85
overwhelm me, then they certainly succeeded. It was clear that we were having humbly to negotiate with an astronomical superpower.
To quell the inferiority complex that was beginning to take possession of
me and continue to negotiate with dignity and force, I fell back on a pedestrian, but apt, simile. Circumstances had made us the nouveaux riches of astrophysics, rather as the discovery of oil deposits had made the Arabs dollar- rich.
The nouveaux riches lack the refinement of ‘old money’ and do not possess the
effortless grace of earlier wealthy generations. In my case, unlike my British
hosts, I did not speak Oxford English, I was not a famous Cambridge professor, a member of numerous scientific societies, or a Nobel laureate.
I mention one incident to illustrate my situation. In January 1966, I gave a
presentation at a symposium (Zodiacal Light and Interplanetary Matter) of the
International Astronomical Union in Honolulu. At the end of my talk the
session chairman came up to me and congratulated me on my temerity. I had
dared to speak in English, having no idea of the language. Fortunately, I was
fully aware of my limitations and had previously had a summary of my talk
translated, which I had distributed prior to taking the podium. That contribution was cited for a number of years.
There was no choice, then, but to face up to the situation. I resolved that
Spanish astrophysicists of the future, would no longer feel themselves to be
nouveaux riches; they would instead be knowledgeable, know how to behave
with scientific decorum, speak correct English, and know how to mingle, free
from complexes, with their colleagues worldwide. This notion comforted me,
and gave me the confidence and strength to negotiate on an equal footing.
They also stiffened my resolve to prioritize the training of well-prepared young
astrophysicists.
It was time to start profiting from the skies of the Canarian summits as a
publicly-owned ‘natural resource’. As a rare and desirable resource, it could be
neither given away nor auctioned off. It was not ours, but the property of
Spain, and we could not allow ourselves to fall prey to frivolity or selfishness;
it had to be made available for scientific exploitation to the benefit of science,
which is universal, while also remaining a national treasure.
In December 1974 the Chancellor of the University of La Laguna convened a meeting of celebrated astrophysicists with whom we had been in
contact from the United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland, and Denmark.
Also invited were the Presidents of the Cabildos of Tenerife and La Palma in
order to ensure proper local representation. The meeting was supplemented
with flights in light aircraft over the Caldera del Taburiente and Roque de los
Muchachos. Everyone was impressed with the savage beauty of the caldera,
10 A Multinational Astrophysics Treaty (1960–2014)
overwhelm me, then they certainly succeeded. It was clear that we were having humbly to negotiate with an astronomical superpower.
To quell the inferiority complex that was beginning to take possession of
me and continue to negotiate with dignity and force, I fell back on a pedestrian, but apt, simile. Circumstances had made us the nouveaux riches of astrophysics, rather as the discovery of oil deposits had made the Arabs dollar- rich.
The nouveaux riches lack the refinement of ‘old money’ and do not possess the
effortless grace of earlier wealthy generations. In my case, unlike my British
hosts, I did not speak Oxford English, I was not a famous Cambridge professor, a member of numerous scientific societies, or a Nobel laureate.
I mention one incident to illustrate my situation. In January 1966, I gave a
presentation at a symposium (Zodiacal Light and Interplanetary Matter) of the
International Astronomical Union in Honolulu. At the end of my talk the
session chairman came up to me and congratulated me on my temerity. I had
dared to speak in English, having no idea of the language. Fortunately, I was
fully aware of my limitations and had previously had a summary of my talk
translated, which I had distributed prior to taking the podium. That contribution was cited for a number of years.
There was no choice, then, but to face up to the situation. I resolved that
Spanish astrophysicists of the future, would no longer feel themselves to be
nouveaux riches; they would instead be knowledgeable, know how to behave
with scientific decorum, speak correct English, and know how to mingle, free
from complexes, with their colleagues worldwide. This notion comforted me,
and gave me the confidence and strength to negotiate on an equal footing.
They also stiffened my resolve to prioritize the training of well-prepared young
astrophysicists.
It was time to start profiting from the skies of the Canarian summits as a
publicly-owned ‘natural resource’. As a rare and desirable resource, it could be
neither given away nor auctioned off. It was not ours, but the property of
Spain, and we could not allow ourselves to fall prey to frivolity or selfishness;
it had to be made available for scientific exploitation to the benefit of science,
which is universal, while also remaining a national treasure.
In December 1974 the Chancellor of the University of La Laguna convened a meeting of celebrated astrophysicists with whom we had been in
contact from the United Kingdom, Germany, Switzerland, and Denmark.
Also invited were the Presidents of the Cabildos of Tenerife and La Palma in
order to ensure proper local representation. The meeting was supplemented
with flights in light aircraft over the Caldera del Taburiente and Roque de los
Muchachos. Everyone was impressed with the savage beauty of the caldera,
10 A Multinational Astrophysics Treaty (1960–2014)