National Missile Defense

The National Missile Defense (NMD) is a military strategy that has been discussed in the United States since the 1960s. The basic idea is to shield the U.S. against incoming missiles by shooting them down as they approach the country.

Technology

It is widely disputed whether the NMD concept is feasible [1].

Key equipment

• X-band Radar

Politics

Skeptics named the U.S. missile defense program of the 1980s "Star Wars" (after the hit movie series), since it seemed to its critics to be a mere science fiction scheme with no hope of success. It has since then gained the support of some of its erstwhile critics.

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[1] Jack Mendelsohn, [And it still won't work], [Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists]?, Vol. 55, No. 4 (1999).

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This would be a great article to expand...

See also, Nuclear war, Nuclear weapon, Civil defense