From Poles to Laboratories: Stages in International Cooperation in Palaeoclimatology (1955–2015)

Ice core science (ICS) is a palaeoclimatology speciality which aims to reconstruct the dynamics of past climates from laboratory analysis of ice samples bored in Greenland and Antarctica. Polar terrain specifics and geopolitical issues associated with these territories explain why it has been characterized, from its beginnings, by strong international cooperation. This article reports on the meaning and forms of cooperation, focusing on the organization of field campaigns by scientists, and how such fieldwork is coordinated within networks of mobilization of fragile climate archives—a globalized infrastructure connecting the poles to laboratories. The analysis of the development of ICS reveals the initial influence of the cold war on international scientific cooperation. It also shows how this speciality has consolidated its activity beyond this context, transforming the nature of the poles and contributing to the debate on global warming. The multidimensionality of the “internationalism” at the heart of this field is an empirical fulcrum that supports enquiries into the treatment of context in science studies, and the conclusion of the paper provides evidence to that effect.