In September 1980, Arkansans lived and worked near nuclear missiles and words like these were household terms:
Megaton: In the context of nuclear weapons, an explosive power equivalent to 1 million tons of TNT. The Titan II missiles in Arkansas carried 9-megaton warheads. There were 18 Titan II missiles scattered around north-central Arkansas under the command of the 308th Strategic Missile Wing.
Nuclear triad: A defense strategy under which a nuclear force has three components. The first is the strategic bomber force. The second is the arsenal of intercontinental ballistic missiles ( ICBMs). The third is the submarine force with its submarine-launched ballistic missiles ( SLBMs). The United States still operates all three components.
Minuteman III: An arsenal of 500 ICBMs currently deployed at Air Force bases in North Dakota, Montana and Wyoming.
MIRV: A ballistic missile with a payload of several warheads, each which may be aimed at a different target, as opposed to a unitary warhead on single missile. MIRV is an acronym for multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicle.
Mutually Assured Destruction: A strategic doctrine under which the full-scale use of weapons of mass destruction would annihilate both opposing sides, creating a deterrence for both. The doctrine originated in the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union.
Strategic Air Command: From 1946 to 1992, this major unit of the U.S. Air Force had command and control of the ICBM force and the strategic bomber force.
ActiveStyle on 09/21/2015