Space Weapons Earth Wars Author:Dana J. Johnson, Sean J. A. Edwards, Michael Miller, Calvin Shipbaugh Space weapons have been debated intensely in the past. The latestinstance of prominent debate is over their use for ballistic missiledefense. But this is not the only possible role for space weapons, andthat fact raises a further concern: What if an adversary were to developsuch weapons? Could one? Why would it? It is time for broader publicdisc... more »ussion of the issues. Before deciding to acquire or forgo spaceweapons for terrestrial conflict, the United States should fully discusswhat such weapons can do, what they will cost, and the likelyconsequences of acquiring them. The authors of this report seek to aidthis discussion not by arguing for or against space weapons but bydescribing their attributes, classifying and comparing them, andexplaining how each might be used. The authors also explore how a nationmight decide to acquire such weapons and how other nations might react.« less