View source for International Geophysical Year

{{Short description|18-month collaboration in Earth sciences (1957–1958)}}
[[Image:Igylogo.jpg|thumb|180px|Official emblem of the IGY]]

The '''International Geophysical Year''' ('''IGY'''; {{langx|fr|Année géophysique internationale}}), also referred to as the third [[International Polar Year]], was an international scientific project that lasted from 1 July 1957 to 31 December 1958. It marked the end of a long period during the [[Cold War]] when scientific interchange between East and West had been seriously interrupted. Sixty-seven countries participated in IGY projects, although one notable exception was the mainland [[China|People's Republic of China]], which was protesting against the participation of the Republic of China ([[Taiwan]]). East and West agreed to nominate the Belgian [[Marcel Nicolet]] as secretary general of the associated international organization.<ref>{{cite web |title=Rockets, Radar, and Computers: The International Geophysical Year |url=http://celebrating200years.noaa.gov/magazine/igy/welcome.html |date=24 October 2022 |website=NOAA Celebrates 200 Years |access-date=22 August 2023}}</ref><ref name="Everts">{{cite journal|last1=Everts|first1=Sarah|title=Information Overload|journal=Distillations|date=2016|volume=2|issue=2|pages=26–33|url=https://www.sciencehistory.org/distillations/magazine/information-overload|access-date=20 March 2018}}</ref>
[[File:Sputnik asm.jpg|thumb|A replica of Sputnik 1, which was launched into orbit on October 4, 1957.]]
The IGY encompassed fourteen [[Earth science]] disciplines: [[Auroral light|aurora]], [[airglow]], [[cosmic ray]]s, [[Earth's magnetic field|geomagnetism]], [[gravity]], [[ionosphere|ionospheric physics]], [[longitude]] and [[latitude]] determinations (precision mapping), [[meteorology]], [[oceanography]], [[Ionizing radiation|nuclear radiation]], [[glaciology]], [[seismology]], [[Sounding rocket|rockets]] and [[Timeline of artificial satellites and space probes|satellites]], and [[Space weather|solar activity]].<ref>CSAGI Guide to the IGY World Data Centers (1959) ''Annals of the International Geophysical Year'' Vol 7 Part 2 Pergamon Press</ref> The timing of the IGY was particularly suited for studying some of these phenomena, since it covered the peak of [[solar cycle 19]].

Both the [[Soviet Union]] and the U.S. launched artificial [[satellite]]s for this event; the Soviet Union's ''[[Sputnik 1]]'', launched on October 4, 1957, was the first successful artificial satellite.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://history.nasa.gov/sputnik/igy.html|title=International GeoPhysical Year}}</ref> Other significant achievements of the IGY included the discovery of the [[Van Allen Belt|Van Allen radiation belts]] by [[Explorer 1]] and mid-ocean submarine ridges, an important confirmation of [[plate tectonics|plate-tectonic theory]].<ref>{{cite web|title=IGY History|url=http://www.cmdl.noaa.gov/obop/spo/igy_history.html|website=[[Earth System Research Laboratories|ESRL]] Global Monitoring Division|access-date=14 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517211248/http://www.cmdl.noaa.gov/obop/spo/igy_history.html|archive-date=17 May 2008|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nas.edu/history/igy/|title=The International Geophysical Year, 1957–1958|first=Archives|last=WMO|access-date=2016-06-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160702101001/http://www.nas.edu/history/igy/|archive-date=2016-07-02|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://history.nasa.gov/sputnik/siddiqi.html|title=Korolev, Sputnik, and The International Geophysical Year}}</ref>

==History==
[[Image:International Geophysical Year in 1957.Japanese sttamp of 10yen.jpg|thumb|A commemorative stamp issued by Japan in 1957 to mark the IGY. The illustration depicts the Japanese Research Ship [[Sōya (icebreaker)|Sōya]] and a penguin.]]

The origin of the International Geophysical Year can be traced to the '''[[International Polar Year]]s''' held in [[International Polar Year#The First International Polar Year (1882–1883)|1882–1883]], then in [[International Polar Year#The Second International Polar Year (1932–1933)|1932–1933]] and most recently from [[International Polar Year#The Fourth International Polar Year (2007–2008)|March 2007 to March 2009]]. On 5 April 1950, multiple scientists (including [[Lloyd Berkner]], [[Sydney Chapman (mathematician)|Sydney Chapman]], [[Fred Singer|S. Fred Singer]], and [[Ernest Harry Vestine|Harry Vestine]]) met in [[James Van Allen]]'s living room and suggested that the time was ripe to have a worldwide Geophysical Year instead of a Polar Year, especially considering recent advances in rocketry, radar, and computing.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Korsmo|first=Fae L.|title=The Genesis of the International Geophysical Year 
|date=1 July 2007|journal=[[Physics Today]]|volume=60|issue=7|page=38|doi=10.1063/1.2761801|bibcode=2007PhT....60g..38K|doi-access=}}</ref> Berkner and Chapman proposed to the [[International Council of Scientific Unions]] that an International Geophysical Year (IGY) be planned for 1957–58, coinciding with an approaching period of maximum solar activity.<ref>{{cite web|title=The International Geophysical Year|url=http://www.nas.edu/history/igy|date=2005|website=[[National Academy of Sciences]]|access-date=14 August 2015|archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160521184740/http://www.nas.edu/history/igy/|archive-date=21 May 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|author=Matthew Kohut|title=Shaping the Space Age: The International Geophysical Year|journal=ASK Magazine|issue=32|publisher=NASA|date=Fall 2008|url=http://askmagazine.nasa.gov/issues/32/32i_shaping_the_space_age.html|access-date=5 July 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130219014616/http://askmagazine.nasa.gov/issues/32/32i_shaping_the_space_age.html|archive-date=19 February 2013}}</ref> In 1952, the IGY was announced.<ref>{{cite journal|title=This Month in Physics History|url=https://www.aps.org/publications/apsnews/200710/physicshistory.cfm|date=October 2007|journal=APS News|volume=16|number=9|access-date=1 September 2018}}</ref> [[Joseph Stalin]]'s death in 1953 opened the way for international collaboration with the Soviet Union.

In 1952 the Comité Speciale de l'Année Géophysique Internationale (CSAGI), a special committee of the ICSU, was established to coordinate the International Geophysical Year (IGY) under president [[Sydney Chapman  (mathematician)|Sydney Chapman]], a British geophysicist.

==Events==
On 29 July 1955, [[James C. Hagerty]], president [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]]'s press secretary, announced that the United States intended to launch "small Earth circling satellites" between 1 July 1957 and 31 December 1958 as part of the United States contribution to the International Geophysical Year (IGY).<ref>{{cite press release|last=Hagerty|first=James C.|title=The White House: Statement by James C. Hagerty|url=https://www.eisenhower.archives.gov/research/online_documents/igy/1955_7_29_Press_Release.pdf|date=29 July 1955|access-date=1 September 2018|archive-date=5 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190305033401/https://www.eisenhower.archives.gov/research/online_documents/igy/1955_7_29_Press_Release.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Project Vanguard]] would be managed by the [[United States Naval Research Laboratory|Naval Research Laboratory]] and to be based on developing [[sounding rocket]]s, which had the advantage that they were primarily used for non-military scientific experiments.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nrl.navy.mil/accomplishments/rockets/vanguard-project/|title=Vanguard Project|publisher=[[U.S. Naval Research Laboratory]]|access-date=2015-08-13|archive-date=2020-02-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200216232851/https://www.nrl.navy.mil/accomplishments/rockets/vanguard-project|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Four days later, at the [[International Astronautical Federation|Sixth Congress of International Astronautical Federation]] in Copenhagen, scientist [[Leonid I. Sedov]] spoke to international reporters at the Soviet embassy and announced his country's intention to launch a satellite in the "near future".<ref>{{cite book|title=The Race: The uncensored story of how America beat Russia to the Moon|last=Schefter|first=James|year=1999|publisher=Doubleday|location=New York|isbn=0-385-49253-7|url=https://archive.org/details/raceuncensored00sche|url-access=registration|quote=isbn:0385492537.}}</ref>
[[File:Launch of Jupiter C with Explorer 1.jpg|thumb|The launch of the satellite Explorer 1 on February 1, 1958.]]
To the surprise of many, the [[USSR]] launched [[Sputnik 1]] as the first artificial Earth satellite on 4 October 1957. After several failed Vanguard launches, [[Wernher von Braun]] and his team convinced President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] to use one of their US Army missiles for the Explorer program (there was not yet an inhibition about using military rockets to get into space). On 8 November 1957, the US Secretary of Defense instructed the US Army to use a modified [[Jupiter-C]] rocket to launch a satellite.<ref name=Egermeier>{{Citation|last1=Winter|first1=Frank H|author-link=Frank H. Winter|last2=van der Linden|first2=Robert|title=Out of the Past|magazine=Aerospace America|page=38
|date=November 2007}}</ref> The US achieved this goal only four months later with Explorer 1, on 1 February 1958, but after [[Sputnik 2]] on 3 November 1957, making [[Explorer 1]] the third artificial Earth satellite. [[Vanguard 1]] became the fourth, launched on 17 March 1958. The [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] launches would be followed by considerable political consequences, one of which was the creation of the US space agency [[National Aeronautics and Space Administration|NASA]] on 29 July 1958.

The British–American survey of the Atlantic, carried out between September 1954 and July 1959, discovered the full length of the [[mid-Atlantic ridges]] ([[plate tectonics]]); it was a major discovery during the IGY.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://celebrating200years.noaa.gov/magazine/igy/oceanography_650.html|title=Rockets, Radar, and Computers: The International Geophysical Year|publisher=[[US Department of Commerce]], [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]]|date=May 12, 2017}}</ref>

==World Data Centers==
Although the 1932 Polar Year accomplished many of its goals, it fell short on others because of the advance of World War II. In fact, because of the war, much of the data collected and scientific analyses completed during the 1932 Polar Year were lost forever, something that was particularly troubling to the IGY organizing committee.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Beardsley |first1=Ann |last2=Garcia |first2=C. Tony |last3=Sweeney |first3=Joseph |title=Historical guide to NASA and the space program |date=2016-09-09 |location=Lanham, Massachusetts |publisher=[[Rowman & Littlefield]] |isbn=978-1-4422-6287-4 |oclc=949912296}}</ref> The committee resolved that "all observational data shall be available to scientists and scientific institutions in all countries." They felt that without the free exchange of data across international borders, there would be no point in having an IGY.<ref name="Odishaw 1959 14–25">{{Cite journal|last=Odishaw|first=Hugh|date=1959|title=International Geophysical Year|journal=Science|volume=129|issue=3340|pages=14–25|issn=0036-8075|jstor=1755204|doi=10.1126/science.129.3340.14|pmid=17794348|bibcode=1959Sci...129...14O}}</ref>

In April 1957, just three months before the IGY began, scientists representing the various disciplines of the IGY established the World Data Center system. The United States hosted World Data Center "A" and the Soviet Union hosted World Data Center "B". World Data Center "C" was subdivided among countries in Western Europe, Australia, and Japan.<ref name="Odishaw 1959 14–25"/> [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration|NOAA]] hosted seven of the fifteen World Data Centers in the United States.

Each [[World Data Center]] would eventually archive a complete set of IGY data to deter losses prevalent during the International Polar Year of 1932. Each World Data Center was equipped to handle many different data formats, including computer punch cards and tape—the original computer media. In addition, each host country agreed to abide by the organizing committee's resolution that there should be a free and open exchange of data among nations.<ref>{{cite web|title=World Data System (WDS)|url=http://www.icsu.org/what-we-do/interdisciplinary-bodies/wds/?icsudocid=about|access-date=12 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130605132820/http://www.icsu.org/what-we-do/interdisciplinary-bodies/wds/?icsudocid=about|archive-date=2013-06-05|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Ad hoc Strategic Committee on Information and Data. Final Report to the ICSU Committee on Scientific Planning and Review|year=2008|publisher=ICSU|pages=25|url=http://www.icsu.org/publications/reports-and-reviews/scid-report/scid-report.pdf|access-date=2016-06-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130525154820/http://www.icsu.org/publications/reports-and-reviews/scid-report/scid-report.pdf|archive-date=2013-05-25|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Ad -hoc Strategic Coordinating Committee on Information and Data Interim Report to the ICSU Committee on Scientific Planning and Review|year=2011|publisher=ICSU|url=http://www.icsu.org/publications/reports-and-reviews/strategic-coordinating-committee-on-information-and-data-report/SCCID_Report_April_2011.pdf|isbn=978-0-930357-85-6|pages=7|access-date=2016-06-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910081957/http://www.icsu.org/publications/reports-and-reviews/strategic-coordinating-committee-on-information-and-data-report/SCCID_Report_April_2011.pdf|archive-date=2015-09-10|url-status=dead}}</ref> ICSU-WDS goals are to preserve quality-assured scientific data and information, to facilitate open access, and promote the adoption of standards.<ref>{{cite web|title=Constitution of the International Council for Science World Data System (ICSU WDS)|url=http://icsu-wds.org/images/files/WDS_Constitution_04_04_12.pdf|access-date=12 June 2013}}{{dead link|date=November 2017|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref> [[ICSU World Data System]] created in 2008 superseded the World Data Centers (WDCs) and Federation of Astronomical and Geophysical data analysis Services (FAGS) created by [[ICSU]] to manage data generated by the International Geophysical Year.<ref>{{cite news|title=International science community to build a 'World Data System'|url=http://www.itnews.com.au/News/126774,international-science-community-to-build-a-world-data-system.aspx|access-date=12 June 2013|newspaper=itnews|date=28 Oct 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=International Science Council to Revamp World Data Centers|url=http://www.america.gov/st/scitech-english/2009/July/20090701180306lcnirellep0.2923395.html|access-date=12 June 2013|author=Cheryl Pellerin|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021082531/http://www.america.gov/st/scitech-english/2009/July/20090701180306lcnirellep0.2923395.html|archive-date=21 October 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=US National Academies|title=The International Geophysical Year|url=http://www.nas.edu/history/igy/|access-date=21 June 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130607031556/http://www.nas.edu/history/igy/|archive-date=7 June 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Antarctica==
The IGY triggered an 18-month year of Antarctic science. The [[International Council of Scientific Unions]], a parent body, broadened the proposals from polar studies to [[History of geophysics|geophysical]] research. More than 70 existing national scientific organizations then formed IGY committees, and participated in the cooperative effort.

Australia established its first permanent base on the Antarctic continent at [[Mawson Station|Mawson]] in 1954. It is now the longest continuously operating station south of the Antarctic Circle.<sup><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.antarctica.gov.au/about-antarctica/history/stations|title=History of Australian Antarctic stations|website=www.antarctica.gov.au|language=en|access-date=2019-03-03}} {{verify source|date=September 2019|reason=This ref was deleted Special:Diff/886174570 by a bug in VisualEditor and later restored by a bot from the original cite located at Special:Permalink/886010798 cite #23 - verify the cite is accurate and delete this template. [[User:GreenC bot/Job 18]]}}</ref></sup> [[Davis Station|Davis]] was added in 1957, in the Vestfold Hills, 400 miles (640&nbsp;km) east of Mawson. The wintering parties for the IGY numbered 29 at Mawson and 4 at Davis, all male. (Both stations now have 16 to 18 winterers, including both sexes.) As a part of the IGY activities, a two-man camp was installed beside Taylor Glacier, 60 miles (97&nbsp;km) west of Mawson. Its principal purpose was to enable parallactic photography of the aurora australis (thus locating it in space), but it also permitted studies of Emperor penguins in the adjacent rookery.

Two years later, Australia took over the running of [[Wilkes Station|Wilkes]], a station built for the IGY by the United States. When Wilkes rapidly deteriorated from snow and ice accumulation, plans were made to build [[Casey Station]], known as Repstat ("replacement station"). Opened in 1969, Repstat was replaced by present-day Casey station in 1988.

[[Halley Research Station]] was founded in 1956 for the IGY by an expedition from the (British) [[Royal Society]]. The bay where the expedition set up their base was named Halley Bay, after the astronomer [[Edmond Halley]].

[[Showa Station (Antarctica)|Showa Station]], the first Japanese base in Antarctica, was set up in January 1957,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.isas.jaxa.jp/e/japan_s_history/profito/inter.shtml|title=ISAS – International Geophysical Year/ History of Japanese Space Research|first=Japan Aerospace Exploration|last=Agency}}</ref> supported by the [[ice breaker]] [[Sōya (icebreaker)|''Sōya''.]] When the ship returned a year later, it became beset offshore (stuck in the sea-ice). It was eventually freed with the assistance of the US icebreaker [[USCGC Burton Island|''Burton Island'']] but could not resupply the station. The 1957 winterers were retrieved by helicopter, but bad weather prevented going back for the station's 15 sled dogs, which were left chained up. When the ship returned a year later, two of the dogs, Taro and Jiro, were still alive.<ref>{{Cite web|first=Igor I.|last=Solar|date=2012-11-21|title=Taro and Jiro — A story of canine strength and tenacity|url=http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/337391|access-date=2021-03-25|website=Digital Journal}}</ref> They had escaped the dogline and survived by killing Adélie penguins in a nearby rookery (which were preserved by the low temperature). The two dogs became instant national heroes in Japan. A Japanese movie about this story was made in 1983, ''[[Antarctica (1983 film)|Antarctica]]''.

France contributed [[Dumont d'Urville Station]] and Charcot Station in [[Adélie Land]]. As a forerunner expedition, the ship ''Commandant Charcot'' of the [[French Navy]] spent nine months of 1949/50 at the coast of Adelie Land. The first French station, [[Port Martin]], was completed 9 April 1950, but destroyed by fire the night of 22 to 23 January 1952.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://public.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/igy/node/34|title=French IGY – Following the Data of the International Geophysical Year (1957–8)|access-date=2016-06-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151218100805/http://public.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/igy/node/34|archive-date=2015-12-18|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Belgium established the [[Baudouin I of Belgium|King Baudouin]] Base in 1958. The expedition was led by [[Gaston de Gerlache]], son of [[Adrien de Gerlache]] who had led the 1897–1899 [[Belgian Antarctic Expedition]].<sup><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.comnap.aq/Members/BELSPO/SitePages/Home.aspx|title=Belgium Federal Science Policy and Polar Secretariat – Home|access-date=2016-06-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324043151/https://www.comnap.aq/Members/BELSPO/SitePages/Home.aspx|archive-date=2012-03-24|url-status=dead}}</ref> </sup>In December 1958, four team members were stranded several hundred kilometers inland when one of the skis on their light aircraft broke on landing. After a ten-day ordeal, they were rescued by an IL-14 aircraft after a flight of 1,940 miles (3,100&nbsp;km) from the Soviet base, [[Mirny Station]].

The [[Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station]] was erected as the first permanent structure at the South Pole in January 1957. It survived intact for 53 years, but was slowly buried in the ice (as all structures there eventually sink into the icy crust), until it was demolished in December 2010 for safety reasons.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/wilderness-resources/stories/south-poles-first-building-blown-up-after-53-years|title=South Pole's first building blown up after 53 years|publisher=OurAmazingPlanet.com|date=2011-03-31}}</ref>

==Arctic==
Ice Skate 2 was a floating research station constructed and staffed by U.S. scientists. It mapped the bottom of the Arctic Ocean. Zeke Langdon was a meteorologist on the project. Ice Skate 2 was planned to be staffed in 6 month shifts, but due to soft ice surfaces for landing some crew members were stationed for much longer. At one point they lost all communications with anyone over their radios for one month except the expedition on the North Pole. At another point the ice sheet broke up and their fuel tanks started floating away from the base. They had to put pans under the plane engines as soon as they landed as any oil spots would go straight through the ice in the intense sunshine. Their only casualty was a man who got too close to the propeller with the oil pan.<ref>{{cite web|last=Harrington|first=Jon|title=Shared Photographs|url=https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipM5orNXuogJklODOsH_P3jq6-sOhNYQPyfiVPyw2UYnImAIKnq3W2Zs99rGCsNXiA?key=Z0NPQ2JWM3l0SkM5TkZkdzIwd2tKM2VkUHIzM0Z3|website=Google Photos|access-date=March 25, 2016}}</ref>

[[Norbert Untersteiner]] was the project leader for Drifting Station Alpha and in 2008 produced and narrated a documentary about the project for the [[National Snow and Ice Data Center]].<ref>{{cite web|title=International Geophysical Year, 1957-1958: Drifting Station Alpha Documentary Film, Version 1|url=https://nsidc.org/data/g02184}}</ref>

==Participating countries==
The participating countries for the IGY included the following:<ref>{{cite web|last=Nicolet|first=M.|title=The International Geophysical Year 1957/58|url=http://www.wmo.int/pages/mediacentre/documents/Int.GeophysicalYear.pdf|publisher=[[World Meteorological Organization]]|access-date=28 November 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728091015/http://www.wmo.int/pages/mediacentre/documents/Int.GeophysicalYear.pdf|archive-date=28 July 2013}}</ref> 
{{div col|colwidth=20em|small=yes}}
* {{flagcountry|Argentina}}
* {{flagcountry|Australia}}
* {{flagcountry|Austria}}
* {{flagcountry|Belgium}}
* {{flagcountry|Bolivia}}
* {{flagcountry|Brazil}}
* {{flagcountry|Bulgaria|1946}}
* {{flag|Burma|1948}}
* {{flagcountry|Canada|1957}}
* {{flag|Ceylon}}
* {{flagcountry|Chile}}
* {{flagcountry|Colombia}}
* {{flagcountry|Cuba}}
* {{flag|Czechoslovakia}}
* {{flagcountry|Denmark}}
* {{flagcountry|Dominican Republic}}
* {{flagcountry|Ecuador}}
* {{flagcountry|Egypt|1922}}
* {{flagcountry|Ethiopia|1897}}
* {{flagcountry|Finland}}
* {{flagcountry|France}}
* {{flagcountry|East Germany|name=Germany, East}}
* {{flagcountry|West Germany|name=Germany, West}}
* {{flagcountry|Ghana}}
* {{flagcountry|Greece|old}}
* {{flagcountry|Guatemala}}
* {{flagcountry|Hungary}}
* {{flagcountry|Iceland}}
* {{flagcountry|India}}
* {{flagcountry|Indonesia}}
* {{flagcountry|Iran|1964}}
* {{flagcountry|Republic of Ireland}}
* {{flagcountry|Israel}}
* {{flagcountry|Italy}}
* {{flagcountry|Japan|1947}}
* {{flagcountry|North Korea|name=Korea, North}}
* {{flag|Malaya}}
* {{flagcountry|Mexico}}
* {{flagcountry|Mongolian People's Republic}}
* {{flagcountry|Morocco}}
* {{flagcountry|Netherlands}}
* {{flagcountry|New Zealand}}
* {{flagcountry|Norway}}
* {{flagcountry|Pakistan}}
* {{flagcountry|Panama}}
* {{flagcountry|Peru}}
* {{flagcountry|Philippines}}
* {{flagcountry|Poland}}
* {{flagcountry|Portugal}}
* {{flag|Rhodesia and Nyasaland}}
* {{flagcountry|Romania|1952}}
* {{flagcountry|South Africa|1928}}
* {{flagcountry|Soviet Union}}
* {{flagcountry|Spain|1945}}
* {{flagcountry|Sweden}}
* {{flagcountry|Switzerland}}
* {{flagcountry|Taiwan}}
* {{flagcountry|Thailand}}
* {{flagcountry|Tunisia}}
* {{flagcountry|United Kingdom}}
** {{flagdeco|Kenya|colonial}} [[Kenya Colony|Kenya]]
** {{flag|Tanganyika}}
** {{flagdeco|Uganda|colonial}} [[Uganda Protectorate|Uganda]]
* {{flagcountry|United States|1912}}
* {{flagcountry|Uruguay}}
* {{flagcountry|Venezuela|1954}}
* {{flag|North Vietnam|name=Vietnam, North}}
* {{flag|South Vietnam|name=Vietnam, South}}
* {{flagcountry|Yugoslavia}}
{{div col end}}

==Legacy==
In the end, the IGY was a resounding success, and it led to advancements that live on today. For example, the work of the IGY led directly to the [[Antarctic Treaty System|Antarctic Treaty]], which called for the use of Antarctica for peaceful purposes and cooperative scientific research. Since then, international cooperation has led to protecting the Antarctic environment, preserving historic sites, and conserving the animals and plants. Today, 41 nations have signed the Treaty and international collaborative research continues.

The [[ICSU]] [[World Data System]] (WDS) was created by the 29th General Assembly of the International Council for Science (ICSU) and builds on the 50-year legacy of the former ICSU World Data Centres (WDCs) and former Federation of Astronomical and Geophysical data-analysis Services (FAGS).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.icsu-wds.org/organization/intro-to-wds|title=Introduction to ICSU World Data System|publisher=ICSU|access-date=17 July 2013|archive-date=10 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160410041304/http://www.icsu-wds.org/organization/intro-to-wds|url-status=dead}}</ref>

This [[World Data System]], hosts the repositories for data collected during the IGY.
Seven of the 15 World Data Centers in the United States are co-located at NOAA National Data Centers or at NOAA affiliates. 
These ICSU Data Centers not only preserve historical data, but also promote research and ongoing data collection.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.icsu-wds.org/|title=ICSU World Data System|publisher=ICSU|access-date=17 July 2013|archive-date=30 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151230102629/http://www.icsu-wds.org/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The fourth International Polar Year on 2007–2008 focused on climate change and its effects on the polar environment. Sixty countries participated in this effort and it included studies in the Arctic and Antarctic.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ipy.org/|title=International Polar Year 2007–2008|access-date=17 July 2013}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
*"[[I.G.Y. (What a Beautiful World)]]" is a track on [[Donald Fagen]]'s 1982 album, ''[[The Nightfly]].'' The song is sung from an optimistic viewpoint during the IGY, and features references to then-futuristic concepts, such as [[solar power]] (first used in 1958), [[Spandex]] (invented in 1959), [[Space tourism|space travel for entertainment]], and an undersea international [[high-speed rail]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Lyrics – The Nightfly (1982) – D. Fagen Solo|url=http://www.steelydan.com/lyrnightfly.html|website=Steelydan.com|access-date=14 August 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150815012922/http://www.steelydan.com/lyrnightfly.html|archive-date=15 August 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> The song peaked at #26 on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] on 27 November – 11 December 1982 and was nominated for a [[Grammy Award]] for song of the year.<ref>{{cite web|title=25th Grammy Awards list of nominees|url=http://www.grammy.com/news/grammy-rewind-25th-annual-grammy-awards|date=1983|website=grammy.com|access-date=16 April 2016}}</ref>
*The IGY is featured prominently in a 1957–1958 run of ''[[Pogo (comic strip)|Pogo]]'' comic strips by [[Walt Kelly]]. The characters in the strip refer to the scientific initiative as the "G.O. Fizzickle Year". During this run, the characters try to make their own contributions to scientific endeavours, such as putting a flea on the moon. Compilations of the strips were published by ''Simon & Schuster SC'' in 1958 as ''G.O. Fizzickle Pogo'' and later ''Pogo's Will Be That Was'' in 1979.  The run was also included in ''[[Pogo: The Complete Syndicated Comic Strips|Pogo: The Complete Daily & Sunday Comic Strips]] Vol. 5: Out of This World at Home'' published by ''[[Fantagraphics]]'' in 2018.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}}
*Jazz saxophonist and composer [[Gil Mellé]] recorded a "Dedicatory Piece to the Geo-Physical Year of 1957" for his album ''[[Primitive Modern]]'', released by [[Prestige Records]].
*The IGY was featured in a cartoon by [[Russell Brockbank]] in ''[[Punch (magazine)|Punch]]'' in November 1956.<ref name="punch/Brockbank-Cartoons">{{cite web |title=Russell Brockbank Cartoons |url=https://magazine.punch.co.uk/gallery/Russell-Brockbank-Cartoons/G00004Cy28wpU2oo/ |website=magazine.punch.co.uk |publisher=PUNCH Magazine Cartoon Archive |access-date=25 August 2023}}</ref> It shows the three main superpowers UK, USA and USSR at the South Pole, each with a gathering of penguins which they are trying to educate with "culture". The penguins in the British camp are being bored with [[Francis Bacon]]; in the American camp they are happily playing baseball, while the Russian camp resembles a [[gulag]], with barbed-wire fences and the penguins are made to march and perform military maneuvers.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}}
*The [[Alistair MacLean]] novel ''[[Night Without End (novel)|Night Without End]]'' takes place in and around an IGY research station in Greenland.
*The IGY features in two episodes of the 1960–61 season of the documentary television series ''[[Expedition!]]'': "[[Expedition!#The Frozen Continent|The Frozen Continent]]" and "[[Expedition!#Man's First Winter at the South Pole|Man's First Winter at the South Pole]]".

==See also==
* [[International Biological Program]]
* [[International Year of Planet Earth]]
* [[List of Antarctic expeditions]]
* [[Baker-Nunn camera|Baker-Nunn satellite tracking camera]]<!-- developed for the IGY objectives specifically -->
* [[Operation Moonwatch]]
* [[Operation Phototrack]]
* [[Sulphur Mountain Cosmic Ray Station]]

==References and sources==
;References
{{Reflist|30em}}
;Sources
*[http://digital.scaa.sk.ca/gallery/northern/currie/en_polaryear.shtml University of Saskatchewan Archives] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201218213404/http://digital.scaa.sk.ca/gallery/northern/currie/en_polaryear.shtml |date=2020-12-18 }}
*[https://www.ukssdc.ac.uk/ionosondes/history/ History of ionosondes, at the U.K.'s Rutherford Appleton Laboratory]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20020804162639/http://www.arctic.at/castaway/history/history.html History of arctic exploration]
*[http://www-pw.physics.uiowa.edu/van90/VanAllenBio_LudwigOct2004.pdf James Van Allen, From High School to the Beginning of the Space Era: A Biographical Sketch] by George Ludwig
* Fraser, Ronald. (1957). Once Round the Sun: The Story of the International Geophysical Year, 1957–58. London, England: Hodder and Stroughton Limited.
* {{cite book|title=The Race: The uncensored story of how America beat Russia to the Moon|last=Schefter|first=James|year=1999|publisher=Doubleday|location=New York|url=https://archive.org/details/raceuncensored00sche|url-access=registration|isbn=0385492537}}
* Sullivan, Walter. (1961). Assault on the Unknown: The International Geophysical Year. New York, New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company.
* Wilson, J. Tuzo. (1961). IGY: The Year of the New Moons. New York, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.

==External links==
{{Commons category|International Geophysical Year}}
*[https://www.eisenhowerlibrary.gov/research/online-documents/international-geophysical-year-igy Documents regarding the International Geophysical Year, Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library]
*[http://www.soundprint.org/radio/display_show/ID/814/name/IGY+On+the+Ice "IGY On the Ice"], produced by Barbara Bogaev, ''Soundprint''. 2011 radio documentary with John C. Behrendt, Tony Gowan, Phil Smith, and Charlie Bentley.
* [https://archives-manuscripts.dartmouth.edu/repositories/2/resources/1033 The Papers of Robert L. Long Jr.] at Dartmouth College Library

{{Science commemorative events|state=collapsed}}
{{Polar exploration|state=collapsed}}

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[[Category:1957 in Antarctica]]
[[Category:1957 in science]]
[[Category:1958 in Antarctica]]
[[Category:1958 in science]]
[[Category:Geophysics]]
[[Category:History of Earth science]]
[[Category:United Nations observances]]
[[Category:Science events]]
[[Category:History of the Ross Dependency]]