Star Wars (SDI)

    During the 1980s, Reagan's plan to deter Soviet missiles was called the Strategic Defense Initiative, SDI or Star Wars. Star Wars was supposed to protect the US against ballistic strategic nuclear weapons. Reagan learned during the presidency that there was no way to prevent an attack from an enemy country, and would, therefore, require a quick and tough decision by the president to launch a counter-attack. Reagan didn't want to have to make this call so he came up with the idea of Star Wars. In planning for Star Wars, many different weapons were considered: lasers, particle beam weapons, ground, and land-based missile systems. By 1987, the US realized that Star Wars would take at least another 20 years to figure out if it was even possible. Instead, they decided on a cheaper and feasible idea of launching orbiting missiles called "Brilliant Pebbles".



    The idea of using lasers for Star Wars ended very quickly. The first laser test, known as the Cabra Event, was performed in an underground shaft and ended up destroying a nuclear power plant. The power source for the laser was a nuclear power plant and the laser, created through a nuclear explosion, ended up destroying the power source. Because of this explosion, the results could not fully be collected, but the preliminary research and discoveries on lasers would be pivotal in future laser research, like 3D holograms and detecting breast cancer.



    Another idea for a weapon in Star Wars was the hypervelocity railgun. The railgun converts electrical potential energy into kinetic energy imparted to a projectile. During the Star Wars project, it was able to be modified so that it could fire twice in one day, instead of previously only being able to fire one a month. The railguns have lots of power and can fire at multiple targets at once, therefore it is perfect for a nuclear space deterrent weapon.