Central Intelligence Agency Directorate of Science & Technology
Encyclopedia
The Directorate of Science and Technology is the branch of the United States Central Intelligence Agency
(CIA) charged with developing and applying technology to advance the United States intelligence gathering.
(OSI), by merging the Scientific Branch in the Office of Reports and Estimates with the Nuclear Energy Group of the Office of Special Operations.
In 1963, Scoville resigned, frustrated by the unwillingness of other departments to transfer their responsibilities. Director of Central Intelligence
John McCone
asked Albert Wheelon to replace Scoville in the renamed Deputy Directorate of Science and Technology. The OSI was transferred to the Deputy Directorate of Science and Technology, along with the Office of Computer Services.
In 1965, the Directorate was renamed again, to the Directorate of Science and Technology (DS&T), and in 1966 Carl Duckett succeeded Wheelon as the Deputy Director for Science and Technology.
.
In September 1995, Ruth David replaced James Hirsch as Deputy Director for Science and Technology, and established three new offices: the Clandestine Information Technology Office, the Office of Advanced Analytical Tools, and the Office of Advanced Projects. The Office of Research and Development was simultaneously abolished.
In April 1999, Gary Smith
became the Deputy Director for Science and Technology, then suddenly resigned, nine months later. DCI George Tenet
quickly appointed a new deputy director, Joanne Isham.
, and isolation in interrogation
. These experiments were conducted under the program Project BLUEBIRD, later known as ARTICHOKE
, and MKULTRA
, which lead to the suicide of Frank Olson
, a US Army scientist who was given a dose of LSD
.
Another of the ONI's earliest programs, started in the early 1950s, was the development and operation the Lockheed U-2
spy plane under the AQUATONE program. This program was transferred to the DDR's Office of Special Activities upon its formation, along with the plans for its successor, known at the time as Project GUSTO, which had begun in 1957 under the direction of Richard Bissell
and Edwin Land
.
In late 1957, Lockheed's Skunk Works
facility under the direction of Clarence Johnson
began developing stealthy subsonic reconnaissance aircraft, but in the spring of 1958 turned to supersonic designs, known as the Archangel series. Convair's advanced development group under Robert Widmer was invited to compete with Lockheed, and they proposed the FISH parasite aircraft
, derived from their Super Hustler concept. In June 1959, the B-58B launch aircraft for FISH was canceled and the Convair KINGFISH
design was proposed. The Lockheed A-12 was chosen for development, and in the fall of 1959 Project GUSTO was closed and Project OXCART was started.
, first successfully launched on August 18, 1960.
Upon the formation of the DDR, it took over both the CORONA and ARGON satellite programs.
In 1976, the DS&T developed KENNAN program, started in 1972, was launched carrying the KH-11
optical system. Its first images were taken of President Jimmy Carter's inauguration.
for intelligence gathering, known as the Quality ELINT program. It consisted of installing electronic measuring equipment into a C-119 aircraft, and flying missions, disguised as supply-runs, through the air corridors of Germany
. This led to the MELODY and PALLADIUM programs, which attempted to gauge the power and sensitivity of Soviet ground based tracking radars using "ghost aircraft". These programs were integrated into the DDR upon its formation, under the Office of ELINT.
In 1975, the DS&T funded remote viewing
experiments at the Stanford Research Institute, where remote viewers were asked to determine details about targets in the USSR. It was not judged to be a success.
In 2001, DS&T developed In-Q-Tel
, a nonprofit corporation intended to seek information technology
solutions to critical needs faced by CIA as a whole.
and The Bionic Woman
.
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
(CIA) charged with developing and applying technology to advance the United States intelligence gathering.
Origins
On December 31, 1948, the CIA formed the Office of Scientific IntelligenceOffice of Scientific Intelligence
Office of Scientific Intelligence was the name of a department of the Central Intelligence Agency. In 1963, it was incorporated into the Directorate of Science & Technology.-Pop culture:...
(OSI), by merging the Scientific Branch in the Office of Reports and Estimates with the Nuclear Energy Group of the Office of Special Operations.
Formation
In 1962, the CIA formed the Deputy Directorate of Research (DDR), headed by Herbert Scoville. Under it was the newly formed Office of Special Activities, along with the Office of ELINT and the Office of Research and Development, which were quickly integrated into the DDR. However, the OSI remained part of the Directorate of Operations.In 1963, Scoville resigned, frustrated by the unwillingness of other departments to transfer their responsibilities. Director of Central Intelligence
Director of Central Intelligence
The Office of United States Director of Central Intelligence was the head of the United States Central Intelligence Agency, the principal intelligence advisor to the President and the National Security Council, and the coordinator of intelligence activities among and between the various United...
John McCone
John McCone
John Alexander McCone was an American businessman and politician who served as Director of Central Intelligence during the height of the Cold War.- Background :...
asked Albert Wheelon to replace Scoville in the renamed Deputy Directorate of Science and Technology. The OSI was transferred to the Deputy Directorate of Science and Technology, along with the Office of Computer Services.
In 1965, the Directorate was renamed again, to the Directorate of Science and Technology (DS&T), and in 1966 Carl Duckett succeeded Wheelon as the Deputy Director for Science and Technology.
Further changes
In April 1973, DCI James Schlesinger transferred the Technical Services Division of the Operations Directorate to the DS&T, where it would be renamed the Office of Technical Services (OTS). Its primary focus was technical support of CIA case officers in the field, including development of exotic weapons and eavesdropping devices and production of forged documents. It developed a poison pen and exploding seashells in an effort to assassinate Fidel CastroFidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...
.
In September 1995, Ruth David replaced James Hirsch as Deputy Director for Science and Technology, and established three new offices: the Clandestine Information Technology Office, the Office of Advanced Analytical Tools, and the Office of Advanced Projects. The Office of Research and Development was simultaneously abolished.
In April 1999, Gary Smith
Gary Smith
Gary Smith may refer to:* Gary Smith , long-time writer for Sports Illustrated* Gary Smith , entrepreneur, record producer, and artist's manager...
became the Deputy Director for Science and Technology, then suddenly resigned, nine months later. DCI George Tenet
George Tenet
George John Tenet was the Director of Central Intelligence for the United States Central Intelligence Agency, and is Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy at Georgetown University....
quickly appointed a new deputy director, Joanne Isham.
Projects
Following the formation of the ONI, the CIA pursued scientific innovation in several areas, including interrogation, aerial imagery, and electronic intelligence, known as ELINT.Project BLUEBIRD, ARTICHOKE and MKULTRA
Among its early interests were the use of drugs, hypnosisHypnosis
Hypnosis is "a trance state characterized by extreme suggestibility, relaxation and heightened imagination."It is a mental state or imaginative role-enactment . It is usually induced by a procedure known as a hypnotic induction, which is commonly composed of a long series of preliminary...
, and isolation in interrogation
Interrogation
Interrogation is interviewing as commonly employed by officers of the police, military, and Intelligence agencies with the goal of extracting a confession or obtaining information. Subjects of interrogation are often the suspects, victims, or witnesses of a crime...
. These experiments were conducted under the program Project BLUEBIRD, later known as ARTICHOKE
Project ARTICHOKE
Project ARTICHOKE was a CIA project that researched interrogation methods and arose from Project BLUEBIRD on August 20, 1951, run by the CIA's Office of Scientific Intelligence...
, and MKULTRA
Project MKULTRA
Project MKULTRA, or MK-ULTRA, was the code name for a covert, illegal CIA human experimentation program, run by the CIA's Office of Scientific Intelligence. This official U.S. government program began in the early 1950s, continued at least through the late 1960s, and used U.S...
, which lead to the suicide of Frank Olson
Frank Olson
Frank Olson was a U.S. Army biological warfare specialist employed at Fort Detrick in Maryland. Believed to have committed suicide in 1953 as a result of depression, it was later revealed that he had been exposed to LSD and other psychoactive drugs as part of experiments, leading some to believe...
, a US Army scientist who was given a dose of LSD
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
.
Aerial reconnaissance
Lockheed U-2
The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed "Dragon Lady", is a single-engine, very high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the United States Air Force and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency . It provides day and night, very high-altitude , all-weather intelligence gathering...
spy plane under the AQUATONE program. This program was transferred to the DDR's Office of Special Activities upon its formation, along with the plans for its successor, known at the time as Project GUSTO, which had begun in 1957 under the direction of Richard Bissell
Richard M. Bissell, Jr.
Richard Mervin Bissell, Jr. was an American Central Intelligence Agency officer responsible for major projects such as the U-2 spy plane and the Bay of Pigs Invasion.-Early years:...
and Edwin Land
Edwin H. Land
Edwin Herbert Land was an American scientist and inventor, best known as the co-founder of the Polaroid Corporation. Among other things, he invented inexpensive filters for polarizing light, a practical system of in-camera instant photography, and his retinex theory of color vision...
.
In late 1957, Lockheed's Skunk Works
Skunk works
Skunk Works is an official alias for Lockheed Martin’s Advanced Development Programs , formerly called Lockheed Advanced Development Projects. Skunk Works is responsible for a number of famous aircraft designs, including the U-2, the SR-71 Blackbird, the F-117 Nighthawk, and the F-22 Raptor...
facility under the direction of Clarence Johnson
Clarence Johnson
Clarence Leonard "Kelly" Johnson was an aircraft engineer and aeronautical innovator. As a member and first team leader of the Lockheed Skunk Works, Johnson worked for more than four decades and is said to have been an "organizing genius"...
began developing stealthy subsonic reconnaissance aircraft, but in the spring of 1958 turned to supersonic designs, known as the Archangel series. Convair's advanced development group under Robert Widmer was invited to compete with Lockheed, and they proposed the FISH parasite aircraft
Parasite aircraft
A parasite aircraft is a component of a composite aircraft which is carried, and air launched by, a mother ship aircraft.The first use for parasite aircraft was in 1916, when the British used a Bristol Scout, flying from a Felixstowe Porte Baby, a giant flying boat of its time. This eventually...
, derived from their Super Hustler concept. In June 1959, the B-58B launch aircraft for FISH was canceled and the Convair KINGFISH
Convair KINGFISH
The Kingfish reconnaissance aircraft design was the ultimate result of a series of proposals designed at Convair as a replacement for the Lockheed U-2...
design was proposed. The Lockheed A-12 was chosen for development, and in the fall of 1959 Project GUSTO was closed and Project OXCART was started.
Spy satellite development
Also in 1958 was the start of development of the CORONA spy satelliteCorona (satellite)
The Corona program was a series of American strategic reconnaissance satellites produced and operated by the Central Intelligence Agency Directorate of Science & Technology with substantial assistance from the U.S. Air Force...
, first successfully launched on August 18, 1960.
Upon the formation of the DDR, it took over both the CORONA and ARGON satellite programs.
In 1976, the DS&T developed KENNAN program, started in 1972, was launched carrying the KH-11
KH-11
The KH-11 KENNAN, renamed CRYSTAL in 1982 and also referenced by the codenames 1010, and "Key Hole", is a type of reconnaissance satellite launched by the American National Reconnaissance Office since December 1976...
optical system. Its first images were taken of President Jimmy Carter's inauguration.
ELINT
In 1958, the OSI made the first significant attempt to measure the power of a radarRadar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
for intelligence gathering, known as the Quality ELINT program. It consisted of installing electronic measuring equipment into a C-119 aircraft, and flying missions, disguised as supply-runs, through the air corridors of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. This led to the MELODY and PALLADIUM programs, which attempted to gauge the power and sensitivity of Soviet ground based tracking radars using "ghost aircraft". These programs were integrated into the DDR upon its formation, under the Office of ELINT.
Other programs
In 1967, the DS&T's Operation Acoustic Kitty attempted to train a surgically altered cat, wired with transmitting and control devices, to become a mobile, eavesdropping platform.In 1975, the DS&T funded remote viewing
Remote viewing
Remote viewing is the practice of seeking impressions about a distant or unseen target using paranormal means, in particular, extra-sensory perception or "sensing with mind"...
experiments at the Stanford Research Institute, where remote viewers were asked to determine details about targets in the USSR. It was not judged to be a success.
In 2001, DS&T developed In-Q-Tel
In-Q-Tel
In-Q-Tel of Arlington, Virginia, United States is a not-for-profit venture capital firm that invests in high-tech companies for the sole purpose of keeping the Central Intelligence Agency equipped with the latest in information technology in support of United States intelligence capability...
, a nonprofit corporation intended to seek information technology
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
solutions to critical needs faced by CIA as a whole.
Pop culture
The "Office of Scientific Intelligence", was a secret intelligence branch of the American government featured in the 1970s TV series The Six Million Dollar ManThe Six Million Dollar Man
The Six Million Dollar Man is an American television series about a former astronaut with bionic implants working for the OSI...
and The Bionic Woman
The Bionic Woman
The Bionic Woman is an American television series starring Lindsay Wagner that aired for three seasons between 1976 and 1978 as a spin off from The Six Million Dollar Man. Wagner stars as tennis pro Jaime Sommers who is nearly killed in a skydiving accident. Sommers' life is saved by Oscar Goldman ...
.