, from 1 July 1957
to 31 December 1958. An estimated 60,000 people, of
whom 10,000 were scientists, took part in its various
activities (Elzinga, 2009). 30 Major preparatory and
logistical steps were undertaken at least two years
prior to the launch date, such as the construction
of new science bases and airstrips across the polar
regions (Fig.1.1-8). Most of the IGY field activities were
all-men operations with a heavy portion of navy and
air force personnel (Fig.1.1-9). Military and geopolitical
factors of the Cold War era bore larger weight in IGY
than in the previous IPY ventures and played decisive
role in its funding and implementation, from the space
satellite program to research on human physiology in
extreme cold environment.
The 18-month IGY observation period was
later extended by a full year (January-December
1959) under the title ‘International Geophysical
Fig. 1.1-9 The maleonly,
military-style
pattern of many
IGY operations is
clearly seen in this
photo featuring
Adm. Richard Byrd
(1888–1957, in the
middle), and the
members of the U.S.
‘Deep-Freeze’ Mission
in Antarctica.
(Photo: Fritz Goro, 1956,
courtesy Tom Goreau)
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