A Government-to-Government agreement comes into effect between Norway and the USA.
The agreement came into effect on June 15th and formed the basis for the construction and subsequent operation of a large seismic array facility in Norway. NORSAR was established, and the construction of the NOA seismic array near Hamar in southeast Norway started. The array was completed in 1970.
The agreement was based on an exchange of notes between the American Ambassador to Norway Margaret Joy Tibbets and the Norwegian Minister for Foreign Affairs John Lyng and formed the basis for the construction.
The agreement specified that the purpose of the installation was to be seismological research and experimentation, primarily in the field of detection seismology. At the same time the agreement provided that the facility could be used for independent research at the discretion of the Norwegian government. A framework for funding the construction and operation of the array facilities was also specified.
Cooperating agencies were authorized on both sides to conclude administrative agreements to carry out the details of the agreement. The cooperating agency for the United States was the Advanced Research Projects Agency, while for Norway the cooperating agency during construction of the NORSAR large-aperture array was the Norwegian Defense Research Establishment (NDRE), while the Royal Norwegian Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (NTNF) was chosen in 1970 as the cooperating agency for management of the facility. This responsibility was transferred in 1993 to the Research Council of Norway, and in 1999 to the independent foundation NORSAR.
The agreement will remain in force until terminated by either government after giving a one-year written notice of intent to terminate to the other party.