Introduction
The race to make advancements in science was an important aspect of the Cold War. Both East and West poured huge amounts of resources into research that they hoped would give them the edge over the enemy.
Not only did scientific developments have applications in creating advanced weaponry, they were also part of the psychological battle of the Cold War. The Space Race is a good example of this. The Soviet Union and the United States competed over who could make the most impressive public display of technological progress. The Soviet Union threw down the gauntlet with the launch of Sputnik in 1957 and the United States responded with the Apollo space programme, which eventually led to the moon landing of 1969. Scientific achievements were also put on display at international expositions. Alongside these very public gestures, a great deal of scientific research was kept secret. This was a crucial part of keeping one step ahead of the enemy.
Rocket technology
With every launch of a rocket or satellite during the Space Race, the Soviet Union and the United States were making statements about their military capability. Rockets could also be used as Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs). Sputnik was in fact launched using a converted intercontinental ballistic missile. Possessing ICBMs meant having the ability to launch a devastating attack on the enemy from a safe distance.
Although Britain did not have the resources of the Soviet Union and the United States, it did engage in rocket technology research. In the 1950s the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) at Farnborough had been working on components of the Blue Streak ballistic missile and the Black Knight rocket. Both programmes were eventually cancelled – Blue Streak due to doubts over its effectiveness as a deterrent and Black Knight because of financial limitations. In the mid 1960s, work began on the Black Arrow rocket which was developed as a satellite launcher. Its design was based on the Black Knight rocket and a great deal of the work was also carried out at the RAE.
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After several failed attempts, in October 1971 Black Arrow successfully launched Britain’s first satellite, Prospero, from Woomera in South Australia. Britain had become the sixth nation to launch a satellite. But despite the successful launch, the programme was cancelled, partly because of a lack of finances but also because of indecision regarding the future of independent British research into rocket technology. Britain became the first country to abandon the capability. Prospero remains in low orbit around the earth to this day.
Research at Porton Down
Porton Down is a government facility based in Wiltshire that was established in 1916 to carry out research into chemical weapons. It has since undergone several name changes. In 1916 it was called the ‘War Department Experimental Ground’. During the Cold War years, between 1948 and 1970, it was called the ‘Chemical Defence Experimental Establishment’ (CDEE), and between 1970 and 1991 the ‘Chemical Defence Establishment’ (CDE).
In 1951, the Microbiological Research Department, which had developed out of research during the Second World War, moved to a building next to the CDEE. In 1957, it became the Microbiological Research Establishment. It closed in 1979, and the CDE became responsible for both chemical and biological defence.
During the Cold War it was considered vital for Britain to develop chemical weapons, especially after the Soviets had dismantled and rebuilt the Dyhernfurth factory in the Soviet Union. The Nazis had used the factory to produce sarin and tabun during the Second World War and the British government concluded that the Soviets were doing the same.
All of the research at Porton Down was carried out with the utmost secrecy. An extensive range of trials involving sarin, hallucinogenic drugs, atropine, protective clothing and gas masks were conducted. Some of the trials used human test subjects and these led to much controversy. Until the 1980s, volunteers were recruited from the armed forces. Most were unaware of the dangers the tests posed to their health and some have since claimed that they were misled over the true nature of the trials.
In May 1953 an RAF engineer called Ronald Maddison died during tests at Porton Down. His death occurred forty five minutes after exposure to sarin. A closed inquest in 1953 concluded that his death was due to ‘misadventure’. The inquest into his death was reopened by a Wiltshire coroner in 2004 and a verdict of unlawful killing was returned.
At the same time, Wiltshire police carried out an investigation, Operation Antler, on thousands of Porton Down veterans. In 2007 a group of veterans launched a legal action against the Ministry of Defence. In 2008, the Ministry of Defence issued an apology and awarded over £8,000 each to 369 Porton Down veterans who suffered serious health problems due to the tests.
Science on display
International expositions were often used by both East and West to showcase their scientific achievements. They were presented as triumphs of ideology and were part of the psychological battle of the Cold War. When the Brussels Exposition was opened in 1958, the Soviet Union was ahead in the Space Race. Sputnik and Sputnik II had been launched the year before and formed an important part of the display in the Soviet pavilion. Models of the satellites were exhibited in the shadow of a large statue of Lenin. The United States answered the Soviet achievements in space with a display of sophisticated consumer goods that showed the benefits of the ‘American way of life’.
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At the exposition held in Montreal in 1967, visitors to the United States Pavilion rode a 40 feet elevator to the ‘Destination Moon’ display. The Americans had not yet reached the moon but the Apollo space programme was well under way. The display depicted the moon landscape with a lunar lander. The United States Pavilion showed that they had the ambition, vision and resources to win the Space Race.
Although Britain could not compete with the Soviet Union and the United States in the Space Race, the British Pavilion at Montreal 1967 featured the Olympus jet engine as an important technological achievement in the ‘Genius of Britain’ section. There was also a model of Concorde in the ‘Industrial Britain’ display.
At the exposition held in Osaka, Japan in 1970, it was the United States that could claim victory in the Space Race. Although the Soviet Pavilion had displays about space, it was the Americans who exhibited a piece of moon rock. The United States had clearly overtaken the Soviet Union.
