Memorandum for Record: Meeting of Upper Atmosphere Rocket Research Panel

This Memorandum for Record, dated 16 September 1954, documents a meeting of the Upper Atmosphere Rocket Research Panel held on 8 September 1954 at the Naval Research Laboratory in Anacostia. The meeting was convened at the invitation of the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board. The primary agenda items focused on high altitude and satellite vehicles, as well as the logistics for the International Geophysical Year. The panel, which was formed in 1946, is chaired by Dr. James A. Van Allen of the State University of Iowa and includes representatives from various military and academic institutions, such as the Aberdeen Proving Grounds, the University of Michigan, the Signal Laboratory, the General Electric Company, the Air Force Cambridge Research Center, the California Institute of Technology, and the Harvard Observatory. The document notes that the panel has no official connection with any department of defense or agency, though it is informally supported by the Office of Naval Research. The meeting included attendees from the United States Army, the Office of Naval Research, the Aerophysics Development Corporation, the Air Force, NACA, and the National Science Foundation. Dr. Van Allen led a discussion on the history of rocket research, specifically detailing the performance of the V-2 rocket and the Viking rocket, noting their respective payload capacities and altitude achievements.