[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 73 (Tuesday, June 9, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1067]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   RECOGNIZING THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE NAVAL RESEARCH LABORATORY

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                            HON. IKE SKELTON

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 9, 1998

  Mr. SKELTON. Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for me to bring to the 
attention of the House of Representatives and the American public the 
distinguished contributions of the Naval Research Laboratory on the 
occasion of its seventy-fifth anniversary.
  The Naval Research Laboratory was officially founded in Washington, 
District of Columbia on July 2, 1923 after Thomas Alva Edison 
recommended that a modern research facility for the Navy be 
established. In the following seven decades, research efforts have 
expanded from the two original areas of scientific endeavor--radio and 
underwater sound--to nineteen broad areas that encompass many diverse 
fields.
  The Naval Research Laboratory's early research achievements include 
the discovery and explanation of radio skip distance, the development 
of the fathometer and early sonar, and the development of the first 
operational American radar.
  During World War II, the Naval Research Laboratory's scientific 
activities focused on applied research in direct support of combat 
forces. The Laboratory devised ship electronic countermeasure systems, 
developed the first application of cryptography in radar 
identification, and invented the first Identification Friend or Foe 
(IFF) radio system in the United States.
  After World War II, the Naval Research Laboratory greatly expanded 
its pre-war research program in radio, radar, underwater sound, 
chemistry, metallurgy, optics, nuclear science, and cosmic rays.
  The naval Research Laboratory pioneered naval research into space 
launching atmospheric probes with V-2 rockets through the direction of 
the Vanguard project--America's first satellite program. The Laboratory 
also produced the first satellite communication system by using the 
moon as a reflector and receiving the returned signals on the Earth's 
largest parabolic antenna. More recently, the Laboratory developed the 
Navy's Global Positioning System and built the Clementine satellite 
that conducted the most comprehensive lunar mapping to date. Since the 
late 1950's, the Naval Research Laboratory's scientists and engineers 
have designed, built, and launched more than 80 satellites that have 
expanded our understanding of the vast frontier of space.
  The Naval Research Laboratory's facility for the Structure of Matter 
has become internationally famous for its groundbreaking work in using 
electron and x-ray diffraction methods for understanding the structure 
of complicated organic molecules. For his work in this field, the 
Laboratory's Dr. Jerome Karle received the 1985 Nobel Prize in 
Chemistry.
  The Naval Research Laboratory's current research program spans the 
scientific spectrum--including studies in areas such as advanced 
materials technology, electronic warfare, infrared countermeasures, 
fire suppression, information technology, radar technology, monitoring 
the solar corona and its impact on the Earth's atmosphere, biomolecular 
engineering, artificial intelligence, remote sensing, meteorology, and 
oceanography.
  Today, the Naval Research Laboratory is well-positioned to enter the 
21st century with a strong technical program and all the tools 
necessary to continue its mission as the United States Navy's corporate 
laboratory.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to recognize the Naval Research Laboratory, 
and I am certain that the Members of the House will join me in 
congratulating this distinguished research institution on the 
celebration of 75 years of scientific achievement.

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