Soviet Union: Moscow's Better Mousetrap

At the Soviet Union's Sary-Shagan test range in the wilds of Kazakhstan, near the Mongolian border, a Galosh-type surface-to-air missile rose slowly from its launch pad. After climbing skyward, the rocket spread a dark, mile-wide cloud far above the lower atmosphere. It was a cloud that cast a shadow as far away as Washington. Last week U.S. intelligence sources reported that the test, conducted in September, involved a remarkable new anti-ballistic missile (ABM) system that could represent a major breakthrough.

Millions of Particles. The Moscow area has been ringed for the past...

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