1.
SC-21 (United States)
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SC-21 was a research and development program started in 1994 intended to design land attack ships for the United States Navy. A wide variety of designs were created and extensively examined, including a ship with 500 cruise missiles. Eventually a tumblehome design of around 16,000 tons with two guns and 128 missile tubes was selected as the DD-21, the Destroyer for the 21st century. The program ended in November 2001, with a version of the DD-21 emerging as the DD or Zumwalt class destroyer and it was envisaged that the DD-21 hull would be used for a future air defense cruiser, which then eventually evolved into the CG program. The origins of SC-21 lie in the realization by Admiral Joseph Metcalf III that new technologies such as vertical launch missiles permitted a complete rethink of warship design and he established a steering group, Group Mike, to study the possibilities. Group Mike sponsored two studies in 1987, the Ship Operational Characteristics Study and the Surface Combatant Force Requirement Study, SOCS sought to identify the operational characteristics required of an escort ship, and SCFRS estimated how many such ships were required by the fleet. Since it was expected at that time that the Navy would be fighting prolonged campaigns in the Norwegian Sea, both studies reported in 1989, and almost immediately were rendered obsolete by the ending of the Cold War. The Navy suddenly faced the disappearance of its greatest threat, interest waned in big new designs like the SOCS ship, the Destroyer Variant program of December 1991 was intended as a stopgap, the final development of the Burke class destroyer. In 1992 the CNO ordered a 21st-century Destroyer Technology Study, meanwhile, strategy papers such as FORWARD. FROM THE SEA were redefining the Navys priorities towards littoral warfare and the support of amphibious assaults inland. It seemed, then, that land attack would be the most important mission for the new ships, since the retirement of the Iowa-class battleships, there had been a Congress-mandated requirement relating to the Navys capability for Naval Fire Support. The U. S. Marine Corps and the U. S. Navy maintained that destroyers would be adequate in this role, while smaller caliber guns have been used for centuries in naval fire support, very large guns have special capabilities beyond that of mid-range calibres. US battleships were re-activated three times after WWII specifically for NFS, and their 16 inch gunfire was used in every major engagement of the U. S. from WWII to the Gulf War. Iowa and Wisconsin were finally struck from the Naval Vessel Register in 2006, the SC-21 Mission Need Statement was approved by the Joint Requirements Oversight Council between September–October 1994. The Defense Acquisition Board approved the project on 13 January 1995, the SC-21 COEA had an unusually wide remit, and studied a variety of designs from 2,500 tons to 40,000 tons. Option 3B1 was closest to what became the Zumwalt class, with a pair of 64-cell VLS fore and aft, a bigger hull would be required to enclose everything in a stealthy shape, and to accommodate the much bigger AGS gun system. In a separate study in 1993, two French students had been assigned the design of a Large Capacity Missile Ship, a 20, 000-tonner with 500 VLS cells filled with land-attack missiles. This design was inspired by a RAND paper in that year and this would take several days with aircraft, but a surface ship with large numbers of land-attack missiles could achieve the same effect almost instantly. This design was included in the SC-21 assessment as an afterthought - it was not included in the original list of concepts
2.
Vertical launching system
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A vertical launching system is an advanced system for holding and firing missiles on mobile naval platforms, such as surface ships and submarines. Each vertical launch system consists of a number of cells, which can hold one or more ready for firing. Typically, each cell can hold a number of different types of missiles, when the command is given, the missile flies straight up long enough to clear the cell and the ship, and then turns on course. In addition to greater firepower, VLS is much more tolerant and reliable than the previous systems. The U. S. Navy now relies exclusively on VLS for its guided missile destroyers and cruisers, the most widespread vertical launch system in the world is the Mark 41, developed by the United States Navy. More than 11,000 Mark 41 VLS missile cells have been delivered, or are on order, for use on 186 ships across 19 ship classes, the advanced Mark 57 vertical launch system is used on the new Zumwalt-class destroyer. The older Mark 13 and Mark 26 systems remain in service on ships that were sold to countries such as Taiwan. When installed on an SSN, a VLS allows a greater number, cold means relatively cold compared with rocket engine exhaust. A hot launch system does not require a mechanism, but does require some way of disposing of the missiles exhaust. If the missile ignites in a cell without an ejection mechanism and this potentially makes a hot-launch system relatively light, small, and economical to develop and produce, particularly when designed around smaller missiles. A potential disadvantage is that a missile could destroy the launch tube. The advantage of the system is in its safety, should a missile engine malfunction during launch. For this reason, Russian VLSs are often designed with a slant so that a missile will land in the water instead of on the ships deck. As missile size grows, the benefits of ejection launching increase, above a certain size, a missile booster cannot be safely ignited within the confines of a ships hull. Most modern ICBMs and SLBMs are cold-launched, france, Italy and Britain use a similar hot-launching Sylver system in PAAMS. Russia produces both grid systems and a design with more than one missile per lid. Russia also uses a launch system for some of its vertical launch missile systems. BAe has filed patents relating to the use of Vertical Launch missiles from modified passenger aircraft,22 ballistic missile tubes were converted to allow for seven conventional VLS tubes in place of a SLBM tube
3.
Cruise missile
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A cruise missile is a guided missile used against terrestrial targets that remains in the atmosphere and flies the major portion of its flight path at approximately constant speed. Cruise missiles are designed to deliver a warhead over long distances with high precision. Modern cruise missiles are capable of travelling at supersonic or high speeds, are self-navigating. The idea of a torpedo was shown in the British 1909 film The Airship Destroyer. In 1916, Lawrence Sperry built and patented an aerial torpedo, a small biplane carrying a TNT charge, a Sperry autopilot, inspired by these experiments, the United States Army developed a similar flying bomb called the Kettering Bug. Germany had also flown trials with remote-controlled aerial gliders built by Siemens-Schuckert beginning in 1916, in the period between the World Wars the United Kingdom developed the Larynx, which underwent a few flight tests in the 1920s. In the Soviet Union, Sergei Korolev headed the GIRD-06 cruise missile project from 1932 to 1939, the 06/III and 06/IV contained gyroscopic guidance systems. The vehicle was designed to boost to 28 km altitude and glide a distance of 280 km, in 1944, Germany deployed the first operational cruise missiles in World War II. The V-1, often called a bomb, contained a gyroscope guidance system and was propelled by a simple pulsejet engine. Accuracy was sufficient only for use against very large targets, while the range of 250 km was significantly lower than that of a bomber carrying the same payload, the main advantages were speed and expendability. The production cost of a V-1 was only a fraction of that of a V-2 supersonic ballistic missile. Unlike the V-2, however, the deployments of the V-1 required stationary launch ramps which were susceptible to bombardment. Immediately after the war the United States Air Force had 21 different guided missile projects, all were cancelled by 1948, except four — the Air Materiel Command BANSHEE, the SM-62 Snark, the SM-64 Navaho, and the MGM-1 Matador. The BANSHEE design was similar to Operation Aphrodite, like Aphrodite, it failed, during the Cold War period both the United States and the Soviet Union experimented further with the concept, deploying early cruise missiles from land, submarines and aircraft. The main outcome of the United States Navy submarine missile project was the SSM-N-8 Regulus missile, the United States Air Forces first operational surface-to-surface missile was the winged, mobile, nuclear-capable MGM-1 Matador, also similar in concept to the V-1. Deployment overseas began in 1954, first to West Germany and later to the Republic of China and this alert was in response to the crisis posed by the Soviet attack on Hungary which suppressed the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. Between 1957 and 1961 the United States followed an ambitious and well-funded program to develop a nuclear-powered cruise missile and it was designed to fly below the enemys radar at speeds above Mach 3 and carry a number of hydrogen bombs that it would drop along its path over enemy territory. Although the concept was sound and the 500 megawatt engine finished a successful test run in 1961
4.
United States Navy
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The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U. S. Navy is the largest, most capable navy in the world, the U. S. Navy has the worlds largest aircraft carrier fleet, with ten in service, two in the reserve fleet, and three new carriers under construction. The service has 323,792 personnel on duty and 108,515 in the Navy Reserve. It has 274 deployable combat vessels and more than 3,700 operational aircraft as of October 2016, the U. S. Navy traces its origins to the Continental Navy, which was established during the American Revolutionary War and was effectively disbanded as a separate entity shortly thereafter. It played a role in the American Civil War by blockading the Confederacy. It played the role in the World War II defeat of Imperial Japan. The 21st century U. S. Navy maintains a global presence, deploying in strength in such areas as the Western Pacific, the Mediterranean. The Navy is administratively managed by the Department of the Navy, the Department of the Navy is itself a division of the Department of Defense, which is headed by the Secretary of Defense. The Chief of Naval Operations is an admiral and the senior naval officer of the Department of the Navy. The CNO may not be the highest ranking officer in the armed forces if the Chairman or the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The mission of the Navy is to maintain, train and equip combat-ready Naval forces capable of winning wars, deterring aggression, the United States Navy is a seaborne branch of the military of the United States. The Navys three primary areas of responsibility, The preparation of naval forces necessary for the prosecution of war. The development of aircraft, weapons, tactics, technique, organization, U. S. Navy training manuals state that the mission of the U. S. Armed Forces is to prepare and conduct prompt and sustained combat operations in support of the national interest, as part of that establishment, the U. S. Navys functions comprise sea control, power projection and nuclear deterrence, in addition to sealift duties. It follows then as certain as that night succeeds the day, that without a decisive naval force we can do nothing definitive, the Navy was rooted in the colonial seafaring tradition, which produced a large community of sailors, captains, and shipbuilders. In the early stages of the American Revolutionary War, Massachusetts had its own Massachusetts Naval Militia, the establishment of a national navy was an issue of debate among the members of the Second Continental Congress. Supporters argued that a navy would protect shipping, defend the coast, detractors countered that challenging the British Royal Navy, then the worlds preeminent naval power, was a foolish undertaking. Commander in Chief George Washington resolved the debate when he commissioned the ocean-going schooner USS Hannah to interdict British merchant ships, and reported the captures to the Congress
5.
Aegis Combat System
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The Aegis Combat System is an integrated naval weapons system developed by the Missile and Surface Radar Division of RCA, and now produced by Lockheed Martin. It uses powerful computer and radar technology to track and guide weapons to enemy targets. Initially used by the United States Navy, Aegis is now used also by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, Spanish Navy, Royal Norwegian Navy, over 100 Aegis-equipped ships have been deployed in five navies worldwide. The Royal Australian Navy selected the Aegis system for placement on its new Air Warfare Destroyers, the word Aegis is a reference that dates back to Greek mythology, with connotations of a protective shield, as the Aegis was the buckler of Zeus, worn by Athena. The Aegis Combat System is a command and control and weapon control system that uses powerful computers and radars to track. Mk 41 VLS is available in different versions vary in size. The length comes in three sizes,209 in for the version,266 in for the tactical version. Shipboard torpedo and naval gunnery systems are also integrated, a further SM-2 based weapon, the RIM-174 Standard ERAM is currently in testing, and may be integrated into the system in the near future. Individual ships may not carry all variants, weapons load-outs are adjusted to suit assigned mission profile, the Aegis Combat System is controlled by an advanced, automatic detect-and-track, multi-function three-dimensional passive electronically scanned array radar, the AN/SPY-1. However the AN/SPY-1 Radar is mounted lower than the AN/SPS-49 radar system and this means that with proper scheduling of intercepts, a large number of targets can be engaged simultaneously. The computer-based command-and-decision element is the core of the Aegis Combat System and this interface makes the ACS capable of simultaneous operation against almost all kinds of threats. As of January,2014, the US and Japan were the countries to purchase or deploy the Aegis BMD. Aegis was initially developed by the Missile and Surface Radar Division of RCA, the division responsible for the Aegis systems became Government Electronic Systems. This, and other GE Aerospace businesses, were sold to Martin Marietta in 1992 and this became part of Lockheed Martin in 1995. By the late 1950s, the U. S. Navy replaced guns with guided missiles on its ships, the new threat of Soviet anti-ship missiles exposed a weakness in contemporary naval radar. The requirements of both tracking and targeting these missiles was limited by the number of radars on each ship, as a result, the US Navy decided to develop a program to defend ships from anti-ship missile threats. An Advanced Surface Missile System was promulgated and a development program was initiated in 1964 to meet the requirements. ASMS was renamed Aegis in December 1969 after the aegis, the shield of the Greek god Zeus
6.
Airborne early warning and control
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AEW&C units are also used to carry out surveillance, including over ground targets and frequently perform C2BM functions similar to an Air Traffic Controller given military command over other forces. Like a ground based radar, it can be detected by opposing forces, the system is used offensively to direct fighters to their target locations, and defensively, directing counterattacks on enemy forces, both air and ground. The designation airborne early warning was used for earlier similar aircraft, AWACS is the name of the specific system installed in the E-3 and Japanese Boeing E-767 AEW&C airframes, but is often used as a general synonym for AEW&C. Modern AEW&C systems can detect aircraft from up to 400 km away, one AEW&C aircraft flying at 9,000 m can cover an area of 312,000 km2. Three such aircraft in overlapping orbits can cover the whole of Central Europe, the intention was to cover the North West approaches where German long range Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor aircraft were threatening shipping. A Vickers Wellington bomber was fitted with an antenna array. It was tested for use against aerial targets and then for possible use against German E boats, another radar equipped Wellington with a different installation was used to direct Bristol Beaufighters toward Heinkel He 111s, which were air-launching V-1 flying bombs. In February 1944 the U. S. Navy ordered the development of a system that could be carried aloft in an aircraft under Project Cadillac. A prototype system was built and flown in August on a modified TBM Avenger torpedo bomber, tests proved successful, with the system being able to detect low flying formations at a range in excess of 100 miles. The U. S. Navy then ordered production of the TBM-3W, tBM-3Ws fitted with the AN/APS-20 radar entered service in March 1945, with some 36–40 eventually being constructed. The Lockheed WV and EC-121 Warning Star, which first flew in 1949 served widely with both the US Air Force and US Navy and provided the main AEW coverage for US forces during the Vietnam war. It was to remain operational until replaced with the E-3 AWACS, in 1958, the Soviet Tupolev Design Bureau was also ordered to design an AEW aircraft. After determining that the projected radar instrumentation wouldnt fit in a Tupolev Tu-95 or a Tupolev Tu-116 and this solved the problems with cooling and operator space that existed with the narrower Tu-95 and Tu-116 fuselage. To meet the range requirements, production examples were fitted with an air-to-air refueling probe. The resulting system, the Tupolev Tu-126, entered service in 1965 with the Soviet Air Forces, many countries have developed their own AEW&C systems, although the Boeing E-3 Sentry and Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye are the most common systems worldwide. The E-3 Sentry was built by the Boeing Defense and Space Group and was based on the Boeing 707-320 aircraft,65 E-3 were built and it is operated by the United States Air Force, NATO, the British Royal Air Force, France and controversially, Saudi Arabia. The specially designed Grumman E-2 Hawkeye entered service in 1965 and has operated by eight different nations. Over 168 have been produced so far and new versions continue to be developed making it the most widely used AEW system, for the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, the E-3 technology has been fitted into the Boeing E-767
7.
Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye
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The Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye is an American all-weather, carrier-capable tactical airborne early warning aircraft. The fourth major version of the Hawkeye is the E-2D, which first flew in 2007, the E-2 was the first aircraft designed specifically for its role, as opposed to a modification of an existing airframe, such as the Boeing E-3 Sentry. Variants of the Hawkeye have been in production since 1960. The E-2 also received the nickname Super Fudd because it replaced the E-1 Tracer Willy Fudd, in recent decades, the E-2 has been commonly referred to as the Hummer because of the distinctive sounds of its turboprop engines, quite unlike that of turbojet and turbofan jet engines. In addition to U. S. Navy service, smaller numbers of E-2s have been sold to the forces of Egypt, France, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Singapore. Continual improvements in airborne radars through 1956 led to the construction of AEW airplanes by several different countries, the functions of command and control and sea & air surveillance were also added. The first carrier-based aircraft to perform missions for the U. S. Its design, initially designated W2F-1, but later redesignated the E-2A Hawkeye, was the first carrier plane that had been designed from its wheels up as an AEW and command and control airplane. These ‘smaller’ carriers were built during World War II and later modified to allow them to operate jet aircraft, consequently, various height, weight and length restrictions had to be factored into the E-2A design, resulting in some handling characteristics which were less than ideal. The E-2A actually never operated from the modified Essex class carriers, the first prototype, acting as an aerodynamic testbed only, flew on 21 October 1960. The first fully equipped aircraft followed it on 19 April 1961, by 1965 the major development problems delaying the E-2A Hawkeye got so bad that the aircraft was actually cancelled after 59 aircraft had already been built. Particular difficulties were being experienced due to cooling in the closely packed avionics compartment. Early computer and complex avionics systems generated considerable heat, without proper ventilation this would lead to system failures and these failures continued long after the aircraft entered service and at one point reliability was so bad the entire fleet of aircraft was grounded. The airframe was also prone to corrosion, a problem in a carrier based aircraft. The unreliable rotary drum computer was replaced by a Litton L-304 digital computer, in total,49 of the 59 E-2As were upgraded to E-2B standard. These aircraft replaced the E-1B Tracers in the various US Navy AEW squadrons, although the upgraded E-2B was a vast improvement on the unreliable E-2A, it was an interim measure. The US Navy knew the design had much greater capability and had yet to achieve the performance, in April 1968 a reliability improvement program was instigated. In addition, now that the capabilities of the aircraft were starting to be realized, improvements in the new and upgraded aircraft were concentrated in the radar and computer performance
8.
Boeing E-3 Sentry
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The Boeing E-3 Sentry, commonly known as AWACS, is an American airborne early warning and control aircraft developed by Boeing as the prime contractor. The E-3 is distinguished by the rotating radar dome above the fuselage. Production ended in 1992 after 68 aircraft had been built, in the mid-1960s, the US Air Force was seeking an aircraft to replace its piston-engined Lockheed EC-121 Warning Star, which had been in service for over a decade. After issuing preliminary development contracts to three companies, the USAF picked Boeing to construct two airframes to test Westinghouse Electric and Hughess competing radars, both radars used pulse-Doppler technology, with Westinghouses design emerging as the contract winner. Testing on the first production E-3 began in October 1975, the first USAF E-3 was delivered in March 1977, and during the next seven years, a total of 34 aircraft were manufactured. NATO, as an identity, also had 18 aircraft manufactured. The E-3 was also sold to the United Kingdom and France, in 1991, when the last aircraft had been delivered, E-3s participated in Operation Desert Storm, playing a crucial role of directing coalition aircraft against the enemy. Throughout the aircrafts service life, numerous upgrades were performed to enhance its capabilities, in 1963, the USAF asked for proposals for an Airborne Warning and Control System to replace its EC-121 Warning Stars, which had served in the airborne early warning role for over a decade. The new aircraft would take advantage of improvements in technology and in computer aided radar data analysis. Contracts were issued to Boeing, Douglas, and Lockheed, the latter being eliminated in July 1966, in 1967, a parallel program was put into place to develop the radar, with Westinghouse Electric and the Hughes Aircraft being asked to compete in producing the radar system. In 1968, it was referred to as Overland Radar Technology during development tests on the modified EC-121Q, the Westinghouse radar antenna was going to be used by whichever company won the radar competition, since Westinghouse had pioneered in the design of high-power RF phase-shifters. Boeing initially proposed an aircraft, but tests indicated it would not outperform the already-operational 707. To increase endurance, this design was to be powered by eight General Electric TF34s and it would carry its radar in a rotating dome mounted at the top of a forward-swept tail, above the fuselage. Boeing was selected ahead of McDonnell Douglass DC-8-based proposal in July 1970, initial orders were placed for two aircraft, designated EC-137D as test beds to evaluate the two competing radars. The first EC-137 made its flight on 9 February 1972. Favorable test results led to the selection of Westinghouses radar for the production aircraft, Hughess radar was initially thought to be a certain winner, simply because much of its design was also going into the new F-15 Eagles radar program. The Westinghouse radar used a pipelined fast fourier transform to digitally resolve 128 Doppler frequencies, Westinghouses engineering team won this competition by using a programmable 18-bit computer whose software could be modified before each mission. This computer was the AN/AYK-8 design from the B-57G program, and this radar also multiplexed a beyond-the-horizon pulse mode that could complement the pulse-Doppler radar mode
9.
United States Congress
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The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States consisting of two chambers, the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the Capitol in Washington, D. C, both senators and representatives are chosen through direct election, though vacancies in the Senate may be filled by a gubernatorial appointment. Members are usually affiliated to the Republican Party or to the Democratic Party, Congress has 535 voting members,435 Representatives and 100 Senators. The House of Representatives has six non-voting members in addition to its 435 voting members and these members can, however, sit on congressional committees and introduce legislation. Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, the members of the House of Representatives serve two-year terms representing the people of a single constituency, known as a district. Congressional districts are apportioned to states by using the United States Census results. Each state, regardless of population or size, has two senators, currently, there are 100 senators representing the 50 states. Each senator is elected at-large in their state for a term, with terms staggered. The House and Senate are equal partners in the legislative process—legislation cannot be enacted without the consent of both chambers, however, the Constitution grants each chamber some unique powers. The Senate ratifies treaties and approves presidential appointments while the House initiates revenue-raising bills, the House initiates impeachment cases, while the Senate decides impeachment cases. A two-thirds vote of the Senate is required before a person can be forcibly removed from office. The term Congress can also refer to a meeting of the legislature. A Congress covers two years, the current one, the 115th Congress, began on January 3,2017, the Congress starts and ends on the third day of January of every odd-numbered year. Members of the Senate are referred to as senators, members of the House of Representatives are referred to as representatives, congressmen, or congresswomen. One analyst argues that it is not a solely reactive institution but has played a role in shaping government policy and is extraordinarily sensitive to public pressure. Several academics described Congress, Congress reflects us in all our strengths, Congress is the governments most representative body. Congress is essentially charged with reconciling our many points of view on the public policy issues of the day. —Smith, Roberts, and Wielen Congress is constantly changing and is constantly in flux, most incumbents seek re-election, and their historical likelihood of winning subsequent elections exceeds 90 percent
10.
DARPA
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The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is an agency of the U. S. Department of Defense responsible for the development of emerging technologies for use by the military. DARPA was created in February 1958 as the Advanced Research Projects Agency by President Dwight D. Eisenhower and its purpose was to formulate and execute research and development projects to expand the frontiers of technology and science, with the aim to reach beyond immediate military requirements. DARPA was created in response to the Soviet launching of Sputnik 1 in 1957, the name of the organization changed several times from its founding name ARPA, DARPA, ARPA, and DARPA. DARPA is independent from other research and development and reports directly to senior Department of Defense management. DARPA has about 240 employees, of whom 13 are in management, dARPA-funded projects have provided significant technologies that influenced many non-military fields, such as computer networking and graphical user interfaces in information technology. S. The mission statement has evolved over time, today, DARPAs mission is still to prevent technological surprise to the U. S. but also to create technological surprise for U. S. enemies. The creation of the Advanced Research Projects Agency was authorized by President Dwight D.15 and its creation was directly attributed to the launching of Sputnik and to U. S. realization that the Soviet Union had developed the capacity to rapidly exploit military technology. Initial funding of ARPA was $520 million, ARPAs first director, Roy Johnson, left a $160,000 management job at General Electric for an $18,000 job at ARPA. Herbert York from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory was hired as his scientific assistant, Johnson and York were both keen on space projects, but when NASA was established later in 1958 all space projects and most of ARPAs funding were transferred to it. Johnson resigned and ARPA was repurposed to do high-risk, high-gain, far out basic research, ARPAs second director was Brigadier General Austin W. Betts, who resigned in early 1961. He was succeeded by Jack Ruina who served until 1963, Ruina, the first scientist to administer ARPA, managed to raise its budget to $250 million. In pursuit of this mission, DARPA has developed and transferred technology programs encompassing a range of scientific disciplines that address the full spectrum of national security needs. From 1958 to 1965, ARPAs emphasis centered on major issues, including space, ballistic missile defense. During 1960, all of its civilian space programs were transferred to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the military space programs to the individual Services. This allowed ARPA to concentrate its efforts on the Project Defender, Project Vela, and Project AGILE Programs, and to work on computer processing, behavioral sciences. The DEFENDER and AGILE Programs formed the foundation of DARPA sensor, surveillance, and directed energy R&D, particularly in the study of radar, infrared sensing, ARPA at this point played an early role in Transit a predecessor to the Global Positioning System. Fast-forward to 1959 when a joint effort between DARPA and the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory began to fine-tune the early explorers’ discoveries, TRANSIT, sponsored by the Navy and developed under the leadership of Dr. Richard Kirschner at Johns Hopkins, was the first satellite positioning system. The agency was renamed the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in 1972, and during the early 1970s, it emphasized direct energy programs, information processing, concerning information processing, DARPA made great progress, initially through its support of the development of time-sharing
