This chapter uses research institutes as windows into the changing nature of Arctic science and politics during the early Cold War. It reveals how institutions both exploited and were constrained by new challenges. It draws attention to the interplay between logistical and geopolitical frameworks in individual states' research agendas. It shows their hitherto underappreciated role in the history of Antarctic science. The institutes include the Arctic Institute of North America (United States and Canada), the Norwegian Polar Research Institute, Scott Polar Research Institute (United Kingdom) and the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (Soviet Union).