Missile defense programs generally don’t die; they fade away. They’re born of great hope and expectations, which they gradually piss away with poor performance and unbelievable cost growth until they can be quietly put out to pasture. Airborne Laser (ABL) seemed to be one of those unstoppable programs. Laser too heavy for the aircraft? Problems …
MDA's New Test Vehicle
by | 2005-12-01 | 2 Comments
TTV in all its infrared nerdporn glory … On 17 November 2005 the Missile Defense Agency conducted Flight Test Maritime 04-2 (FTM-2)—a test of its Aegis based missile defense system. A SM-3 interceptor did what its name implies and hit a dummy warhead jettisoned from a Medium Range Target (MRT) vehicle. This test is considered …
Taking Ownership of Missile Defense?
by | 2005-11-30 | No Comments
Back in my salad days at UCLA, it was practically a prerequisite for us feminists to attend “Take Back the Night” rallies. Take ownership, and you could ostensibly take control. So I read with interest the comments made by the chair of the Defense Science Board, William Schneider (right). Schneider’s most vivid pronouncement on missile …
Fetter Wins Bethe Prize
by | 2005-11-30 | No Comments
The Federation of American Scientists awards Steve Fetter—a member of my dissertation committee—the Hans A. Bethe prize … … in recognition of his outstanding contributions as an advocate for arms control and nonproliferation and for his insightful and rigorous analysis of nuclear energy, climate change, and carbon-free energy supply. Rigorous analysis doesn’t begin to capture …
