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59-582: TOPAZ may refer to: TOPAZ nuclear reactor , a nuclear reactor developed in the Soviet Union TOPAZ (think tank) , an organisation of the Czech Republic See also [ edit ] Topaz (disambiguation) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title TOPAZ . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change

118-504: A lasing medium consisting of metal rods. Many such rods would be placed around a warhead, each aimed at a different ICBM, thus destroying many ICBMs in a single attack. It would cost much less for the US to build another Excalibur than the Soviets would need to build enough new ICBMs to counter it. The idea was first based on satellites, but when it was pointed out that these could be attacked in space,

177-509: A decade. Instead of attempting to protect against thousands of incoming missiles, GPALS sought to provide protection from up to two hundred nuclear missiles. GPALS was tasked to protect the United States from attacks coming from all different parts of the world. In 1993, the Clinton administration further shifted the focus to ground-based interceptor missiles and theater-scale systems, forming

236-537: A high-powered orbital chemical laser attack ICBMs, the Space Based Laser (SBL). New developments under Project Excalibur by Teller's "O-Group" at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) suggested that a single X-ray laser could shoot down dozens of missiles with a single shot. The groups began to meet in order to prepare their plans for the incoming president. The group met with Reagan several times during 1981 and 1982, apparently with little effect, while

295-402: A month before the situation was resolved by a new NRC ruling and the model returned to Russia. The United States Department of State then put a hold on the deal, which was only lifted when Secretary of State James Baker intervened. One of the reactors was to be used in a flight test in 1995 to power experimental electrical thrusters, but there were objections from scientists concerned about

354-426: A review of the various concepts. They put together an all-star panel including many of the inventors of the laser, including a Nobel laureate . Their initial report was presented in 1986, but was released to the public (in redacted form) in early 1987. The report considered all of the systems then under development and concluded none of them were anywhere near ready for deployment. Specifically, they noted that all of

413-523: A satellite that successfully test-fired its cannon in orbit. In 1979, Teller contributed to a Hoover Institution publication where he claimed that the US would be facing an emboldened USSR due to their work on civil defense . Two years later at a conference in Italy, he made the same claims about their ambitions, now emboldened by new space-based weapons. According to popular opinion, shared by author Frances FitzGerald , no evidence validated that such research

472-501: A short period and the warheads did not rise high enough for them to be easily tracked by a satellite above them. GPALS thus added a mobile ground-based missile and more low-orbit satellites known as Brilliant Eyes to feed the Pebbles. GPALS was approved by President George H.W. Bush in 1991. The system would cut the proposed costs of the SDI system from $ 53 billion to $ 41 billion over

531-399: A small, Virginia-based think tank called High Frontier to continue research on the missile shield. The Heritage Foundation provided High Frontier with research space, and Graham published a 1982 report entitled, "High Frontier: A New National Strategy" that examined in greater detail how the system would function. Since the late 1970s, another group had been pushing for the development of

590-551: The American Physical Society concluded that the technologies were decades away from readiness, and at least another decade of research was required to know whether such a system was even possible. After the publication of the APS report, SDI's budget was cut. By the late 1980s, the effort had re-focused on the " Brilliant Pebbles " concept using small orbiting missiles, such as a lower cost conventional air-to-air missile . SDI

649-729: The Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) and closing BMDO was renamed by the George W. Bush administration as the Missile Defense Agency and focused on limited National Missile Defense . The Extended Range Interceptor (ERINT) program was part of SDI's Theater Missile Defense Program and was an extension of the Flexible Lightweight Agile Guided Experiment (FLAGE), which included developing hit-to-kill technology and demonstrating

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708-465: The Brilliant Pebbles concept. This was essentially the combination of the sensors on the garage satellites and the tracking stations. Advancements in sensors and microprocessors allowed this to be packaged in a small missile nose cone. Subsequent studies suggested that this approach would be cheaper, easier to launch and more resistant to counterattack, and in 1990 Brilliant Pebbles was selected as

767-609: The Clinton Administration redirected the efforts towards theatre ballistic missiles and renamed the agency the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO). In 2019, elements, specifically the observation portions, of the program re-emerged with President Trump's signing of the National Defense Authorization Act . The program is managed by the Space Development Agency (SDA) as part of

826-581: The Marshall Islands . For each test a Minuteman missile was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California carrying a single mock re-entry vehicle targeted for Kwajalein lagoon more than 4,000 miles (6,400 km) away. After test failures with the first three flight tests because of guidance and sensor problems, the DOD reported that the fourth and final test on June 10, 1984, was successful, intercepting

885-511: The Safeguard Program , all aimed at developing a system to defend against attacks by Soviet ICBMs. The programs proliferated because of the changing threat; the Soviets claimed to be producing missiles "like sausages", and ever-more missiles would be needed to defend against their fleet. Low-cost countermeasures such as radar decoys required additional interceptors. An early estimate suggested $ 20 spent on defense would be required for every $ 1

944-527: The Soviet Union began in 1964–1965. Though classified at the time, a detailed study on a Soviet space-based laser system began no later than 1976 with the Polyus , a 1 MW Carbon dioxide laser -based orbital weapons platform prototype. Development was also started on the anti-satellite Kaskad in-orbit missile platform. A revolver cannon ( Rikhter R-23 ) was mounted on the 1974 Soviet Salyut 3 space station,

1003-512: The Space Development Agency (SDA). The Strategic Defense Initiative Organization (SDIO) was set up in 1984 within the US Department of Defense to oversee development. Advanced weapon concepts, including lasers, particle-beam weapons , and ground and space-based missile systems were studied, along with sensor, command and control , and computer systems needed to control a system consisting of hundreds of combat centers and satellites spanning

1062-575: The 1980s the US Army began studies about the feasibility of kinetic hit-to-kill vehicles, i.e. interceptors that would destroy incoming ballistic missiles by colliding with them. The Homing Overlay Experiment (HOE) was the first such system tested by the Army, and the first successful hit-to-kill intercept of a mock ballistic missile warhead outside the Earth's atmosphere. HOE used a kinetic kill vehicle (KKV). The KKV

1121-457: The 1990s, causing a leak of radioactive coolant. A proposed follow-up Plasma-2 was to have been equipped with an improved reactor. One reactor operated for 6 months, the other for a year. The program was canceled by Mikhail Gorbachev in 1988. In the TOPAZ-II or ENISY reactor each fuel pin (96% enriched UO 2 ) is sheathed in an emitter which is in turn surrounded by a collector, and these form

1180-480: The 37 fuel elements which penetrate the cylindrical zirconium hydride (ZrH) moderator. This in turn is surrounded by a beryllium neutron reflector with 12 rotating control drums. Liquid metal coolant ( NaK ) surrounds each fuel element. The mass of the reactor is ~ 1,061 kg (2,339 lb). In January 1991 a model of the TOPAZ-II was exhibited at a scientific symposium in Albuquerque , generating interest in

1239-601: The DOD never disclosed to Congress the enhancements made to the target vessel. HOE technology was later expanded into the Exoatmospheric Reentry-vehicle Interception System program. Developed by Lockheed as part of the ground-based interceptor portion of SDI, the Exoatmospheric Reentry-vehicle Interceptor Subsystem (ERIS) began in 1985, with at least two tests occurring in the early 1990s. This system

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1298-737: The Minuteman RV with a closing speed of about 3.8 mi/s (6.1 km/s) at an altitude of more than 100 mi (160 km). Although the fourth test was described as a success, the New York Times in August 1993 reported that the HOE4 test was rigged to increase the likelihood of success. At the urging of Senator David Pryor , the General Accounting Office investigated the claims and concluded that though steps were taken to make it easier for

1357-538: The Soviet ICBMs upon launch. This boost phase intercept rendered MIRV impotent; a successful attack would destroy all of the warheads. Unfortunately, the operational cost of such a system was so large that the US Air Force rejected the concepts. Development was cancelled in 1963. During this period, the entire topic of BMD became increasingly controversial. Early deployment plans were met with little interest, but by

1416-470: The Soviets spent on offense. The addition of MIRV in the late 1960s further moved the balance in favor of offensive systems. This massively skewed cost-exchange ratio prompted observers to propose that an arms race was inevitable. President Dwight D. Eisenhower asked ARPA to consider alternative concepts. Their Project Defender studied many approaches before concentrating on Project BAMBI . BAMBI used satellites carrying interceptors that would attack

1475-447: The Soviets were devoting serious thought to both explosive and non-explosive nuclear power sources for lasers. On March 23, 1983, Reagan announced SDI in a nationally televised speech, stating "I call upon the scientific community in this country, those who gave us nuclear weapons, to turn their great talents to the cause of mankind and world peace, to give us the means of rendering these nuclear weapons impotent and obsolete." In 1984,

1534-630: The Strategic Defense Initiative Organization (SDIO) was established to oversee the program, which was headed by Lt. General James Alan Abrahamson USAF, a past Director of the Space Shuttle program . In addition to original Heritage ideas, other concepts were considered. Notable among these were particle-beam weapons , updated versions of nuclear shaped charges , and various plasma weapons . SDIO invested in computer systems, component miniaturization, and sensors. Initially,

1593-639: The US in the possible purchase of it and the Strategic Defense Initiative Organization arranged to buy two Topaz-2 reactors from Russia for a total of $ 13 million, planning to use the reactors to improve US models. However, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission ruled that US law prohibited the "export" of such a device to the Soviet Union - even though it was Soviet-made and only a model rather than an actual reactor. It took

1652-560: The baseline model for SDS Phase 1. While SDIO pursued SDS, the Warsaw Pact was rapidly disintegrating, culminating in the destruction of the Berlin Wall in 1989. One of the many reports on SDS considered these events and suggested that a massive defense against a Soviet launch would become unnecessary. However, short and medium range missile technology would likely proliferate as the Soviet Union disintegrated and sold off its hardware. One of

1711-505: The buildup of new offensive weaponry like the B-1 Lancer and MX missile continued. However, in early 1983, the Joint Chiefs of Staff met with the president and outlined the reasons why they might consider shifting some of the funding from the offensive side to new defensive systems. According to a 1983 US Interagency Intelligence Assessment, good evidence indicated that in the late 1960s

1770-429: The city or its surrounding areas. The A-35 was the only Soviet ABM system allowed under the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty . In development since the 1960s and in operation from 1971 until the 1990s, it featured the nuclear-tipped A350 exoatmospheric interceptor missile. George Shultz , Reagan's secretary of state , suggested that a 1967 lecture by physicist Edward Teller was an important precursor to SDI. In

1829-447: The concept moved to a "pop-up" concept, with the device launched from a submarine off the northern Soviet coast. However, on March 26, 1983, the first test (known as the Cabra event ), was performed in an underground shaft and resulted in marginally positive readings possibly caused by a faulty detector. Since a nuclear explosion was used as the power source, the detector was destroyed during

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1888-400: The core ideas behind Global Protection Against Limited Strikes (GPALS) was that the Soviet Union would not always be the aggressor and the United States would not always be the target. Instead of a heavy defense aimed at ICBMs, this report suggested realigning GPALS deployment. Against novel threats the Brilliant Pebbles would have limited utility, largely because the missiles fired for only

1947-522: The fall of 1979, at Reagan's request, Lieutenant General Daniel O. Graham , the former head of the DIA , briefed Reagan on an updated BAMBI he called High Frontier, a missile shield composed of multi-layered ground- and space-based weapons that could track, intercept, and destroy ballistic missiles, theoretically enabled by emerging technologies. It was designed to replace the MAD doctrine. In September 1981, Graham formed

2006-437: The flight time was so short that it would leave little time to forward information through command and control networks to missile batteries. Bell Labs pointed out that although longer-range missiles flew much faster, their longer flight times would ease the timing issue and their high altitudes would ease long-range radar detection. This led to a series of projects including Nike Zeus , Nike-X , Sentinel and ultimately

2065-614: The globe. The US held a significant advantage in advanced missile defense systems through decades of extensive research and testing. Several concepts, technologies and insights obtained were transferred to subsequent programs. Under SDIO's Innovative Sciences and Technology Office, investment was made in basic research at national laboratories, universities, and in industry. These programs have continued to be key sources of funding for research scientists in particle physics , supercomputing/ computation , advanced materials, and other critical science and engineering disciplines. In 1987,

2124-605: The guidance accuracy of a small, agile, radar-homing vehicle. FLAGE scored a direct hit against a MGM-52 Lance missile in flight, at White Sands Missile Range in 1987. ERINT was a prototype missile similar to the FLAGE, but it used a new solid-propellant rocket motor that allowed it to fly faster and higher than FLAGE. ERINT was later chosen as the MIM-104 Patriot (Patriot Advanced Capability-3, PAC-3) missile. Given concerns about previous programs' nuclear-tipped interceptors, in

2183-451: The interceptor to find its target (including some of those alleged by the New York Times ), the available data indicated that the interceptor had been successfully guided by its onboard infrared sensors in the collision, and not by an onboard radar guidance system as alleged. Per the GAO report, the net effect of the DOD enhancements increased the infrared signature of the target vessel by 110% over

2242-559: The late 1960s, public meetings on the Sentinel system were met by thousands of angry protesters. After thirty years of effort, only one such system was built; a single base of the original Safeguard system became operational in April 1975, but was closed in February 1976. A Soviet military A-35 anti-ballistic missile system was deployed around Moscow to intercept enemy ballistic missiles targeting

2301-501: The lecture, Teller talked about the idea of defending against nuclear missiles using nuclear weapons , principally the W65 and W71 , with the latter an enhanced thermal/X-ray device used on the Spartan missile in 1975. Held at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), the 1967 lecture was attended by Reagan shortly after he became governor of California. Development of laser weapons in

2360-422: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=TOPAZ&oldid=1166938183 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages TOPAZ nuclear reactor In initial discussions, it was unclear that TOPAZ and

2419-549: The most reckless and irresponsible acts in the history of modern statecraft.” Through declassified intelligence material, the wider implications and effects of the program revealed that due to the potential neutralization of its arsenal and resulting loss of a balancing power factor, SDI was a cause of grave concern for the Soviet Union and its successor state Russia. Following the Cold War when nuclear arsenals were shrinking, political support for SDI collapsed. SDI ended in 1993, when

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2478-464: The new National Defense Space Architecture (NDSA). CIA Director Mike Pompeo called for additional funding to achieve a full-fledged "Strategic Defense Initiative for our time, the SDI II" though it is unclear what this had to do with SDA. The US Army considered the issue of ballistic missile defense (BMD) after World War II . Studies suggested that attacking a V-2 rocket would be difficult because

2537-630: The possible impact of radiation emitted by the reactor on instruments aboard space satellites and protests from opponents of space-based weapons and nuclear power. In addition, the Department of Energy was slow to grant the necessary approval and in 1993 budget restrictions forced the cancellation of the program. Six TOPAZ-II reactors and their associated support equipment were flown to the US, where they were extensively ground tested by US, British, French, and Russian engineers. The reactors' unique design allowed them to be tested without being fuelled. Although

2596-512: The program focused on large-scale systems designed to defeat a massive Soviet offensive strike. For this mission, SDIO concentrated almost entirely on "high tech" solutions like lasers. Graham's proposal was repeatedly rejected by members of the Heritage group as well as within SDIO; when asked about it in 1985, Abrahamson suggested that the concept was underdeveloped and was not considered. By 1986, many of

2655-549: The promising ideas were failing. Teller's X-ray laser, run under Project Excalibur , failed several key tests in 1986 and was targeted to the anti-satellite role. The particle beam concept was demonstrated to basically not work, as was the case with several other concepts. Only the Space-Based Laser seemed to have any hope of developing in the short term, but it was growing in size due to its fuel consumption. The American Physical Society (APS) had been asked by SDIO to provide

2714-461: The realistic missile signature initially proposed for the HOE program, but nonetheless the GAO concluded the enhancements to the target vessel were reasonable given the objectives of the program and the geopolitical consequences of its failure. Further, the report concluded that the DOD's subsequent statements before Congress about the HOE program "fairly characterize[d]" the success of HOE4, but confirmed that

2773-667: The single cell ENISY reactor (also known as TOPAZ-II). Work was carried out by the Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy and the Central Bureau for Machine Building to develop the multi-cell TOPAZ (also known as TOPAZ-I), a Russian acronym for "Thermionic Experiment with Conversion in Active Zone". It was first ground tested in 1971, when its existence was acknowledged. It was under the auspices of Krasnaya Zvezda . The first TOPAZ reactor operated for 1,300 hours (~54 days) and then

2832-552: The somewhat similar YENISEI reactors were different systems, and when the existence of the two Russian thermionic reactors became generally known, US personnel began referring to TOPAZ as TOPAZ-I and YENISEI as TOPAZ-II. The first thermionic converter reactors were discussed by scientists at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory (LASL) in 1957. Following the visit of Soviet scientists to LASL in 1958, they carried out tests on TI systems in 1961, initially developing

2891-492: The systems could be deployed as an anti-missile system until the next century. Faced with this report and accompanying negative press, SDIO changed direction. Beginning in late 1986, Abrahamson proposed that SDI would be based on the system he had previously dismissed, a version of High Frontier now named the "Strategic Defense System, Phase I Architecture". The name implied that the concept would be replaced by more advanced systems in future phases. Strategic Defense System (SDS)

2950-514: The systems had to improve their energy output by at least 100 times, and in some cases by as much as a million. In other cases, like Excalibur, they dismissed the concept entirely. Their summary stated simply: We estimate that all existing candidates for directed energy weapons (DEWs) require two or more orders of magnitude, (powers of 10) improvements in power output and beam quality before they may be seriously considered for application in ballistic missile defense systems. They concluded that none of

3009-530: The test program was considered a success, no plans were pursued to fly any of the reactors. The TOPAZ reactor is manufactured by the State Research Institute, Scientific Industrial Association (also known as Luch), which is operated by Russia's Ministry of Atomic Energy . Strategic Defense Initiative The Strategic Defense Initiative ( SDI ), derisively nicknamed the Star Wars program ,

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3068-417: Was a proposed missile defense system intended to protect the United States from attack by ballistic nuclear missiles . The program was announced in 1983, by President Ronald Reagan . Reagan called for a system that would render nuclear weapons obsolete, and to end the doctrine of mutual assured destruction (MAD), which he described as a " suicide pact ". Elements of the program reemerged in 2019 under

3127-547: Was carried out. Instead, Teller was promoting his latest weapon, the X-ray laser that was finding only limited funding, his speech in Italy was a new attempt to synthsize a missile gap . In 1979, Reagan visited the NORAD command base, Cheyenne Mountain Complex , where he was introduced to the extensive tracking and detection systems extending throughout the world and into space; however, he

3186-537: Was derisively nicknamed the Star Wars program, and criticized for threatening to destabilize the MAD-approach, and to re-ignite "an offensive arms race ". In a 1986 speech, Senator Joe Biden claimed “'Star Wars' represents a fundamental assault on the concepts, alliances and arms-control agreements that have buttressed American security for several decades, and the president’s continued adherence to it constitutes one of

3245-505: Was equipped with an infrared seeker, guidance electronics and a propulsion system. Once in space, the KKV could extend a folded structure similar to an umbrella skeleton of 13 ft (4 m) diameter to enhance its effective cross section. This device was intended to destroy an ICBM reentry vehicle on collision. Four test launches were conducted in 1983 and 1984 at Kwajalein Missile Range in

3304-667: Was never deployed, but its technology was used in the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system and the Ground-Based Interceptor currently deployed as part of the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD) system. An early SDI focus was an X-ray laser powered by nuclear explosions . Nuclear explosions give off a burst of X-rays, which the Excalibur concept intended to focus using

3363-514: Was shut down for detailed examination. It was capable of delivering 5 kW of power for 3–5 years from 12 kg (26 lb) of fuel. Reactor mass was ~ 320 kg (710 lb). TOPAZ was first flown in 1987 on the experimental Plazma-A satellites Kosmos 1818 and Kosmos 1867 , which were intended to test both the TOPAZ reactor and the Plasma-2 SPT electric engine. Both reactors were damaged in

3422-457: Was struck by their comments that while they could track the attack down to the individual targets, they could not stop it. Reagan felt that in the event of an attack, this would place the president in a terrible position, having to choose between immediate counterattack or absorbing the attack while maintaining offensive dominance. Shultz suggested that this feeling of helplessness, coupled with Teller's defensive ideas combined to motivate SDI. In

3481-519: Was the low-earth orbit (LEO) Smart Rocks concept with an added layer of ground-based missiles sited in the US. These missiles were intended to attack warheads that the Smart Rocks missed. In order to track them below the radar horizon , SDS added more LEO satellites that would feed tracking information to both the space-based "garages" as well as the ground-based missiles. Later ground-based systems trace derived from this concept. LLNL then introduced

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