The History of the America’s Space Program By Matthew Behrens, the co-founder on the premise that the U.S. currently “The Soviet Union cannot attack the of Homes not Bombs and Toronto Ac- faces no major military competitor, the continental U.S. within the near fu- tion for Social Change is an organizer rapid U.S. build-up of nuclear arms fol- ture. It has no navy of importance of the Campaign to Stop Secret Trials lowing WWII was based on a similar and with a second-rate merchant ma- in Canada. understanding: the master of the globe rine, Soviet overseas operations gen- wanted to remain so forever. erally would be out of the question.” he proposal for National Mis- In a secret plan drafted two At the same time, the U.S. was sile Defence (and the various months after the atomic bombing of contemplating an all-out attack on the Tspace warfare programs into Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the U.S. ad- Soviets, who had lost more than 10% which it is designed to evolve), has a ministration of Harry Truman explored of their population during the war, it long, murky history that involves eve- the idea of launching 20 or 30 nuclear was also recruiting thousands of former ryone from Nazi war criminals and weapons against the USSR, even Nazi war criminals to work on its mili- power-crazed U.S. generals (who in- though: tary and space warfare programs. spired the film Dr. Strangelove) to weak-kneed U.S. Recruitment liberals who gave in to fears of Nazi Scientists and myths rather than op- As Christopher Simpson points pose the frightening plans of out, when the U.S. occupied the literally mad scientists Germany, they recruited more running the show. than 1,000 of Hitler’s prized It is a history of ex- rocket experts: periments which have “The U.S. began to integrate threatened the magnetic scores of top German scientists belts surrounding the earth, into American military re- upper atmospheric nuclear search projects only weeks af- weapons explosions, and ter Hitler’s final collapse. Be- new and ever more inven- fore two years were out, hun- tive forms of propaganda dreds of German scientists, in- trying to convince us that cluding some suspected of things like the Space Shut- crimes against humanity, were tle and Canada’s on the American payroll.” RADARSAT are the inno- Walter Dornberger and Wernher Von (Blowback, America’s recruit- cent creations of a scientific Braun oversaw the Nazi’s V-2 rocket pro- ment of Nazis, and its disas- community whose interest trous effect on our domestic in space is as benign as a gram during WWII. The photo above and foreign policy, 1988.) child with a home-made tel- shows them at a Perhaps the most noto- escope. 1944 Christmas ban- rious of these was Wernher von quet, gleefully read- Braun, who oversaw develop- Acceptable Losses ing a telegram con- ment of V-2 buzz bombs – Hit- in Nuclear War ler’s vengeance weapons, pre- gratulating them for cursors to the cruise missile, But the roots of Star Wars being awarded the which late in the war were used reveal much of post WWII to murder thousands of civilians foreign policy which, to be Knight’s Cross of the in London. [Editor’s note: The blunt, is rooted in the geno- War Merit Cross V-2s killed 2,770 Britons and cidal idea that nuclear wars with Swords. wounded 21,000.] Von Braun can and should be fought, later helped develop U.S. with “acceptable losses” at V-2 rocket attacks killed about 2,800 atomic weapons and led 20-30 million people in the Britons. However, some 20,000 slave NASA’s Apollo program to the U.S. Throughout the Cold labourers died in concentration camps moon. War, the U.S. policy of first where the V-2 rockets were produced. Also infamous was Nazi strike nuclear warfare was Immediately after the war, Von Braun and Major General Walter based on the idea that pre- Dornberger, who became a sen- venting the USSR from be- Dornberger – along with hundreds of Ger- ior Vice President in Bell coming a military peer was man scientists – were reunited in the U.S. Aerosystems of Bell Aircraft, of paramount concern. But where they continued their work on the and a recipient of the American just as Vision 2020 is based V-2 and other weapons. Rocket Society’s Astronautics 4 Press for Conversion! (Issue # 55) December 2004 Award in 1959. He was one of the first Marshall Spaceflight Centre; following the war, it is certainly in keep- to explore the idea that rockets could Erich Neubert, production man- ing with the vision of American war be used to propel explosives. Writes ager for V-2 guidance and telem- planners who, essentially, shared many Simpson in Blowback: etry labs, who later worked on the Nazi goals (such as global domination), “He labored hard from 1932 on to U.S. Army missile program; but may have differed over the delicate make missiles an integral part of the Adolph Thiel, V-2 engineer, later issues of tactics and tact. arsenal of the Third Reich.” Vice President at TRW, which is Indeed, a refugee from Nazi-oc- Dornberger convinced Hitler to open a now a leading contractor for so- cupied Europe, Edward Teller, became massive underground slave-labour fac- called “Missile Defense”; one the most influential scientists in tory at Nordhausen to produce V-2 Hubertus Strughold, America’s America. Father of the hydrogen bomb, missiles. At least 20,000 were killed so-called “Father of Space Medi- he is also widely credited with promot- there through a combination of the star- cine,” directed diabolic medical re- ing the idea of winnable nuclear wars vation diet, executions and disease. search experiments for the Nazi’s. with “minimal” losses in the tens of mil- During the war, Dornberger was pro- He used prisoners in concentration lions, and of putting the star wars idea moted to the highest rank, a commis- camps as guinea pigs, and then be- into the head of Ronald Reagan. sioner of the Third Reich, and spent came the chief scientist at U.S. time detained as a war criminal after Aerospace Medical Division at NASA: Civilian Cover 1945. One of Dornberger’s employees Brooks Air Force Base, in Texas. for Space Warfare at Nordhausen, Arthur Rudolph, went While it is disturbing to think The development of space warfare on to become a major player in the de- that members of the Nazi apparatus be- dovetailed with a convenient cover: the velopment of America’s Saturn V rock- came integrated into the U.S. military peaceful exploration of space, a mirage ets that were used in the moon launches. According to Jack Manno’s his- “Space for peace- tory of space warfare, Arming the ful purposes – Heavens, Dornberger even what a bunch of “approached Hitler with the idea of god-damned an aerospace glide bomber [capable of] a quick surprise attack against bullshit that was!” U.S. General New York.” Bernard Schriever, Among other famous Nazis who “Father” of the U.S. went on to glory in the U.S.: Air Force’s space and Kurt Debus, head of Nazi V-2 Schriever missile program. launch operations who later became NASA’s Chief of Operations at “The highest priority should go to Cape Canaveral; space research with a military Krafft Ehricke, a German atomic bomb consultant, who became an application, but because national executive at the U.S. weapons firm morale, and to some extent national General Dynamics and lecturer at prestige, could be affected by the the Air University Command and results of peaceful space research, Staff School; this should likewise be pushed.” Walter Scweidetsky, head of V-2 Pres. General Dwight Eisenhower (1953-1961) guidance group, who later worked Eisenhower on guidance systems for intercon- tinental ballistic missiles at General 1946: Project RAND Report Dynamics; The U.S. Army Air Forces (soon to RAND Corporation. It originally Hans Maus, engineer for the V-2, become the Air Force) commissioned functioning under the auspices of later became chief of executive staff a Project RAND study into the feasi- Douglas Aircraft. It was acquired by at NASA’s Marshall Space-flight bility of launching space vehicles. J.S.McDonnell to become McDon- Centre; The report, “Preliminary Design of an nell Douglas, which was bought by Martin Schilling, chief of the test- Experimental World-Circling Space- Boeing, now a top recipient of “Mis- ing lab for the V-2 propulsion divi- ship” (May 2, 1946) said the U.S. sile Defense” handouts and the Pen- sion, became Vice President of re- military could “design and construct tagon’s No. 2 contractor. The RAND search at Raytheon, which is now craft which can penetrate the atmos- Corp., a right-wing “think tank” has one of the top contractors for so- phere and achieve sufficient velocity been promoting U.S. military and cor- called “Missile Defense”; to become satellites of the earth” and porate interests for almost 60 years. Hans Hosenthein, designer, V-2 “such a vehicle will undoubtedly For more information, see: launch and guidance antennae, later prove to be of great military value.” <https://www.peterson.af.mil/ chief of flightdynamics at NASA’s Project RAND, later became the hqafspc/history/collbohm.htm> December 2004 (Issue # 55) Press for Conversion! 5 which mirrored the “atoms for peace” “completely misled the American better than on land, sea or in the at- program, designed ostensibly to de- people as to the potential use of mosphere.