TOP SECRET 3. PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS OF LAUNCHINGS OF U. S. SCIENTIFIC SATELLITES Growing out of the discussion of the previous item, Secretary Dulles said that he was about to be obliged to leave the meeting, and before doing so he had a word to say about the postponement yesterday of our attempt to launch our first scientific satellite. He earnestly hoped that in the future we would not announce the date, the hour, and indeed the minute, that we were proposing to launch our earth satellite, until the satellite was successfully in orbit. Speaking very earnestly, Secretary Dulles said the effect of the publicity of the last few days, culminating in the final decision to postpone the attempt to launch our first earth satellite, had had a terrible effect on the foreign relations of the United States. The President commented that he was all for stopping such unfortunate publicity, but he had no idea how we could stop it. Secretary Quarles then undertook to explain what had hap- pened yesterday. He stated that we were, in a sense, hoist by our own petard. We had in our earth satellite program dedicated ourselves from the beginning to work upon this program as a scientific experiment. We had accordingly promised the IGY scientists throughout the world that we would inform them when we proposed to try to launch our earth satellite and to give them all the desired informa- tion about it. It is too bad that yesterday's test had to be postponed, but we had promised the scientists of the world to inform them when we made our attempt to launch the satellite, so that they could all be ready at their various stations to receive the scientific data coming from the earth satellite. Secretary Quarles said that these remarks constituted not an excuse, but an explanation. Still speaking feelingly, Secretary Dulles asked whether we could not possibly avoid further announcements of launchings un- til we were assured that they were successful. Secretary Quarles replied that we could only do so by changing our policy with re- spect to the fundamental purposes of our scientific satellite program. Secretary Dulles commented that what had happened yesterday had been a disaster for the United States. The President inquired whether the scientists of the world would lose very much significant data if they were unaware that the REPRODUCED AT THE DWIGHT, D. EISENHOWER LIBRARY United States had actually successfully launched a scientific satellite until it had orbited the world at least once. Dr. Killian likewise inquired whether, in our next try to launch a satellite, we could not assure ourselves of its successful orbiting before we notified the world that we were attempting to launch such a satellite. -7- PURneeiOME RNINhy tet ee a x an we © 4 BOP SECRET, ole Ok cae ers