Introduction: Rise of Global Scientific Inquiry in the International Polar and Geophysical Years

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The fiftieth anniversary of the International Geophysical Year (IGY) and the opening of a fourth International Polar Year (IPY) in 2007 provided historians and other students of science and technology a unique opportunity to assess the origins and influence of past IPYs as organized international research efforts. An interdisciplinary conference at the Smithsonian Institution in the fall of 2007, in conjunction with the annual meeting of the History of Science Society, explored ways in which these collaborative scientific activities supported the growth of professionalism (both disciplinary and interdisciplinary) in science, and how they promoted international relations of science and of governments. Participation in polar collaborative research efforts left a marked impact on the state of scientific investigation beginning in the late nineteenth century, when the first IPY took place, and more recent efforts from the 1930s to 1950s have extended its effect. They have fostered a new structure for the conduct of investigations, for the analysis of scientific data, and for the incorporation of what has been learned into the corpus of world knowledge. At the same time, these international scientific efforts evoked a healthy dose of nationalism, imperialism, and diplomatic necessity. The merger of national interest with scientific curiosity represented one of the most significant outgrowths of these collaborations. As historian Allan A.