8

FLIGHT International, 4 January 196. lead to a more rational use of resources. Experience from tht International Geophysical Year had shown that such peacefu co-operation among States was wholly possible. On the one hand isolated activities of States could be quite harmful, and the speake did not fail to quote as an example the West Ford project, unde which the United States launched into space 350m copper needle? This unagreed-upon project, Mr Zorin commented, had beei condemned by international bodies as dangerous to future cosmo nauts. On the other hand, a non-governmental Committee on Spact Research and a conference on exploration of the Antarctic hac yielded positive results. Incidentally, both had based their work or the principle of unanimitywas not this also possible for outei space, the speaker asked ? Mr Zorin hoped that "agreed decisions' would be taken by the Assembly on the work and composition of the committee reflecting the "deep changes in international life." The United Kingdom delegate, Sir Patrick Dean, spoke of some of the challenges, including legal problems, faced as a result of exploring outer space. An apparatus for international co-operation was now needed, Sir Patrick contended, and some organizations were already working on an international basis. Bilateral arrangements were also important, and the speaker cited co-operation between the United States and the United Kingdom, as a result of which, he hoped, there might soon be a British spacecraft in orbit. While Sir Patrick thought that a legal regime must be established step by step for control over outer space, a comprehensive code of law was not yet practical. The first principle which he said could be established now would be recognition that international law, including the United Nations Charter, applied to outer space; and the second would be that outer space and celestial bodies were available to all nations and not subject to national appropriation. These basic conclusions, expressed by the USA, the Soviet Union and Britain seemed to set the general tone of the discussion. The viewpoints expressed subsequently by delegates from 15 other countries will be reported in the second and final instalment of this article. (To be concluded)

Missiles and Spaceflight. . .

terms of the amended resolution allowed the committee to get to work on the basis of "mutual understanding." Senator Alfred J . Brooks of Canada followed his US colleague by stressing the need for outer space to be under the rule of law. The spectre of a struggle between the two giants over outer space must be done away with. With lawful controls and the rule of reason, space could bring benefits to man and would hold great promise for his children. As to the "essentially negative" military side of the space problem, the Canadian delegate noted that the disarmament plans of both the US and the USSR sought to prevent the use of outer space for warlike purposes. Canada looked for the prohibition of all military use of outer space, under effective safeguards. Their common objective was to head off international rivalry and develop co-operation. Then came the turn of Valerian A. Zorin of the Soviet Union. An age-old dream had become a reality on April 12, he said, when a Soviet citizen had circled the Earth. Science and technology were solving ever more complex problems of outer space, such as photographing the far side of the Moon, and the day was not far removed when spaceships would blaze trails to the Moon, Mars and Venus. Such endeavours would enable scientists to find out if there was life on other planets, Mr Zorin went on. It would also help in certain secondary problems such as aid to the economic development of both underdeveloped and developed countries. Permanent Earth-orbiting sputniks would help to solve navigational problems, and lower-altitude sputniks could help in weather forecasting He reminded the committee that Mr Khrushchev had said that Maj Gagarin had flown through space as a messenger of peace to all countries, and that the scientific discoveries would be the property of all humanity. Mr Zorin went on to say that outer-space exploration, by its very nature, should be international. Moreover, future cosmic exploration would be grandiose and expensive, but co-operation would

Peaceful Uses of Outer Space continued %

appropriate with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, and other specialized agencies and governmental and non-governmental organizations, such as the International Council of Scientific Unions, to submit a report to its member governments and to the Economic and Social Council at its thirty-fourth session regarding appropriate organizational and financial arrangements to achieve these ends, with a view to their further consideration by the General Assembly at its seventeenth session; (3) Requests the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, as it deems appropriate, to review this report and submit its contents and recommendations to the Economic and Social Council and to the General Assembly. from Member States for technical and other assistance for the survey of their communication needs and for the development of their domestic communication facilities so that they may make effective use of space communication; (5) Requests the International Telecommunication Union, consulting as appropriate with Member States, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, and other appropriate specialized agencies and governmental and non-governmental organizations, such as the Committee on Space Research of the International Council of Scientific Unions, to submit a report on the implementation of these proposals to the Economic and Social Council at its thirty-fourth session and to the General Assembly at its seventeenth session; (6) Requests the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, as it deems appropriate, to review this report and submit its comments and recommendations to the Economic and Social Council and the General Assembly.

D
The General Assembly, Believing that communication by means of satellites should be available to the nations of the world as soon as practicable on a global and non-discriminatory basis, Convinced of the need to prepare the way for the establishment of effective operational satellite communication, (1) Notes with satisfaction that the International Telecommunication Union plans to call a special conference in 1963 to make allocations of radio frequency bands for outer space activities; (2) Recommends that the International Telecommunication Union consider at this conference those aspects of space communication in which international co-operation will be required; (3) Notes the potential importance of communication satellites for use by the United Nations and its principal organs and specialized agencies for both operational and informational requirements; (4) Invites the Expanded Programme of Technical Assistance and the United Nations Special Fund in consultation with the International Telecommunication Union to give sympathetic consideration to requests

E
The General Assembly, Recalling its resolution 1472 (XIV) of December 12, 1959, Noting that the membership of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space expires at the end of 1961, Noting the report of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (A/4987), (1) Decides to continue the membership of the Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space as contained in resolution 1472 (XIV) and to add Chad, Morocco, Mongolian People's Republic and Sierra Leone, to its membership in recognition of the increased membership of the United Nations since the Committee was established: (2) Requests the Committee to meet not later than March 31, 1962, to carry out its mandate as contained in resolution 1472 (XIV) and to review the activities provided for in this resolution and to make such reports as it may consider appropriate.