Minuteman: A Technical History of the Missile That Defined American Nuclear Warfare (forthcoming from the University of Arkansas Press, February 2021), is a detailed history of the Minuteman intercontinental ballistic missile program. The Minuteman program has served as a powerful component of US nuclear strategies for over half a century. David Stumpf examines breakthroughs in solid propellant, lightweight inertial guidance systems and lightweight reentry vehicle development, the construction of over a thousand launch and launch control facilities, and key flight test and operational flight programs, and places the Minuteman program in context with world events.
On the cover: Flight Test Missile 401 lifts off on 1 February 1961 from Launch Complex 31A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.
“This was the first time a multistage missile was launched with all stages operational on its first flight,” Stumpf said. “The missile flew 3,999 nautical miles, impacting in a broad ocean area near Ascension Island, 2.3 nautical miles long and 0.4 nautical miles to the left of the target. This launch is often referred to as December 63rd referring to the originally scheduled date of 1 December 1960.”
The cover was designed by Liz Lester.
Read the introduction to Minuteman, check out the table of contents, and view all the exciting content in the Minuteman digital appendices.
Minuteman: A Technical History of the Missile That Defined American Nuclear Warfare is now available for preorder!