Former navy flier and wargamer Coumatos joins forces with former air force aviation engineer William Scott and lawyer William J. Birnes, who probably did most of the writing, to produce this engrossing piece of military futurism. They assume that in 2010 relatively advanced antispace weapons come into the hands of radical Islamic jihadists, who launch them against the West's space infrastructure of manned orbital facilities and reconnaissance, weather, observation, and communications satellites. Failure to anticipate this sort of attack means that it frequently isn't possible to tell a satellite that is under attack from one that is malfunctioning for more normal reasons. In Coumatos and company's scenario, the results prove dire for Western intelligence, communications, and finances, and the West's space-based capabilities sustain major damage. The book has an awful-warning quality to it that recalls the days of the cold war missile gap, but as space weaponry grows cheaper and more accessible, it also presages real possibilities.Roland Green
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved--This text refers to theHardcoveredition.