Résumé
The first comprehensive history of Polaris, bringing together technical aspects, the key characters and full stories of the American and British programmes
Publication comes at a time of war in Europe, provoking an intensive re-examination of the NATO alliance, the ‘special relationship’ between the UK and USA, and Britain’s role as a nuclear power
Includes specially commissioned graphic images and plans as well as several previously unpublished photographs
The atom bombs dropped on Japan at the end of the Second World War opened the door to the nuclear age.
Seeing the potential for developing nuclear energy for the US Navy, Capt. Hyman Rickover initiated a research programme that culminated in the launch of USS Nautilus, the world’s first nuclear-powered submarine. Meanwhile, ballistic missile technology was developing fast, but still relied on complex liquid fuels.
The US Navy partnered with the army to develop a ballistic missile for both services, but withdrew when solid fuels became a practical proposition. Under the leadership of RADM William Raborn, the US Navy set up its own project: the Polaris weapon system.
In 1960, the first missile-armed nuclear-powered submarine (SSBN) left on patrol, with forty more to follow. Two years later, when Britain’s Blue Streak and Skybolt plans were cancelled, Harold Macmillan and John F. Kennedy agreed for Polaris to be supplied to the Royal Navy.
John Boyes (Author)
Détails produit : livre relié, livre en anglais, 9781781559314, 56 black and white and 17 colour illustrations, and 37 maps and plans, livre neuf, disponible sous 15-20 jours.
