NAVAL DEFENCE RESEARCH

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27277, 18 February 1954, Page 9

NAVAL DEFENCE RESEARCH

BRITISH EXPERT IN CHRISTCHURCH

“SOME DEVICES MAY BE SUITABLE IN N.Z.”

"In the light of the advances possible for the defence of New Zealand I hope the country will be able to increase her .research and development effort in order to take advantage of these possibilities," said the chief of the Royal Naval Scientific Service (Mr W. R. J. Cook) yesterday. Mr Cook is in Christchurch in the course of a three weeks' tour of New Zealand scientific establishments. Yesterdav he visited Canterbury University College inspecting the National Enginerine School, the physics department, and the industrial development denari ment. ‘

“Research and development at Dresent cost a great deal, but the results far outweigh the costs,” Mr Cook said He was impressed, he said, by the possibilities in certain fields of naval do fence m New Zealand, and hoped to establish closer liaison between re search departments here and Britain.

•‘Under-water defence is a common problem made greater by war-time ad vances,” said Mr Cook. “Brita” has several important devices which would fiXS aPPliCable in Mr Cook said that before anv of these devices could be applied in New Zealand waters the type of water round the coast would have to be covered and classified. An under-water defence system depended on water conditions for the propagation of sound. It had been found in Britain that only investigations on the spot decided whether a particular device would be successful in various waters Mr Cook said. In this respect the survey frigate HM.N.Z.S. Lachlan wl doing invaluable work.

■Mr Cook praised the work of New Zealanders studying these problems in Britain. Mr B. A. Olsson, of the Dominion Physical Laboratory, who- re turned from service with defence research in Britain a few weeks ago, had contributed to a major device which was still on the secret list. There were

10 New Zealand scienBritain ng^dd n“ naval research in ability d 11 were of very high (? G °h has had discussions in New Staff n , d C„m‘ h C s ief ° £ ‘he NavS de?) ■£ “fttnodore Sir Charles Madaen), he has addressed naval staff officers and senior officers of the DeResearch en > tiftc and Ind ustrial Research, and he has visited Victoria burv e Tlno College as well as Canterbury University College. Today Mr Cook will visit the meteor S?!? arc ? Station a ,‘ Lincoln. He slid there was a relationship between and ocean °graphy—mainly the S™ ch £ nglng ot Energy between the atmosphere and the sea.