Military Battle Zone

Cold war

  • The CIA’s insectothoper

    During the Cold War, the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) sought different ways to gather intelligence without raising suspicion. From human spies to trained cats to the invention of micro unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) These small miniature drones called “insectothopers” are… Continue reading

  • The Soviet “Kiss of death”

    From the outside, it looks like an ordinary, unassuming object that is commonly associated with beauty and attractiveness, but inside, it hides a deadly secret. This “lipstick” is a disguised 4.5mm single-shot pistol developed by the KGB, the Soviet Union’s… Continue reading

  • The French Anti-tank scooter

    The Vespa 150 TAP was a French military adaptation of an iconic civilian scooter for post-war urban and airborne combat. Designed in 1956 and used by the French Foreign Legion and paratroopers, this Anti-tank vehicle, derived from the Italian scooter… Continue reading

  • Project Acoustic Kitty: The CIA’s cat spies

    Imagine a cute and cuddly feline being a spy for a country’s intelligence agency. That sounds a little far-fetched, right? This is the bizarre premise of Operation Acoustic Kitty, an American CIA initiative in the 1960s during the Cold War… Continue reading

  • Project Babylon: Gerald Bull’s supergun

    The supergun is a long-range and massive-barreled artillery piece envisioned by Canadian engineer Gerald Bull to launch a satellite into orbit. A charismatic and ambitious academic, Gerald joined the Canadian Armament Research and Development Establishment in the 1950s, where he… Continue reading

  • Project Thor: The Rods from God

    The Rods from God is a orbital weapon system, capable of launching tungsten rod-like projectiles from outer space that neutralize its target with the tremendous force of a nuclear bomb but cause no subsequent radiation or fallout. The idea for… Continue reading

  • The Soviet “Dead hand”

    The Soviet Perimeter, also known by the West as the “Dead Hand,” was a Cold War automatic nuclear control system that could unleash all nuclear weapons at once without any human command if the Soviet/ Russian state is threatened. Developed… Continue reading

  • Germany’s atomic bomb project WW2

    Codenamed Uranverin or “Uranium Club”, the secret Nazi project to develop the atomic bomb began when fission (breaking of atomic nuclei), a basic process of making nuclear weapons, was first discovered in December 1938 by German scientists Otto Hahn and… Continue reading

  • Britain’s Nuclear land mine chickens

    As the Cold War sparked a nuclear arms race between East and West, Britain launched a top-secret operation to deter a potential Soviet invasion of Western Europe. The project: bury nuclear landmines across West Germany, powered by live chickens that… Continue reading

  • The CIA’s “Aswang”

    For centuries, Filipinos have upheld a strong superstition of supernatural entities that lurk in the night. One such monster is the Aswang, a vampire-like creature who can shape shift and feed on the bloodless corpses of unfortunate villagers and travelers.… Continue reading