Late in 1939 Nazi Germany was poised to overrun Europe and extend
Adolf Hitler's fascist control. At the same time, however, two
British physicists invented the resonant cavity magnetron. About
the size of a hockey puck, it unlocked the enormous potential of
radar exclusively for the Allies. Since the discovery of radar
early in the twentieth century, development across most of the
world had progressed only incrementally. Germany and Japan had
radar as well, but in just three years, the Allies' new radar,
incorporating the top-secret cavity magnetron, turned the tide of
war from doubtful to a known conclusion before the enemy even
figured out how. The tactical difference between the enemy's
primitive radar and the Allies' new radar was similar to that
between a musket and a rifle. The cavity magnetron proved to be the
single most influential new invention contributing to winning the
war in Europe. Norman Fine tells the relatively unknown story of
radar's transformation from a technical curiosity to a previously
unimaginable offensive weapon. We meet scientists and warriors
critical to the story of radar and its pressure-filled development
and implementation. Blind Bombing brings to light two characters
who played an integral role in the story as it unfolded: one, a
brilliant and opinionated scientist, the other, an easygoing
twenty-one-year-old caught up in the peacetime draft. This unlikely
pair and a handful of their cohorts pioneered a revolution in
warfare. They formulated new offensive tactics by trying, failing,
and persevering, ultimately overcoming the naysayers and
obstructionists on their own side and finally the enemy.