Town Hall:

From the 16^th through the 20^th centuries, global hegemony generally belonged to whatever nation possessed the strongest navy. Even today, American power is based, first and foremost, on our ability to project overwhelming force, via the U.S. Navy, to any part of the world. The primacy of naval strength, however, is about to be overturned.

Three mid-20^th century developments explain why.

First, Nazi Germany launched the world’s first operational ballistic missile at Paris in September 1944. Second, the United States exploded the first nuclear weapon in the New Mexico desert in July 1945. And, third, the Soviet Union launched the first satellite, Sputnik, into space in October 1957 (and the first intercontinental ballistic missile in the same year).

Taken together, these technological milestones will determine the fate of the world in the 21^st century and beyond.

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