Research topic: Strategic Defense Initiative

Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), U.S. government program responsible for research and development of a space-based system to defend the nation from attack by strategic ballistic missiles (see guided missile ). The program is now administered by the Missile Defense Agency (originally the Strategic Defense Initiative Office), a separate agency in the U.S. Dept. of Defense . SDI, popularly referred to as "Star Wars," was announced by President Ronald Reagan in a speech in Mar., 1983, and was derided by his critics as unrealistic. Space programs from other agencies and services were... Read more