Beam Weapons - Roots of Reagan's 'Star Wars' is a reprint of my 1984 book Beam Weapons: The Next Arms Race published by Plenum Press, with a brief 2015 Epilogue describing 30 years of further development on laser weapons.
Beam Weapons: The Next Arms Race was the first detailed analysis of the Pentagon's efforts to develop a new generation of "beam" or directed-energy weapons, including lasers, microwaves, and high-energy subatomic particles. Development of the laser in 1960 stimulated interest in beam weapons which expanded over the next two decades. Many programs were already in progress when Ronald Reagan became president in 1981, and they became the roots of Reagan's efforts to develop a strategic defense system, officially called the Strategic Defense Initiative but usually called "Star Wars."
The allure of beam weapons was their potential to deliver energy to targets at or close to the speed of light. Military researchers proposed orbiting laser battle stations which they claimed could track and destroy nuclear missiles thousands of miles away. They talked of charged particle beams that could strike like controlled lightning bolts. Advocates claimed that a fleet of dozens of orbiting laser battle stations could defend the United States against a massive strike by the whole Soviet arsenal of nuclear missiles. Reagan announced his plan in 1983, and by 1984 the Pentagon was ramping up an SDI budget that would peak at billions of dollars a year.
The book explains and analyzes the technology planned for the highly controversial weapon system, and digs into the details of the controversy. Written from a 1984 perspective, the book describes the key technologies, shows how challenging the goals were at the time, explains the potential perils, and describes Reagan administration claimed that such defenses were vital and possible.
It's no secret that this system was never built. A 2015 epilogue briefly describes the fate of the Strategic Defense Initiative and the current development of lower-power, shorter-range laser weapons.
Beam Weapons: Roots of Reagan's 'Star Wars' is available from bookshop.com, and other bookstores in print-on-demand paper. Ebook versions also are available from Smashwords, Draft2Digital, Apple's iBooks, Amazon, and other on-line booksellers. A PDF Version of Beam Weapons: Roots of Reagan's 'Star Wars' available from Payhip for $3.99
For a broader history of laser weapon development to the present day, check my 2019 book Lasers, Death Rays, and the Long, Strange Quest for the Ultimate Weapon,
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Beam Weapons: The Next Arms Race was the first detailed analysis of the Pentagon's efforts to develop a new generation of "beam" or directed-energy weapons, including lasers, microwaves, and high-energy subatomic particles. Development of the laser in 1960 stimulated interest in beam weapons which expanded over the next two decades. Many programs were already in progress when Ronald Reagan became president in 1981, and they became the roots of Reagan's efforts to develop a strategic defense system, officially called the Strategic Defense Initiative but usually called "Star Wars."
The allure of beam weapons was their potential to deliver energy to targets at or close to the speed of light. Military researchers proposed orbiting laser battle stations which they claimed could track and destroy nuclear missiles thousands of miles away. They talked of charged particle beams that could strike like controlled lightning bolts. Advocates claimed that a fleet of dozens of orbiting laser battle stations could defend the United States against a massive strike by the whole Soviet arsenal of nuclear missiles. Reagan announced his plan in 1983, and by 1984 the Pentagon was ramping up an SDI budget that would peak at billions of dollars a year.
The book explains and analyzes the technology planned for the highly controversial weapon system, and digs into the details of the controversy. Written from a 1984 perspective, the book describes the key technologies, shows how challenging the goals were at the time, explains the potential perils, and describes Reagan administration claimed that such defenses were vital and possible.
It's no secret that this system was never built. A 2015 epilogue briefly describes the fate of the Strategic Defense Initiative and the current development of lower-power, shorter-range laser weapons.
Beam Weapons: Roots of Reagan's 'Star Wars' is available from bookshop.com, and other bookstores in print-on-demand paper. Ebook versions also are available from Smashwords, Draft2Digital, Apple's iBooks, Amazon, and other on-line booksellers. A PDF Version of Beam Weapons: Roots of Reagan's 'Star Wars' available from Payhip for $3.99
For a broader history of laser weapon development to the present day, check my 2019 book Lasers, Death Rays, and the Long, Strange Quest for the Ultimate Weapon,
Back to my home page