Ballistic Missile Defense Encyclopedia - Current American Program, Threats, Sensors, Interceptors, AEGIS, History, Airborne Laser, GBI, PAC-3, SBX, THAAD (DVD-ROM)

This incomparable DVD-ROM - greatly revised and expanded for 2010 - provides a comprehensive guide to America's ongoing Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) program, run by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA). Formerly known as the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) and called "Star Wars" by the media and critics, the BMD program is developing a layered defense to protect against ballistic missile attack, and the first interceptors have been deployed to provide a defense from Iranian or North Korean attacks. This is the most comprehensive collection of official documents available on missile defense programs. This detailed material is heavily illustrated with color photographs, drawings, tables, and charts. The disc contains over 4 gigabytes of material, and over 76,000 pages reproduced using Adobe Acrobat software. There are over 3500 files, 600 PDFs, 60 videos (including interceptor and airborne laser tests), and over 1000 image files. Topics covered include: February 2010 Ballistic Missile Defense Review Report (BMDR) which evaluates the threats posed by ballistic missiles and outlines a missile defense posture to address current and future challenges * Threats * Sensors * History * ABM Treaty Implications * Boost, Midcourse, and Terminal Defense Segments * Ground-based Interceptors (GBI), Sea-based Interceptors * Patriot Advanced Capability - PAC-3 units * Intercept Tests * Upgraded Early Warning Radars (UEWRs), Sea-based X-band Radar (SBX) * In-flight Interceptor Communications System (IFICS) * Battle Management, Command, Control, and Communications (BMC3) * Terminal High Altitude Area Defense - THAAD * MEADS, ARROW, High Altitude Airship * Aegis Navy Systems * Comprehensive Glossary * Exoatmospheric Kill Vehicle * Airborne Laser Testbed * Joint National Integration Center * Environmental Assessment of Impact of Missile Base in Fort Greely, Alaska * Fort Greely Silo Construction and GBI Emplacement * Flight Test Program * History Book and Timeline from the late 1950s to today * MDA Leadership and Mission * News * Library * Kwajalein and Reagan Test Site * European Deployment Issues and Obama Administration Decision * Potential New Technologies * Missile Defense Integration and Operations Center * Targets and Countermeasures * Budget Information * Business Opportunities. The value of the contemporary coverage is enhanced by the inclusion of comparative historic material from 2001, 2003, 2004, and 2005. There are sixty-five oversight reports from the GAO, Congressional Research Service (CRS), and Congressional Budget Office (CBO) - from the 1973 Safeguard program to the latest 2010 acquisition issues. Current Defense Department budget documents provide line-item level detail for BMD programs. There is complete coverage of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC) and Army Forces Strategic Command (ARSTRAT) organizations, located in Huntsville, Alabama and Kwajalein at the Reagan BMD Test Site. SMDC/ARSTRAT conducts space and missile defense operations and provides planning, integration, control and coordination of Army forces and capabilities in support of US Strategic Command missions (Strategic Deterrence, Integrated Missile Defense, Space Operations, and Cyberspace Operations); serves as the Army specified proponent for space, high altitude, and ground-based midcourse defense; serves as the Army operational integrator for global missile defense. More than 25 years ago, President Ronald Reagan challenged the U.S. scientific community to develop antiballistic missile technologies that would improve our national security and reduce our reliance on nuclear weapons. Today, the Missile Defense Agency, or MDA, is answering that challenge. The MDA has fielded an initial capability to protect the U.S and our allies against limited ballistic missile attack.