The strategic defense initiative: An innovative science and technology perspective that's much more than “star wars”

The Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) proposed by President Reagan immediately caught the fancy of the news media who dubbed it the “Star Wars Program.” However, only in the fantasy world of films can the tasks envisioned by the program be accomplished by a few swashbuckling space heroes who take on all the technological might of an evil empire and succeed. By contrast, the SDI program goals will require a major commitment of scientific assets, money, and people just to establish feasibility of the concepts.