U.S. Army Chemical Corps Research and Development Command

U.S. ARMY BIOLOGICAL WARFARE LABORATORIES
Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland

CHIP D-Ba+LO-FD 21 April 1960

Dr. Joshua Lederberg
Genetics Department
Stanford University
Stanford, California

Dear br. Lederberg:

A little more information is available on the automatic collecting
system used in the BW aerosol warning device about which I wrote to you
earlier, and I am passing this along. There may be some principles here
which would be applicable to remote investigation of particles in
planetary atmospheres. ‘ve would be delighted to furnish all information
we heve on this or other devices to any group you may have working on
your problem.

iy, Arthur Rawson, the engineer in this division concerned with
the development of this device, asked if you are acquainted with Dr. Per
Scholander of the Oceanographic Institute in La Jolla. Mr. fawson
reports that Scholander has. devised some excellent equipment for micro-
analysis.

I appreciate the clinping you sent concerning the infra-red detecting
device developed at the Army Chemical Center. “We had a parallel interest
in this device and as a matter of fact had a considerably more sensitive
version of it constructed for our own experimental program. we had hoped
we could determine proteinaceous material in the air with it but the
adsorption bands for protein in the infra-red are not too strongand the
concentrations we were interested in were much lower than the concentrations
needed for CW agents. I think the infra-red adsorption principle could
have application in determination of planetary atmospheres and the like,
but we would be a little loath to depend upon it for a determination of
the presence of airborne biological matter.

The NASA has cleared my talk for presentation at the SAB provided
I say that they are "interested" in space vehicle sterilization rather
than this is their "policy". I am sending along a copy of this paper
in which you mey be interested. I felt that even befcre such a group as
the SAB, one could not discuss how one might sterilize space vehicles
without taking up the question of "why do it" first. 1 have borrowed
quite heavily from you in this discussion and would appreciate any
comments you may care to make. I hope IJ am not misquoting your thinking
in this matter.

 
CMIRD-EW~10-PD 21 April 1960

We have really done nothing cn the question of the effect of extremely
high vacuum on bacteria except talk some more about it. I still think
that it would be interesting tc perform the experiment some time, just as
Becqueral expesed bacteria to temperatures within a fraction of a degree
ef absolute zero. Dr. Urey is probably right in that we would likely find
no unexpected vacuum effect, just as Becqueral found no unusual cold effect,
but it would tidy up the record. JI tried to interest Ur. Krauss of the
University of Maryland in the experiment, since he is already planning an
experinent to see whether or not mold spores would grow in outer space, but
i am afraid i: didn't get very far. His equipment is just about constructed
and cannot be readily adapted to perform a vacuum experiment.

Sincerely,

Chale

2 Incl CHARLES R. PHILLIPS
Chief, Physical Defense Division