NRL Tropical Exposure Facilities

In the recent war the problem of protecting material from climatic deterioration was accentuated due to the rapid failure of much of the initial equipment consigned to tropical areas. During the war a great deal of effort was directed toward the solution of this problem. In addition to the numerous endeavors made by individual laboratories throughout the country it was deemed necessary to predict actual performance on the ability of tropical equipment or material to withstand attack in actual tropical environment. Under the auspices of the National Defense Research Committee a tropical testing station was established on Barro Colorado Island in the Canal Zone. In the early part of 1946 this station was moved to the Fort Sherman Military Reservation and its administration subsequently assumed by the Naval Research Laboratory. This report describes the history of this station, the scope of its activities and planning for its widest possible use in the future. Facilities are described, which are adaptable to the study of numerous problems in tropical deterioration. These facilities are available to governmental agencies concerned with such problems. An outline is presented of the services which it can provide.