“The little northern town of Bergen, sea-port, Ellingsen Gunnar Hornnes Rune Vollset Magnus Calculating the World The history of geophysics fishing-haven, market town, has done more for as seen from Bergen science in the last two or three generations than many – not to say most – university towns.” (Nature, July 21, 1928). Bergen, in Western Norway, is the birthplace of modern weather forecasting and of physical oceanography. It has been a center for daring polar expeditions, for NATO research and for climate modeling. In 2017, the internationally oriented Geophysical Institute celebrated its 100th anniversary. This book tells the scientific history of geophysics as seen from Bergen. Calculating the World the Calculating as seen from Bergen from as seen of geophysics history The Magnus Vollset is a historian and researcher at the University of Bergen. His research interests include transnational history and the history of meteorology. Gunnar Ellingsen is a historian, and the director of the Norwegian Fisheries Museum. His research interests include the history of oceanography and meteorology. ISBN: 978-82-450-2197-4 Rune Hornnes is a historian and researcher at the Magnus Vollset University of Bergen. He has also worked with the Rune Hornnes history of fisheries management. Gunnar Ellingsen 12121 Calculating the World Cover_02.indd 2,6 06.07.2018 14:36 Calculating the World Magnus Vollset, Rune Hornnes, Gunnar Ellingsen Calculating the World The history of geophysics as seen from Bergen Foreword Ten years ago, the (Norwegian) book I vinden was published in con- nection with the Geophysical Institute’s 90th anniversary. Historical material about the Institute has been published in other books previ- ously. For some of us, at least, it was therefore unclear whether new perspectives on our history could be written a relatively short time after 2007. However, during the work with the last book, which focused on institutional history, it became evident that the Institute has a science history that is not well known and definitely deserves to be publicized. This is what the present book, Calculating the World, sets out to do. Here, the main topics are concentrated on activities, theories, instru- ments and interaction between staff at the Geophysical Institute and other geophysical communities. When the Geophysical Institute was founded, a pioneering era in geophysics was taking place internationally. Several breakthroughs were made, including some very important ones by the small, newly established institute in Bergen that was funded mainly by private donations from local citizens. It is quite remarkable that within this institute, solutions were discovered for scientific problems that have puzzled mankind for generations. Initially, the Geophysical Institute was an independent body, and its leaders made a deliberate decision not to engage in teaching. Today, as a university department, we do conduct extensive teaching activities in meteorology, oceanography, climate dynamics, biogeochemistry and, recently, renewable energy (related to solar wind and water). Approximately 130 students are affiliated with the Institute today, dis- tributed among our various bachelor’s and master’s programs. Teach- 5 ing is vital for our development, and it is a great responsibility to be chosen by young talented people to give them an education. We believe their competence is important for society, and we will work to recruit even more students in the years to come. Compared to the pioneering era, there are additional and different overall drivers behind the development of the academic community in geophysics today. Modern technology and infrastructure drive a demand for forecasting services of a much greater variety and com- plexity than before. This presents us with a serious challenge. Even more important is that our global environment and ecological systems are approaching stress levels that can be critical due to the climate challenge, resource shortages, ocean acidification, and environmen- tal pollution, to name the most important factors. Knowledge and its applications in geophysics are central components in finding solutions to develop a more sustainable society. With increased demands, it is satisfying to observe considerable growth in the Institute’s activities over the last few decades. At present, we number approximately 120 employees from 20 nations working in various areas, and we have a productive and dynamic collaboration with the other partners in the Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research (UniRes, the Nansen Centre, and the Institute of Marine Research). This is indeed worth celebrating, and I take this opportunity to congratulate staff and students at the Geophysical Institute with the anniversary and with this book, which you are a part of. At the same time, I would like to thank the University’s Rector, Dag Rune Olsen, for the financial contribution that made it possible to make this book project a reality. Lastly, I am very grateful to the three authors, espe- cially the main author, Magnus Vollset, for their valuable, efficient, and productive collaborative efforts. Bergen, May 2018 Nils Gunnar Kvamstø Head of the Geophysical Institute Acknowledgments The occasion for writing this book is the 100th anniversary of the Geo- physical Institute in Bergen. The authors are grateful for the economic support the Institute has provided, and the exemplary access, support and patience offered by the head of the Institute, Nils Gunnar Kvam- stø. Likewise, we wish to thank the members of the book committee, who have provided valuable feedback that has greatly improved the manuscript: Peter Mosby Haugan, Peder Roberts, Svein Atle Skålevåg, and Ellen Marie Viste. We also wish to acknowledge the Department of Archaeology, History, Cultural Studies and Religion (AHKR) for hosting the project, and the research group Health, Welfare and the History of Science for feedback during the process. Throughout the project, we have been met with open arms by geo- physicists who have shared their time and expertise, when giving inter- views, answering questions over the phone and by email, commenting on drafts, and providing access to source material. We are grateful for your generous help and guidance: Lennart Bengtsson, Helge Drange, Anton Eliassen, Arne Foldvik, Gunnar Furnes, Tor Gammelsrød, Yngvar Gjessing, Sigbjørn Grønås, Eystein Jansen, Ola M. Johannes- sen, Thor Kvinge, Erland Källén, Steinar Myking, Karsten Storetvedt, Svein Sundby and Svein Østerhus. We would also like to thank those who have helped us to gain access to images: Marianne Økland Borge, Frank Cleveland, Ilker Fer, Arne Foldvik, Ola. M. Johannessen, Moss Kunstforening, Nils Gunnar Kvamstø, Algot Kristoffer Peterson, Lasse H. Pettersson, and Ola Søndenå. Finally, we wish to thank the archivists, librarians and others who have helped us to gain access to sources and literature that would other- 7 wise have been unavailable, in particular Ola Søndenå at the University of Bergen Library, who catalogued the archives from the Geophysical Institute while this project was taking place; Berit Bjørndal, who orga- nized access to the troves of documents hidden in the Institute’s attic; and Kjersti Dahle at the University’s Division of Human Resources for providing access to newer source material. We are also grateful for valuable feedback from an anonymous reviewer. Bergen, March 2018 Gunnar Ellingsen, Rune Hornnes, Magnus Vollset Contents Foreword 5 Acknowledgments 7 1 Calculating the world 11 The third in the world 15 The chapters 18 2 The first Bergen school 23 A Norwegian Challenger 25 Into the Arctic unknown 34 Going high and low with the circulation theorem 37 The Bergen school of oceanography 44 Drifting apart 53 3 Useful curiosity 55 Institutionalizing Norwegian geophysics 57 The Bergen school of meteorology 60 The salt works 70 Connecting the dots in climate variations 72 A center for collaboration 78 Seven years in the ice 81 The curious case of the “Nansen monument” 87 A geophysical capital 91 4 Moving in and moving on 93 Under the same roof 94 Helland-Hansen’s big project 96 Bjerknes reaches for the skies 103 From geomagnetism to particle physics 107 The instrument maker 113 Moving on and opening doors 118 Working together? 122 5 The ocean and atmosphere as field 125 The field in oceanography and meteorology 127 A glimpse out on the ocean – the Armauer Hansen 129 The field person 132 Observing westward and upward 136 Much ado about balloons 137 6 The oceans under surveillance 143 A new dawn 145 A new leader for a new age 148 Of ships and men 151 Oceanography internationally 155 Tools for a new age 159 Hunting submarines? 165 Guests and destinations 167 Local collaboration – or lack thereof 171 Publication practices 174 The Helland Hansen sinks 243 An oceanographic transformation 245 7 Matters of scale in meteorology and earth physics 247 A farewell to forecasting 249 Postwar expansion of weather forecasting 252 Turning to the local 257 Let the machine do the calculations? 264 A matter of prestige 267 Introducing geological time 271 8 New ways of organizing geophysical research 279 Interdisciplinary collaboration and contract research 281 Economic realities versus economistic ideologies 283 A call for useful research 289 How to achieve “further progress” in ocean studies 291 A new site for geophysical knowledge production 293 Chasing external funding 300 The Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research 302 Adding events and sites 306 9 Geophysics in the age of climate change 309 Global warming becomes a matter of concern 310 Entering the niche of interdisciplinary climate research 313 Building and coupling models 318 Reaching up, reaching out 320 Can CO2 be drowned in the sea? 322 Where to locate offshore windmills 327 Remaining on top? 330 A crisis of credibility? 331 10 Reflections 335 The Bergen school remembering itself 337 Striking continuities 345 Nature is also acting 350 Motivations and publications 352 Making the invisible visible 354 Appendix 357 Bibliography 358 Notes 379 Index 412 1 Calculating the world The North Sea, July 9th, 1922: the research vessel Armauer Hansen is almost back in Bergen, a city on the west coast of Norway, after two and half months at sea.