Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical Year (IGY) and supporting an International Geophysical Year-2 (IGY-2) in 2007-08.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, as its author, I obviously support passage of this concurrent resolution. I am pleased to be here today with the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Bonner) to discuss what the gentleman has just acknowledged is an important resolution. I also want to extend my thanks to the gentleman from New York (Chairman Boehlert) and the ranking member, the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Gordon), for making it possible for the House to consider H. Con. Res. 189 today. I am also grateful to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Ehlers), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment, Technology, and Standards, for his support of the resolution.

Last year, I introduced this resolution calling for a worldwide program of activities to commemorate the 50th anniversary for the most successful global scientific endeavor in human history, the International Geophysical Year of 1957 and 1958. It is hard to imagine not commemorating the historic global undertaking that was the historic International Geophysical Year, popularly remembered as the IGY.

The 60 nations and 60,000 scientists who participated in the IGY left an ongoing legacy that is beyond measure. Satellite communications, modern weather forecasting, modern natural-disaster prediction and management,

from volcanic eruptions to El Nino, they are legacies of IGY scientific activities that spanned the globe and breached the space frontier.

In a broader context, the IGY marked the coming of age of international science. Globally coordinated activities which save millions of lives today, such as the campaigns to contain and find cures for SARS and AIDS, owe their working model to the scientists from throughout the world who banded together to implement the IGY.

My resolution calls for an IGY-2 that would be even more extensive in its global reach and more comprehensive in its research and applications. After all, the frontiers of science are continually expanding. The biological sciences, genetics, computer sciences, and the neurosciences, among others, have made tremendous advances worldwide during the half century since the IGY.

IGY-2 would not only promote research, but it would also provide a stage for showcasing the new scientific developments and a forum for presentation and discussion of their continually unfolding significance. It is entirely fitting that the United States take the lead in launching an IGY-2 and that Congress, and particularly the House, provide the impetus.

In 1985, to mark the 35th anniversary of the IGY, Congress passed a resolution authored by Senator Spark Matsunaga calling for a year of globally coordinated space activity. At President Reagan's direction, the U.S. led a worldwide planning effort that culminated in the implementation of an International Space Year in 1992, which made major scientific contributions, notably in the field of global environmental monitoring.

So we have both scientific and congressional precedent for the U.S. to take the lead internationally in calling for an IGY-2. I join my colleagues along with the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Bonner) to join me in promoting this initiative in support of modern science and international scientific cooperation. I urge adoption of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 189) celebrating the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical Year (IGY) and supporting an International Geophysical Year-2 (IGY-2) in 2007-08, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H. Con. Res. 189, the resolution under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, today we are considering H. Con. Res. 189 which recognizes the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical Year (IGY). I thank the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Udall) as well as the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Ehlers) for leading Congress in the celebration of this important anniversary and milestone.

The IGY, spanning 1957 through 1958, was an internationally coordinated effort to observe and collect data about Earth science. More than 60,000 scientists from 67 countries participated in IGY. Their efforts had a far-reaching effect on a variety of scientific disciplines. IGY scientists paid particular attention to Antarctica, representing the first and only time an entire continent was set aside for cooperative research. That designation continues to this day and was formalized with the Antarctic Treaty in 1959, which currently has 45 signatory countries.

Also, research to develop rockets and satellites for IGY, atmospheric studies laid the technical foundations for the U.S. space program. Modern-day weather and natural-disaster forecasting, including El Nino forecasting and volcanic eruption predictions, are a direct result of IGY research.

Yet many questions remain about the complex interactions of the ocean, land and atmosphere; and today there are more advanced tools scientists can use as they search for answers to these questions. H. Con. Res. 189 calls on the National Science Foundation and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to pursue plans for a second International Geophysical Year in 2007 and 2008. This will provide an opportunity for today's Earth scientists to focus their efforts and to inspire the next generation of scientists.

This resolution does not authorize any new money. It simply expresses the sense of Congress about celebrating the anniversary of the first IGY and endorsing the idea of a second IGY. I urge my colleagues to support this timely and important resolution and thank my colleagues on the Committee on Science for bringing this matter before us today.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 189.

The first International Geophysical was held from July 1957 to December 1958. It was modeled after the successful International Polar Year of 1882 and its 50th anniversary in 1932. The International Geophysical Year allowed over 60,000 scientists from 67 countries around the world to take part in a series of coordinated observations of various geophysical phenomena.

I remember it well because I was reading about the IGY that sparked my interest in science and set me toward a career in physics that I pursued before coming to Congress.

The scientific activities spanned the globe from the North to the South Poles. In particular, the research in the Antarctic yielded new estimates of the Earth's total ice content--a number of extreme importance given today's melting of major glaciers due to global warming. In addition, instruments to record cosmic rays, spectroscopes to analyze the signals, and balloons were put to use to explore the upper reaches of the atmosphere. Finally, post-World War II developments in rocketry made possible the exploration of space employing what was then the exciting new technology of artificial scientific satellites with the launching of Sputnik and Vanguard.

Because 2007 will be the 50th anniversary of this most exciting worldwide scientific undertaking, I wholeheartedly support H. Con. Res 189 for celebrating 2007 as the International Geophysical Year--2 and recommend that Congress, as in 1957, promote world-wide cooperation in the commemoration of the International Geophysical Year--2 with scientific activities so that we humans can better understand our environment and our place in the universe.

Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased that we are considering this resolution celebrating the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical Year (IGY), and I thank my colleague from Colorado, Mr. Udall, for his work in recognizing this important anniversary. I distinctly remember the first IGY. I was a graduate student in physics at that time. There was much excitement around this coordinated research effort, which led to discoveries with far-reaching impacts on every field of earth sciences. For example, research on making rockets and satellites to better understand weather was a factor in building the technological foundation for the U.S. space program.

As often happens with scientific research, the more we learn, the more questions we develop. Much of the first IGY research focused on Antarctica, setting aside an entire continent for cooperative scientific research. In 1959, the Antarctic Treaty formalized this arrangement by designating Antarctica for scientific investigation ``as applied during the International Geophysical Year.'' I am pleased that this resolution continues that spirit of scientific discovery by directing the National Science Foundation and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to pursue plans for a second International Geophysical Year in 2007-08. A second IGY will inspire the next generation of earth scientists to work collaboratively and across international borders to study the most pressing Earth science questions.

I urge my colleagues to support this timely and important resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate Mr. Udall for once again showing leadership on an important environmental issue. Additionally, I want to thank Chairman Boehlert for moving this resolution to the floor so quickly.

The resolution properly commemorates the magnificent achievements of the International Geophysical Year. A new IGY will be good for the environment. It will also be very healthy for our standing as a nation to take the leadership role in developing a new IGY for the 21st century.

The IGY was conceived and promoted by the United States and has been one of the largest cooperative international scientific endeavors undertaken. IGY cooperation continues to be a model and inspiration for contemporary world science.

In a similar spirit, it is appropriate for an IGY-2 to reflect global developments in biology, genetics, the neurosciences, and other areas of scientific research and recognize the interdisciplinary research that incorporates the physical and social sciences and the humanities in enriching an understanding of diverse life on earth. Therefore, it is entirely fitting that Congress take the lead again, in the same spirit, in promoting global cooperation through the worldwide commemoration of the IGY.