The report contains the results obtained during the first year of investigations into the phenomena of chemically pumped lasers. The primary emphasis during this first year has been the design and fabrication of CO2-HN3 laser. The major highlights of the developmental work are (1) design and fabrication of the laser tube and resonant cavity, (2) design, construction and operation of the HN3 generating and gas filling systems and (3) flashlamp discharge circuit design and development of the charging control system. Further work was conducted in the computer simulation of the experiment and in the addition of a monochromator to the experimental equipment. (Author)