That Time We Gave Earth a Ring Made of Millions of Tiny Needles

Project Westford was a US military initiative in the 1960s to create a ring of copper needles around Earth to improve communication reliability during the Cold War. The project aimed to overcome the limitations of undersea cables and the unpredictable ionosphere. Despite initial failures, a successful launch in 1963 demonstrated the concept's viability. However, the advent of satellites and protests from scientists led to the project's decline. The legacy of Project Westford includes increased awareness of space debris and its impact on space exploration.

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