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Dick Rebbeck, our agriculture and conservation editor, has a feature story and also included is a reprint from the Minneapolis Tribune by Victor Cohn. I hope they will be helpful.

In this area of the United States, as in many other regions, proper rainfall is of basic importance in the harvesting of a successful and useful crop. On the other hand a single hailstorm can wipe out a ready-to-harvest crop and spell failure for not only the farmer or rancher who owns it but the hundreds and hundreds of others who are dependent on it.

Crop production in South Dakota, for example, ranks in the top 10 States in a number of the most important crops in the Nation. (The source of the facts I am quoting from include: The Rapid City Journal's Market Guide; the information book of the Western South Dakota Development Co.; Crop Reporting Service Bulletin; South Dakota Agriculture, 1964; Agricultural Statistics, 1964-65.) South Dakota is 2d in production of rye, flaxseed and sweet clover seed, 3d in wild hay and other spring wheat, 4th in Durum wheat and smooth bromegrass seed, 5th in oats and crested wheat grass seed, 8th in all hay production, 9th sorghum grain and alfalfa seed, and 10th in alfalfa hay.

As of January 1, 1965, there were more than 4,250,000 cattle and calves in South Dakota, which was an increase of 5 percent over the previous year and placed the State in ninth position. The more than 1,750,000 beef cows on the same day placed the State fourth in the Nation. Many other States in our region have as high or higher rankings in livestock and poultry in South Dakota which volume is $585 million.

These two crop production and livestock raising-go hand in hand. Each depends on the other. And both depend largely on the weather. A poor year for one often means a poor year for the other. In 1964, for example, South Dakota cash farm income was $706 million compared with $718 million the previous year of 1963. Much of the drop, according to the Market Guide, "depends on the weather." That is where I have to do some curbstone quarterback secondguessing. But if weather modification research had progressed far enough so that they could do just 5 percent more than now, it would be possible that the manipulation of our "weather" could have produced a 5-percent increase in farm income instead of the loss. That would have meant instead of a $12 million loss a $36 million gain and you can see what that would do to the economy. After an increase like that the other things follow like lower prices in grocery and meat stores, a healthier and more nutritiously fed American populace, and the other theoretical aspects that could be tied to it.

Reducing a devastating hailstorm to a helpful and nourishing rainfall can mean millions in the crop producing States of our country. The Institute of Atmospheric Sciences has come quite a distance in the study of weather. The expansion of its work should be of more help for the entire multistate Great Plains region. Other regional institutes would benefit and grow in importance to the country's economy. There was a great deal of speculation and disbelief at one time in whether or not humans could reach the moon. Research has dispelled this doubt. What Dick Tracy is writing for our amusement and relaxation can become fact.

What Athelstan Spilhaus, dean, University of Minnesota Institute of Technology, portrayed in yesterday's Minneapolis Tribune comic section in using lightning to control rainfall can't be brushed aside either. The city of Minneapolis, for example, predicts that if the water pollution problem isn't solved that their fresh water supply will be depleted, or polluted, by 1980-just a few years away. Now, if the work of Dr. Schleusener and his staff at the Institute of Atmospheric Sciences can continue their present progress with the greatly increased help from Senate bill 2875, the accelerated program has a fine chance of producing near-miracles.

The Nation would be high in their praise of the Bureau of Reclamation-and it would make the Bureau happy, too-if a nice, heavy rain cloud could be guided onto another "flight path" and guided over a reservoir and then stopped so that it could unload enough water from the atmosphere to bring the reservoir to its desired level. Two satellites now are sending pictures back to the ground on the position of clouds. Perhaps one day soon it will be standard procedure for certain commercial scheduled airline flights to have as one of their jobs the reporting of various types of cloud formations and their position so that they can be directed to localities that need the help.

Scientists can do almost anything with the proper encouragement and this bill does just that, it seems to me. The National Academy of Sciences, the National Science Foundation, and many other fine groups and organizations see a future in research on weather modification. Regional institutes strategically set would be in a position to do a lot for the economy.

The current issue of the Saturday Review carries an article by John Lear, their science editor, titled "Shepherding the Wind" in which he states that "the emphasis is on the technology-the doing of itrather than an scientific explication of the natural laws involved in the process." Dr. Schleusener's institute is doing just that. Others, I am sure, are close behind in several other parts of the country.

Certainly, a substantial increase in appropriations for weather modification research can hasten and enrich the benefits from the research. The Institute of Atmospheric Sciences, located here near the heart of the United States at the school of mines and technology, is moving forward markedly. From June 10 to July 10 some 50 scientists representing 17 different groups will be making news as they work together on study of hail suppression techniques in a program called "Operation Hailswath." This can be a real stepping stone.

A Journal editorial said on May 11, 1965:

*** No

Work on weather modification started more than a decade ago. miracle is anticipated, but everyone should be interested in the program for weather research. *** Funds for the research allotted here so far perhaps merely equal the damage in the immediate area. *** It's time that more people pay attention to the potential of preventing—at least reducing-the storm havoc. If we can gain rain at the right time, that will be good. Weather modification research has been urged by South Dakota's congressmen for years. Stormstricken citizens in other areas might be advised that help could be forthcoming in the future if their congressmen planned for the future.

Your committee members are interested. That is proven. South Dakota's active interest began with Senator Francis Case along with South Dakota-born Senator Clinton Anderson, now from New Mexico, and I am glad to see it continue with the very active interest of you,

Senator McGovern, and your colleague, Senator Karl Mundt. We hope that the committee report will be most favorable and that it will aid in passage of 2875 soon. Regional centers are necessary for complete study of weather modification, but with the seeming headstart here it just might be good to have the institute here designated as at least the "training capitol" for all other regional institutes.

Thank you for permitting me the opportunity to bring some of these points to your attention from a layman who is intensely interested in the future betterment of our country.

Senator MCGOVERN. Thank you very much, Mr. Brown. That was an excellent statement. Beyond that I think we are all indebteded to you and the Rapid City Journal for your editorial coverage and the news coverage of developments in this field. I don't have to tell you that the best project in the world can be blocked or can be hampered, slowed down, by ignorance on the part of the general public, so I think the press has an enormously important role to play in moving these projects along. I am wondering what you, yourself, believe as a layman, one who watches these things closely, what you believe the public attitude is in this region toward the general objectives of the Senate bill that we are now considering.

Mr. BROWN. Discussions have had quite a bit of impetus from the chamber of commerce and with the combination and you gentlemen coming and with the institute here at the school, a great many people have learned a great deal more about the subject recently. And as a result, not only the coffee talk but a lot of business discussions and dinnertime chatter has become serious on the matter of weather modification and upon this Senate bill. People are extremely interested and hopeful that it will pass. That is the general feeling, the general tempo that I pick up.

Senator McGOVERN. You may recall that when Senator Symington was here last November he made the statement that the School of Mines, the work that they are doing in a number of fields, and the potential of this institute probably constitutes the most valuable resource that we have in the Rapid City area. What is your feeling about the public attitude toward the school and specifically toward the Institute of Atmospheric Sciences?

Mr. BROWN. The attitude toward the school is one of extreme interest, one of extreme importance to the State of South Dakota in particular. Of course, it can do much for the entire country, and, from the number of students who are learning technology here, it can do much for the rest of the world because there are quite a number of students enrolled here who will be going back to their countries in Asia and Europe and take back the knowledge that they have learned here. The people of the State are extremely interested in the wellbeing and future growth of the School of Mines and technology. The attitude of the townspeople is excellent toward it, they hope that it will grow. Everybody is happy that their children will be able to take an enriched course in liberal arts and sciences here, and have the opportunity of going on after 2 years, to get their bachelor's degrees in other State colleges. Generally the feeling that I have heard in the past year has been extremely good on President Partlo's school.

And as far as the Institute of Atmospheric Sciences is concerned, it is a thrilling note to a lot of people here in town and this area- the

Black Hills area, the West River area, including part of Wyoming, too-to know that all of this information is being gathered and pushed forward and made so important in our scheme of life and the economy of our particular region.

Senator MCGOVERN. Thank you very much. Senator Moss, do you have any questions?

Senator Moss. Well, I, too, congratulate Mr. Brown for his testimony and I echo what the chairman said about the importance of having public understanding and public awareness of a program such as this. I am glad to have you know that people are less likely now to shrug it off as some impossible thing by your reference to Dick Tracy and Buck Rogers before him. So many of their exploits are now almost commonplace with us that it is recognized now there are tremendous areas of possibility and nobody dares say now we can't do it. We can direct enough of our energy and resources and materials to get the job done. I think what we are saying, too, in part, is that we have to devote enough of our resources to support our scientific effort to make a meaningful advance here. In a position such as Senator McGovern and I have, we are constantly being told that we must stop all nonessential spending. The point is, is this nonessential or is it essential? And that is the part I think you have told us about.

Mr. BROWN. I have "letters to the editor" from people, and places almost unknown, so that they are reading and understanding and interested in the entire program.

Senator MCGOVERN. Thank you very much, Mr. Brown. I want, before we break for noon lunch, to take this opportunity to thank President Partlo and the members of the staff of the School of Mines and Technology on hosting this conclave, for providing the comfortable and excellent facilities that we have available to us. Our hosts have a registration book just outside the door which they would like everyone to sign and I am personally hopeful that you will do that, because we would like to send everyone here a copy of these hearings, not only the testimony taken here today but the testimony taken previously in Washington and the testimony that will be taken at Albuquerque on Thursday of this week. So we will now break. We will come back and resume our hearing after lunch in this same room at 1:45. Thank you very much.

(Whereupon the hearing was recessed to reconvene at 1:45 p.m.)

AFTERNOON SESSION

Senator McGOVERN. Gentlemen: Senator Metcalf and Senator Burdick, who left a while ago, were grounded and unable to reach their destination. Senator Burdick will be back with us in a few minutes. Senator Metcalf has taken off by car to Montana, but if there is anyone here in the room who knows of anyone who is driving by car to the eastern part of the State this afternoon, Senator Burdick is very anxious to be on his way. He has to try to be in Fargo sometime tonight, if possible, so anyone who has any knowledge of a car that is going over that way please let us know. We will see that Senator Burdick gets the information.

The first witness this afternoon is Mr. Lewis Grant of the Department of Meteorolgy of Colorado State University, Fort Collins. Is

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Mr. Grant here? We would be glad to hear you at this time, Mr. Grant.

Although Senator Mundt is not a member of the Interior and Insular Affairs Committee, I extended him an invitation to be with us for these hearings. He was unable to accept because of a longstanding commitment that he had elsewhere, but he did want me to bring his greetings to those present.

Mr. Grant?

STATEMENT OF LEWIS GRANT, DEPARTMENT OF METEOROLOGY, COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY

Mr. GRANT. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. My research at Colorado State University is directly concerned with physical and statistical studies of Rocky Mountain orographic clouds and their modification. My field studies have been carried out in the central Colorado Rockies and have been in progress since 1960. I have been continuously concerned with weather modification since 1948, first as a graduate student at California Technical, subsequently with a commercial seeding concern, and with Colorado State University since 1959. My comments are concerned with the complexity of weather modification and with approaches for obtaining engineering know-how for the rapid development of operational programs.

Background. The demonstration in 1946 by the General Electric group that clouds could be modified was followed in rapid succession by a number of advances in the general understanding of cloud processes and the technology of their modification. It appeared by the late 1940's that this start would be rapidly exploited and that the physical demonstration that clouds can be modified would develop into practical weather modification. Interest did not lag and weather modification activities were continued by basic researchers and Government agencies and to a larger extent by private commercial groups. The rapid technological advances of the late 1940's, however, did not continue. The General Electric group had taken a preliminary look into many, if not most, of the interesting avenues of approach. Further development, however, was found to be extremely involved and complex.

Private seeding operators were primarily concerned with development work that would lead to practical uses and all groups, both research and private interests, were confronted with the evaluation problem to determine actual results of seeding. If precipitation increases from seeding were of the order of 100 percent, 50 percent, or even 25 percent, they could be readily determined. It is apparent that they are generally smaller than this and extremely hard to distinguish from natural variations in precipitation. The private seeding operator has found that while his interest is great, his resources are insufficient to look into the complex physical problems involved.

Steady scientific advances in cloud physics have come from the scientific community but during the 1950's, these investigations were not, in general, directed principally to the basic and immediate problems associated with weather modification. The slow progress in weather modification was apparent by the mid-1950's and on the recommendation of a number of groups and committees, the National

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