Cold War | War History

Rejected Prototype Aircraft That Were Given A Second Act

Grumman F4F Wildcat

Not every aircraft that sounds great on paper actually proves to be great in practice. There are far more proposed aircraft designs than there are…

Impressive Facts About The ‘Losers’ Of The Space Race

Yuri Gagarin, Russian cosmonaut, 1961.

The Space Race was a battle between the U.S. and Soviet Union that was fought with brains, science, and technology in the cold expanse of…

A Look Back At The Army’s Portable Reactors — Is It Time To Try Again?

In 1954 the U.S. Army initiated the Army Nuclear Power Program, which sought to research and design relatively small portable nuclear reactors that would provide…

Cold War Fun: A 1950s Science Kit That Contained Real Uranium

Gilbert u-238 atomic energy lab

When the U.S. successfully harnessed the virtually limitless power of the atom with the Trinity atomic bomb test in 1945, it seemed that there wasn’t…

The XF-108 Rapier: The Air Force’s Best Plane That Never Flew

XF-108 in flight.

In the 1950s, the Jet Age was in full swing, and manufacturers were looking to make the biggest advancements with this new technology. High-performance internal…

What Happened When The Soviets Left Afghanistan?

A destroyed Soviet-era tank lies in the Panjshir River on September 5, 2016 in Bazarak, Afghanistan.

On December 24th, 1979, the Soviet Red Army charged into Afghanistan, marking the beginning of the Soviet–Afghan War. This war would draw many parallels with…

Ämari Pilots’ Cemetery: An Abandoned Graveyard That Uses Aircraft Parts As Gravestones

Aircraft tails sticking out of the forest ground at Ämari Pilots' Cemetery

Ämari Pilots’ Cemetery, the final resting place of Soviet-Estonian fighter pilots killed in air accidents, is a strange sight to behold. The spooky part of…

Two Families Once Escaped East Germany in a Hot Air Balloon

AI rendering of a hot air balloon floating over the Berlin Wall

What price would you pay for freedom, and what dangers would you put your family through for a chance at a better life? Peter Strelzyk…

Operation Mongoose: The US Government’s Ridiculous Plot to Overthrow Fidel Castro

Fidel Castro speaking at a podium + John F. Kennedy sitting at his desk

Fidel Castro was one of the most famous figures of the Cold War. He was especially famous in the United States, as officials with the…

Project Stargate: When the CIA Tried to Harness Psychic Energy Against the Soviets

Woman sitting at a table where Zener cards have been laid out + Purple sparkles

Project Stargate sounds like something out of this world – and it kind of is. No, it doesn’t refer to wormholes or the exploration of…

Cold War-Era Double Agents Who Could Easily Outfox James Bond

Robert Hanssen's mugshot + Robert Hanssen being led by police in handcuffs

The best-known spy of all time is James Bond, a fictional British agent developed by Ian Fleming during the height of the Cold War. While…

Problems Persist In Australian Outback Decades After British Nuclear Tests

Aerial view of Maralinga + John L. Stanier dressed in protective gear

The end of World War II saw the rise of atomic arsenals, especially in Britain. Wanting to improve the effectiveness of its nuclear technology, the…