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Technological innovations during the first half of the 20th century were numerous, helping to shape the methods by which the two largest wars in history were waged. We began to see brilliance in the creations of highly sophisticated technology such as radars and jammers, as well as experimentation with nuclear energy that offered myriad of possibilities for positive use in the civilian world.
In addition, these advancements coincided with applications in the world of warfare that could be used for great harm and casualties. We will ascertain the importance of these technologies below.Technological innovations during the first half of the 20th century were numerous, helping to shape the methods by which the two largest wars in history were waged.
We began to see brilliance in the creations of highly sophisticated technology such as radars and jammers, as well as experimentation with nuclear energy that offered myriad of possibilities for positive use in the civilian world. In addition, these advancements coincided with applications in the world of warfare that could be used for great harm and casualties. We will ascertain the importance of these technologies below.
Communications & Intelligence Gathering Technology
Observation Balloons- The observation balloon was initially used during the French Revolutionary War, and rose to mainstream military prominence with continual use throughout World War I. The use of this technological advancement was varied, however, the balloons were primarily employed for intelligence gathering, artillery spotting, and locating enemy submarines.
This technology was composed of rather simplistically, filling up fabric envelopes with hydrogen gas, which were then tied to steel cables before being sent up for observation. Observation balloons were often targeted by enemies, and the operators often had to parachute to safety to avoid the potentially lethal consequences of the highly flammable hydrogen gas.36
As one of the first major technological breakthroughs in 20th century warfare, the observation balloon was a major element for change in combat operations. The ability to fly a balloon overhead and view the advancement of the opposition’s forces brought about a new method in which global warfare strategies are enacted, and the observation balloon is still used in present day military operations in both Iraq and Afghanistan.37
Radar- Early experiments with electromagnetic waves can be dated back to the late 1800’s to German physicist Heinrich Hertz, who helped to discover the fact that radio waves could be reflected by solid objects. In 1917, Croatian Engineer Nikola Tesla outlined the premise for a modern radar unit, declaring that from any standing location, electromagnetic waves should be able to locate the location of any standing or moving object.
The use of radar technology did not reach prominence until the 1930’s when nations began to realize that they needed the ability to remotely locate enemy crafts and ships. The term RADAR was initially created by the United States Navy in the year 1940, as an acronym for Radio Detection and Ranging.
Radar equipments’ use in warfare was immense, allowing for the jamming of enemy signals to deny communications, as well as intercepting intelligence transmissions of the opposition forces.38 Such functions described are often referred to as “electronic warfare”.
Electronic warfare has significantly impacted combat since war is no longer being waged with just guns, rockets, and tanks. The use of such technology would now allow devices such as ‘radar jammers’ to detect, combat, and change the strategy of their opposition, drastically changing the methods by which wars are waged, and enemies interact with one another.
36 http://www.century-of-flight.net/Aviation%20history/airplane%20at%20war/ upload2/Observation%20Balloons.htm
37 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/19/AR2009081903712.html
38 http://www.militarynuts.com/ar/t1252.htm