Danish Arctic Ionosphere Research

The Danish Meteorological Institute celebrated its centennial on 1 April this year and on the same date the Ionosphere Laboratory, a division under the Meteorological Institute, observed its tenth anniversary, although its history goes back almost twenty years. The idea of establishing an Ionosphere Laboratory was first conceived by the active and foresighted Professor P. O. Pedersen .... During the Second Polar Year 1932-33 Pedersen wanted to build an ionosphere station in Godhavn ... but it was not until 1951 that his wish was fulfilled by his assistant and later successor, Professor Jørgen Rybner. The year before, the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Bureau of Standards had established an ionosphere station at the American military base in southern Greenland and in 1957 when the U.S. Armed Forces left what is now called Narssarssuaq, Professor Rybner also undertook the responsibility for this station in his capacity as the Chairman of the Danish National Committee of the International Radio Union (URSI). It was realized that operation of the Greenlandic stations would only be feasible if there were an active group in Copenhagen to analyze the ionosphere data obtained and to train the station personnel before leaving for Greenland. To fill this need Professor Rybner founded a laboratory at the Technical University based upon support from local URSI funds. At the same time rapid technological development made possible measurements in the ionosphere with instruments launched with rockets or from satellites. Using the resources at the new laboratory, Professor Rybner in 1961 accepted a Norwegian proposal for a joint campaign with rocket launchings from Andøya in Lofoten, Norway, in cooperation with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). This project formed the basis later for a Greenlandic ionosphere rocket program. ... it was deemed desirable to change the laboratory supported under the Danish URSI Committee to an official laboratory under the Technical University of Denmark. ... on 1 April 1962 the Ionosphere Laboratory was established at the University .... Recordings of naturally generated electromagnetic noise at very low frequencies (VLF recordings), and studies had been made at Godhavn and Narssarssuaq for some years when , in 1964, a "VLF-station" was established at the Danish site Thule, approximately 80 miles north of Thule Air Base [AB]. Financial support was given by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and locally by the U.S. Army Research Support Group (USARSG). When in 1966 the American scientific camp situated approximately 16 miles east of Thule AB was closed down, the U.S. ionosphere station there was transferred to the Danish station at Thule; an ionosonde was made available from the U.S.A. and a building of 150 sq. m. was moved from the camp to the station by helicopter! The U.S. National Science Foundation supported the operation for the following three years until the Danish Government took over financial responsibility. Between 1966 and 1968 the Ionosphere Laboratory was reorganized involving among other administrative changes the establishment of an independent Danish Space Research Institute for work with balloons, rockets and satellites. Today, ten years after it was officially established with a staff of four, the Laboratory with a staff of twenty, is continuing its ionospheric research based largely upon the operations of the Greenlandic observatories at Godhavn, Narssarssuaq, and Thule. Although it is administered and financed by the Danish Meteorological Institute, it is still located at the Technical University north of Copenhagen, and maintains close cooperation with other laboratories at the University in teaching and providing guidance to graduate students. [Included are summaries of research under the following headings: ground-based measurements, vertical soundings, cosmic noise absorption measurements, whistler and VLF emissions, auroral electrojet activity, the polar ionization, geomagnetic micropulsation studies, the polar slant E condition, stratospheric balloon measurements, high altitude meteorological observations, ionospheric rocket experiment, and electric field measurements]

Greenland - Its Economy And Resources

This paper describes the development in Greenland toward greater autonomy, presenting economic statistics and what is known about the extent of its mineral deposits and energy resources. Until 1953 Greenland was a Danish colony. In 1953 it became a Danish country, and on 1 May 1979 it obtained home rule. In early 1985 Greenland left the European Economic Community (EEC). During this period Greenland obtained increasingly greater political autonomy. Up to World War II access to Greenland was greatly restricted by Denmark. Since World War II Greenland has developed a local national economy, characterized as small, mixed and vulnerable, with a big public sector and comprehensive foreign trade - an economy with strong growth, considerable inflation, the beginnings of unemployment problems and extreme dependence on capital inflow from Denmark and use of Danish skilled labour. As well, the population has been growing. In 1953 it was 25,000, of which 94% was born in Greenland. In 1985 it amounted to 52,000, 80% born in Greenland.Key words: Greenlandic economy, Greenlandic trade, Greenlandic education, Greenlandic labour force, Greenlandic resources, political development in Greenland, European Economic Community and Greenland Ce dossier traite du développement au Groenland vers une autonomie plus grande et il donne des chiffres de l'économie du Groenland et un aperçu de ce que l'on sait de l'existence des dépôts minéraux et des ressources de l'énergie dans ce pays. Le Groenland avait le statut d'une colonie danoise jusqu'en 1953. Cette année-là le Groenland est devenu un département danois et le 1er mai 1979 le Groenland a obtenu l'autonomie. Au début de 1985 le Groenland a quitté la Communauté Économique Européenne (CEE). A la suite de ce développement politique le Groenland a obtenu de plus en plus une autogestion plus grande. Jusqu'à la deuxième guerre mondiale le Groenland était un territoire fermé. Depuis la deuxième guerre mondiale jusqu'à présent le Groenland a développé une économie nationale, locale que l'on peut définir comme une faible économie peu homogène et vulnérable avec un grand secteur public et un commerce extérieur d'importance, une économie en voie d'une forte croissance mais avec une inflation considérable et le commencement des problèmes du chômage. L'économie est extrêmement dépendante de capitale du Danmark et l'emploie d'ouvriers danois qualifiés.De plus, la population a augmenté. En 1953 la population était de 25 000 dont 94% était né au Groenland. En 1985 la population était de 52 000 dont 80% était né au Groenland. Mots clés : économie du Groenland, commerce extérieur du Groenland, éducation au Groenland, force de travail au Groenland, ressources du Groenland, le développement politique au Groenland, et les relations entre le Groenland et la Communauté Économique Européenn

Jens Peder Hart Hansen (1936-1998)

Jens Peder was born in Copenhagen into a family of outstanding physicians. ... In the family tradition, he won the university's annual gold medal in 1967 for his research on allergy to cow's milk and Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Ten years later he defended his doctoral thesis, entitled "Homicide in Denmark 1945 to 1970." Following this interest, he qualified as a specialist in pathology and forensic medicine. In 1975, he became chief of Pathology at Gentofte Hospital near Copenhagen, a position he held until shortly before his death. From 1986 to 1994 he also headed the Anthropological Laboratory attached to the University of Copenhagen. Jens Peder Hart Hansen was highly regarded in these positions, but it was his love of the Arctic and its people that endeared him to so many of us. He served the Arctic well in many different capacities. His scientific work focused on cancer epidemiology and on mummies. He initiated a high-level collaboration of epidemiologists in Alaska, Canada, and the Nordic countries to study cancer in the circumpolar population. ... Jens Peder is an essential part of the Danish Polar Center's history. Another important career milestone was his nomination in 1988 to the Commission for Scientific Research in Greenland, the agency that oversees all research in Greenland, providing both funding and logistical support. ... Jens Peder was respected as a pioneer in Greenlandic research and Arctic medicine. He was acknowledged not only as a scholar, but also as a gentleman and a well-loved and faithful friend. ... Jens Peder received many expressions of gratitude and honour. At the 10th International Conference of Circumpolar Health in Anchorage, Alaska (1996), he received the Jack Hildes Medal for excellence in Arctic medicine as a token of his colleagues' appreciation, gratitude, and admiration. ..