A once-secret US Army report has been declassified and released to researcher John Greenwald, who runs the Black Vault website, under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act. The report, titled “Extra-Terrestrial Warfare” and authored by Robert C Suggs, sets out how the US Army would need to prepare for war with extraterrestrial beings.
The 20-page document, which was drawn up in June 1965, first appeared on eBay and had a price tag of £800,000 ($1million). It explores the implications of a potential requirement for the US Army to wage extra-terrestrial warfare within the next two to three decades and proposes a program of studies that would enable the Army to meet this requirement.
According to the report, any future war with aliens would occur in space, on Mars, moons and asteroids in our solar system. Military bases could be set up on “natural satellites,” starting with our Moon, to carry out exploration and surveillance. The report suggests that new weaponry, such as lasers, would be used to combat the alien threat, but it also notes that further research is required to increase the power of these devices and reduce the size of the components to manageable proportions for warfare.
The report states that direct energy weapons, such as lasers, “offer outstanding possibilities for space weaponry,” but that other firepower, such as rockets and nuclear missiles, would also be considered. It notes that nuclear weapons are generally agreed to have good potential for space application, but their employment may be restrained by factors such as the effect of nuclear radiation on communication and sensing devices. The report also calls for special space suits to be developed to protect against radiation during an alien conflict.
The report calls for a number of “substantive projects” to be launched to “develop the organisation, equipment and doctrine that will be ultimately required in the 1970-1980 time period.”
While the report was drawn up in the 1960s, the idea of using nukes to fight off an alien invasion has been a topic of science fiction for decades. It remains unclear whether the US Army has since developed any of the proposed technology or strategy outlined in the report.
The report has been met with mixed reactions, with some suggesting it is a prudent measure to prepare for a possible alien threat, while others argue that it is a waste of resources and that the idea of an alien invasion is purely speculative.
Sam Allcock is the CEO of PR FIRE – PR & Content Marketing Platform
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