On frozen ground: William E. Davies and the military geology of northern Greenland 1952–1960

Abstract

This article discusses the nature of US scientific engagement with the soils and rocks of northern Greenland between 1946 and 1960. In the early phase of the Cold War, geological investigations in the region were almost entirely based on newfound US strategic interests, shaped by burgeoning fears of hostile confrontations with the Soviet Union across the Arctic. With the Danish extension of freedoms to US military actors in the region, geologists working for the Military Geology Branch of the USGS were enrolled in extensive investigations to address problems related to military engineering and strategic mobilization of ice-free lands along the North Greenland coast. Aiming to provide the scientific foundation for the establishment and expansion of military infrastructures from Thule to Station Nord, they took the first steps towards a quantified and interdisciplinary analysis of environmental characteristics and processes specific to the terrains of northern Greenland, and to Arctic regions more generally.