Editing Project HARP (section)

==History==

=== Preparations ===
Project HARP originated as the brainchild of [[Gerald Bull]], a renowned but controversial ballistic engineer specializing in high-velocity guns and gun propulsion systems.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> In the mid-1950s, Bull was working on [[Anti-ballistic missile|anti-ballistic missile (ABM)]] and [[Intercontinental ballistic missile|intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)]] research at the [[DRDC Valcartier|Canadian Armaments and Research Development Establishment (CARDE)]] when he formulated the idea to launch [[satellite]]s into orbit using an enormous cannon.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /> Bull believed that a large supergun would be significantly more cost-effective at sending objects into space than a conventional rocket. Bull argued it would not need expensive rocket motors, firing a large gun wouldn't require the missile to throw away multiple [[Multistage rocket|rocket stages]] to break through the Earth's atmosphere to reach orbit.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Park|first=William|url=https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20160317-the-man-who-tried-to-make-a-supergun-for-saddam-hussein|title=The tragic tale of Saddam Hussein's 'supergun'|date=March 17, 2016|work=BBC|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref> In theory, a [[Sabot (firearms)|sabot]] would protect the payload during firing and later fall away as the satellite inside emerges.<ref name=":6">{{Cite news|last=Grundhauser|first=Eric|url=https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/project-harp-space-gun-barbados|title=Project HARP Space Gun|date=May 2017|work=Atlas Obscura|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref>

During the late 1950s, Bull conducted preliminary launch experiments at the CARDE (now known as [[DRDC Valcartier|Defence Research and Development Canada – Valcartier]], or [[DRDC Valcartier]]) using guns as small as 76mm. These experiments soon caught the attention of the U.S. Army's Ballistic Research Laboratory and the U.S. Army's Chief of Army Research and Development, [[Arthur Trudeau|Lieutenant general Arthur Trudeau]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite web|url=http://www.friends-partners.org/mwade/lvs/5inrpgun.htm|title=5 inch HARP Gun|last=Graf|first=Richard|date=October 31, 2001|website=Encyclopedia Astronautica|access-date=February 11, 2020|archive-date=May 30, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190530235720/http://www.friends-partners.org/mwade/lvs/5inrpgun.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> At the time, aircraft engineers needed more information on the atmosphere's upper regions to design better jet planes. However, launching rockets into the air to collect data was generally considered costly and inefficient.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /> The U.S. military, in particular, was especially in need of a low-cost launch system that could cover altitudes that conventional aircraft and [[weather balloon]]s couldn't reach to support the development of new supersonic aircraft and missile systems. By late 1960, CARDE and the Ballistic Research Laboratory (BRL) conducted several feasibility studies surrounding small gun-launched probes' structural integrity.<ref name=":4" /> Around the same time, BRL developed a smooth-bore, 5-inch gun system at [[Aberdeen Proving Ground]] that successfully launched a probe to altitudes exceeding 220,000 feet.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":7">{{Cite news|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4T48x5ELy5UC&q=ballistic+research+laboratory+project+HARP&pg=RA4-PA5|title=Project HARP Leads to U.S.-Canada Study of Low-Orbit Program|date=May 1964|work=Army Research and Development|access-date=February 11, 2020|issue=5|volume=5|page=5}}</ref>

In 1961, Bull resigned from CARDE and [[McGill University]] hired him as a professor. Working together with Donald Mordell, the university's Dean of Engineering, Bull moved forward with his space gun project and requested funding from various sources. He received a $200,000 loan from McGill University's board of governors.  He was given a verbal promise for a $500,000 grant from the Canadian Department of Defence Production (CDDP), which was later reportedly denied due to bureaucratic opposition.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /><ref name=":8">{{Cite journal|last=Lukasiewicz|first=Julius|date=April 1986|title=Canada's Encounter with High-Speed Aeronautics|journal=Technology and Culture|volume=27|issue=2|pages=223–261|doi=10.2307/3105144|jstor=3105144|s2cid=111725650 }}</ref> In October 1961, Bull met with Charles Murphy, the head of the Ballistic Research Laboratory, to pitch his project for a supergun and was met with overwhelming support. The U.S. Army provided Bull with substantial financial backing and two 16-inch naval [[gun barrel]]s complete with a land mount and surplus powder charges, a heavy-duty crane, and a $750,000 radar tracking system.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":5" /><ref name=":7" /> Bull and Mordell officially announced the HARP project as a program under McGill University's Space Research Institute at a press conference in March 1962.<ref name=":3" /> HARP was presented as a research initiative dedicated to "developing low-orbital capacity for [[Geodesy|geodetic]] and atmospheric objectives".<ref name=":7" /> However, the project's long-term goal was to place satellites into orbit<ref>{{Cite news|last=Trevithick|first=Joseph|url=https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/19847/the-army-now-wants-hypersonic-cannons-loitering-missiles-and-a-massive-supergun|title=The Army Now Wants Hypersonic Cannons, Loitering Missiles, And A Massive Supergun|date=April 3, 2018|work=The Drive|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Oberholtzer|first=William|url=https://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/articles/2012/2/29/2012march-an-inexpensive-solution-for-quickly-launching-military-satellites-into-space|title=An Inexpensive Solution for Quickly Launching Military Satellites Into Space|date=March 1, 2012|work=National Defense|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref> economically.

=== Construction ===
In 1962, Bull and Mordell established a McGill University research station on [[Barbados]] (then still a British colony and part of the [[West Indies Federation]]) as HARP's main base of operations for its 16-inch super gun.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":9">{{Cite web|url=https://weathermodificationhistory.com/project-high-altitude-research-program-harp-cannons-launch-chemical-payloads-space/|title=Project High Altitude Research Program (HARP) Cannons Launch Chemical Payloads Into Space|date=June 1965|website=Weather Modification History|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref> The site location was first suggested by Mordell, who believed that a launch site closer to the [[equator]] would allow the projectile to procure extra velocity from the Earth's rotation to reach higher altitudes. In addition, the site's close proximity to the Atlantic Ocean made for the safe impact of re-entry projectiles.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /> As a result of McGill University's close connections with the island's [[Democratic Labour Party (Barbados)|Democratic Labour Party]], Bull met with the Barbados Prime Minister [[Errol Barrow]] to arrange the construction of a firing site at [[Foul Bay, Barbados|Foul Bay]], St. Philip.<ref name=":10">{{Cite web|url=https://www.barbadospocketguide.com/our-island-barbados/military/harp-gun.html|title=High Altitude Research Project (HARP Gun)|website=Barbados Pocket Guide|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref><ref name=":11">{{Cite book|last=Bull|first=Gerald|title=Paris Kanonen - The Paris Guns (Wilhelmgeschütze) and Project HARP (Wehrtechnik und Wissenschaftliche Waffenkunde)|publisher=E. S. Mittler & Sohn|date=May 1, 1991|isbn=978-3813203042|location=Hamburg, Germany|pages=144–234}}</ref> HARP reportedly received enthusiastic support from the Barbados government due to expectations that the island nation would become heavily involved in space exploration research.<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":9" />

The installation of the 16-inch gun began at the newly established High Altitude Research Facility in April 1962. A gun pit was dug into the island's coral base, and a concrete emplacement was built on a plateau so that the gun barrel could stand vertically. The 16-inch naval gun barrels provided by the U.S. Army served as the barrels of the HARP gun. They had to be transported to the site on the U.S. Army landing ship, the [[John U. D. Page#Ships|Lieutenant Colonel John D. Page]], with the [[Transportation Corps|U.S. Army Transportation Corps]] assistance, the [[U.S. Army Research Office]], and the Office of the Chief of Research and Development.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":9" /><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Murphy|first1=Charles|last2=Bull|first2=Gerald|date=1968|title=Gun-launched probes over Barbados|journal=Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society|volume=49|issue=6|pages=640–644|doi=10.1175/1520-0477-49.6.640|bibcode=1968BAMS...49..640M|doi-access=free}}</ref> Hundreds of people from Barbados were employed to transport the two 140-ton gun tubes from the coast to the designated emplacement 2{{frac|1|2}} miles from the beach using a temporary purpose-built railway.<ref name=":9" /><ref name=":10" /> By late 1962, the HARP 16-inch gun was set up, and construction on workshops, storage buildings, radar installations, and other facilities neared completion.<ref name=":3" /> Around this time, the U.S. Army Research Office increased its financial support of the project to $250,000 per year.<ref name=":11" /> The first test shot from the 16-inch gun on Barbados was fired on January 20, 1963, marking the first time that a gun of this caliber was fired at a near-vertical angle. The 315&nbsp;kg test slug reached an altitude of 3000 meters with a flight time of about 58 seconds at a launch velocity of 1,000&nbsp;m/s before coming down a kilometer off-shore.<ref name=":3" />

=== Operations ===
The projectiles fired by the 16-inch HARP gun on Barbados belonged to a family of cylindrical, finned missiles called Martlets, named after the [[Martin (bird)|martin bird]] that appeared on the McGill University crest.<ref name=":12">{{Cite web|url=https://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/H/HARP.html|title=HARP (High Altitude Research Project)|website=David Darling|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref><ref name=":13">{{Cite web|url=https://apgdiscovery.com/stories-from-apg/now-thats-a-big-gun/|title=Now that's a big gun!|last=Deutsch|first=Elliot|website=APG Discovery Center|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref> Inside the gun barrel, the Martlet was surrounded by a sabot. This machined wooden casing protected the projectile as it traveled through the barrel by absorbing the combustive energy and then splitting apart in the air after the Martlet exited the barrel. The Martlets also carried payloads of metallic chaff, chemical smoke, or meteorological balloons to gather atmospheric data as well as telemetry antennas for tracking the missile's flight.<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":13" /> The [[Harry Diamond Laboratories]]<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Finger|first=Daniel|title=Telemetry for 250,000-G Gun Environment|url=https://repository.arizona.edu/bitstream/handle/10150/578489/ITC_1965_65-14-3.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y|format=PDF|journal=International Telemetering Conference Proceedings|via=The University of Arizona University Libraries}}</ref> designed several telemetry systems used in the HARP program.  The firing of these Martlet missiles was always accompanied by a huge explosion that shook the houses within close proximity, leading to cracks in several areas. Since the Barbados government refused to recognize householders' damage claims, HARP fell into ill favor by much of the Barbados population.<ref name=":10" /><ref name=":12" />

From late January to early February 1963, the 16-inch gun on Barbados conducted its first test series using the Martlet 1, the first of which flew for 145 seconds and reached an altitude of 26&nbsp;km. It was the first Martlet flight to feature a radio transmitter beacon that tracked the vehicle's flight. The second test series was conducted in April 1963 with the new Martlet 2 missiles, which set the world's new gun-launched altitude record of 92&nbsp;km. Around the same time, development for the Martlet 3A began in the spring, with test launches commencing in September.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":10" /> By the end of 1963, approximately 20 Martlet 2 missiles were launched and regularly reached altitudes of 80&nbsp;km. From these tests, researchers obtained a significant amount of atmospheric data as well as the internal ballistics of the 16-inch gun and the flight performance of the Martlet 2, 3A, and 3B. Impressed with the HARP program's initial results, the U.S. Army agreed to provide $250,000 per year in funding.<ref name=":3" />

In 1964, the HARP gun on Barbados continued to primarily launch Martlet 2 missiles that carried a wide variety of payloads. Part of the reason was its low cost, since the firing of the Martlet 2 cost from $2500 to $3000 and took only half an hour to load.<ref name=":3" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://yarchive.net/space/project_harp.html|title=Re: Cannon Launch? (Very cheap access to space)|last=Dunn|first=Bruce|date=July 26, 1996|website=Usenet Archives|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref> The new results from HARP convinced the U.S. Army to increase the annual funding of the project from $250,000 to $1.5 million per year. By March 1964, Canada's Department of Defence Production (DDP) agreed to provide joint funding for the HARP program for a total of $3 million per year.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":8" /><ref name=":11" /> However, HARP funding reportedly faced several obstacles in the form of bureaucratic sabotage due to opposition in the Canadian government.<ref name=":3" /> The funding promised by the DDP for July 1, 1964, to June 30, 1965, did not arrive until May 1965. During this period, McGill University covered the funds to the best of its ability, although changes had to be made to the original plan. For each subsequent funding periods, the DDP repeatedly delayed HARP funding late into the fiscal year.<ref name=":11" />

The first attempts to improve the performance of the 16-inch gun at Barbados were made in 1964, primarily by increasing the barrel's length.<ref name=":3" /> In 1962, the Ballistic Research Laboratory increased the barrel length of a 5-inch gun system by welding a second section of barrel to the first barrel's muzzle, lengthening the barrel to 8.9 meters. The resulting gun system demonstrated a higher muzzle velocity at the muzzle exit. The longer barrel allowed the propellant gases to push on the projectile for a longer period of time.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":6" /><ref name=":14">{{cite report|url=https://www.governmentattic.org/3docs/3DugwayReports_1953-1966.pdf|title=Review of the High Altitude Research Program (HARP)|last1=Murphy|first1=Charles|last2=Bull|first2=Gerald|date=July 1966|publisher=Ballistic Research Laboratory|id=AD645284|via=Government Attic}}</ref> In September 1964, a ten-calibers extension was added to the 16-inch gun based on BRL's experiment with the 5-inch gun. However, while increased velocity and altitude was recorded for test flights, the extension failed in December after the eleventh shot was fired. In 1965, a successful extension of the 16-inch gun was established after enlarging the gun pit to accommodate the equipment's large size. The extension almost doubled the length of the gun to 120 feet and weighed nearly 200 tons, making the 16-inch Barbados gun the largest operational artillery piece in the world at the time.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":9" /><ref name=":12" /><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.slate.com/blogs/atlas_obscura/2013/07/03/project_harp_a_giant_space_gun_in_barbados_is_now_abandoned.html|title=Abandoned Space Gun Rusting Away in the Barbados Jungle|date=July 3, 2013|work=Slate|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref>

By the end of 1965, Project HARP had fired more than one hundred missiles at heights over 80&nbsp;km high into the [[ionosphere]].<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":12" /> At this point, the project starting planning the launch of the Martlet 4, a projectile that used rocket jets that would ignite mid-flight to send the missile into orbit.<ref name=":5" /> For this endeavor, BRL designed the telemetry system that utilized [[Sun sensor]]s to determine the projectile's altitude. This telemetry system would serve as an early precursor to the U.S. Army's Aeroballistic Dynamic Fuze (DFuze).<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Decker|first1=Ryan|last2=Yakimenko|first2=Oleg|last3=Hollis|first3=Michael|last4=Sweeney|first4=Patrick|date=May 2011|title=On the Development of the Artillery Flight Characterization Electronics Rescue Kit|url=https://calhoun.nps.edu/bitstream/handle/10945/45465/Decker_Artillery_Flight_Characterization.pdf?sequence=1|format=PDF|journal=Proceedings of the 21st AIAA Aerodynamic Decelerator Systems Technology Conference|pages=2|via=Calhoun: The NPS Institutional Archive}}</ref>

By 1966, the HARP program had established several different launch sites around the United States and Canada, including a second 16-inch HARP gun at the Highwater Range in Quebec and a third 16-inch HARP gun at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":14" />

On November 18, 1966, the HARP gun operated by BRL at Yuma Proving Ground launched an 84-kg Martlet 2 missile at 2,100&nbsp;m/s, sending it briefly into space and setting a world altitude record of 179&nbsp;km. This feat has remained the world altitude record for any fired projectile.<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":12" /><ref>{{Cite news|last=Patel|first=Neel|url=https://www.inverse.com/article/16735-a-history-of-space-guns-from-isaac-newton-to-nazis-in-paris-and-project-harp|title=A History of Space Guns from Isaac Newton to Nazis in Paris and Project HARP|date=June 14, 2016|work=Inverse|access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref>

=== Closure ===
[[File:Abandoned-HARP-Gun.jpg|thumb|Abandoned HARP gun in Barbados]]Throughout 1966, the HARP program experienced a series of funding delays caused by immense opposition from critics in the Canadian government and growing bureaucratic pressures.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":11" /> Upon the end of the Canadian government's participation in June 1967, the Canadian government had contributed $4.3 million and the US Army $3.7 million.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://artsites.uottawa.ca/sca/doc/Special-Study-No.-1-Upper-Atmosphere-and-Space-Programs-in-Canada.pdf|title=Upper Atmosphere and Space Programs in Canada - Special Study No 1 - February 1967|last=Forsyth|first=Chapman|date=February 11, 2020|website=uOttawa - Canadian Science Councils Archive|access-date=February 11, 2020|archive-date=June 13, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200613094730/http://artsites.uottawa.ca/sca/doc/Special-Study-No.-1-Upper-Atmosphere-and-Space-Programs-in-Canada.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable"
|+HARP Funding receipts by McGill University<ref name=":11" />
!Start date
!End date
!Funding amount received
|-
|June 1, 1964
|May 30, 1965
|{{right|$1,129,932}}
|-
|June 1, 1965
|May 30, 1966
|{{right|$2,138,432}}
|-
|June 1, 1966
|May 30, 1967
|{{right|$2,911,861}}
|-
|June 1, 1967
|May 30, 1968
|{{right|$155,700}}
|}
On the American side, growing political and financial pressure caused by the [[Vietnam War]] and [[NASA]]'s focus on large-scale traditional rockets strained funding for the project as well, exacerbating the program's problems even further.<ref name=":2" /> In November 1966, the Canadian government announced that it would pull all Project HARP funding after June 30, 1967. Despite Bull's attempts to resuscitate the program, the Canadian government withdrew its support in 1967. This decision promptly caused the U.S. Army to withdraw its funding as well, leading to the program's complete termination. Both the HARP guns at Barbados and at Highwater Range were shut down, though the HARP guns under the jurisdiction of the U.S. military remained operational.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":8" /> Project HARP's assets were transferred to Bull, who started a [[Space Research Corporation]] commercial operation to salvage his project.<ref name=":5" /> After HARP was cancelled, the 16-inch gun on Barbados remained on its emplacement, where it remains to this day, gradually rusting away.<ref name=":6" />