to reach present concentrations in just a few million years. Over the long history of the earth, the concentration would have risen far above current levels unless there was some mechanism by which helium "leaks" away into space. Now that the NBS research has shown that the mechanism (neutralization of helium ions by reaction with oxygen) thought to cause this leakage cannot accomplish it, geophysicists will have to reconsider many beliefs about the history and development of our planet. The findings even suggest that some catastrophic event occurred in the past few million years which boiled off part of the earth's atmosphere. Plasma Theory Aids Ionosphere Study.-A general theory of plasma fluctuations, developed in the plasma physics program, provides a broad and rigorous basis for interpreting measurements of the ionosphere by scattering and radiation emission techniques. The plasma physics program is one of the few in the nation that ties in directly with environmental and telecommunications sciences and consequently contributes to understanding the properties and behavior of the ionosphere and interplanetary media. Infrared Properties of the Atmosphere.—Analyzing infrared properties of the atmosphere has provided a more thorough and exact understanding of its absorption characteristics. Theoretical studies of the absorption characteristics of water vapor and carbon dioxide in the infrared spectrum were conducted in great detail and were found to be in excellent agreement with controlled laboratory experiments. Continuing efforts in this area are enlarging the knowledge available on other infrared spectral regions of the major atmospheric absorption components. APPENDIXES ORGANIZATION OF THE NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS * The Bureau is headed by a Director who is appointed with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Director is assisted in the ovarall management of the Bureau by a Deputy Director. In addition, there are three Associate Directors and a Manager of the Boulder Laboratories who are responsible for the planning and operation of various technical and administrative management services in support of the Bureau's technical programs. Technical program activities are conducted in four major organizational units known generally as Institutes. Each is headed by an Institute Director who is responsible for the development and direction of research programs and central national services essential to the fulfillment of a broad segment of the Bureau's mission. These major organizational units are: (1) The Institute for Basic Standards, which includes 13 divisions (4) in Boulder, Colo.), each serving a classical subject matter area of science and engineering; (2) The Institute for Materials Research, which consists of 7 divisions (1 in Boulder, Colo.), organized primarily by technical field; (3) The Institute for Applied Technology, which includes 12 industryoriented divisions; and (4) The Central Radio Propagation Laboratory, which comprises a series of four divisions located at Boulder, Colo. DIRECTOR DEPUTY DIRECTOR I. C. SCHOONOVER Assistant to the Deputy Director OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR C. N. COATES W. H. GAMMON *As of June 30, 1965 Institute for Basic Standards The Institute for Basic Standards provides the central basis within the United States for a complete and consistent system of physical measurement and coordinates that system with the measurement systems of other nations. The Institute is also responsible for measuring the physical constants and properties of matter. In doing so, it is able to provide more accurate determinations of the basic and derived standards, to provide new and improved calibration services and reference data, and to monitor and check the measurement system. IBS disseminates measurement capability by calibrating master standards for other standards laboratories, by aiding and advising measurement centers and by providing means for self-calibration. An additional important responsibility of the Institute is the operation of the Office of Standard Reference Data which coordinates the National Standard Reference Data Program and provides a national file of critically evaluated data in the physical sciences. INSTITUTE FOR BASIC STANDARDS Director R. D. HUNTOON MECHANICS Mechanical Measurements Vacuum Measurements Vibration Measurements ATOMIC PHYSICS Spectroscopy Infrared and Microwave Far Ultraviolet Physics Plasma Spectroscopy PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY Thermochemistry Radiation Chemistry LABORATORY ASTROPHYSICS * RADIATION PHYSICS Radiological Physics X-ray Standards Radioactivity |