Project Iceworm: America's adventurous military mission during the Cold War
After the Second World War, the Cold War began between the tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union. America is a complete patron of capitalism, on the one hand, and Soviet Russia, the cradle of communism. The leaders of the two opposing regimes used all their power to expand their grip on the world. The Cold War finally came to an end with the break-up of the Soviet Union, and the world entered an era of American-led centralized governance.
There may be disagreement as to whether the Cold War is over. The current trade war between the United States and China is often referred to by many as the Cold War. Once again, US military tensions with North Korea create a Cold War-like situation. So it can be said that America's opponents may have changed, but the Cold War is not over.However, it is true that the Soviet Union was as strong a rival as the United States, and America's current rivals are not as militarily strong.
During the Cold War, the United States thought that a "nuclear launching site" in the Arctic would give them considerable advantage over Soviet Russia. Because of the short distance, there is not much speed to hit the targets of the huge Soviet Russia from there. That is why America undertook an adventurous mission like Project Iceworm.Selecting locations within the Arctic region was quite a difficult task. Among many options, the Pentagon eventually chose Greenland. Because, its distance from Soviet Russia was not too much. There were already US airports here. And since the place was less discussed militarily and politically, it was an advantage to maintain American privacy.
Although it is called Greenland, there is no forest or green grassland here at all. Totally icy region. It is very cold all year round. So setting up a 'nuclear launching site' while maintaining confidentiality here was not an easy task. But the name of the country is America!
The United States (Denmark is an autonomous region of Denmark) had previously obtained permission from Denmark for the study. Promoting America in front of its own people and the media, they are sending research teams and military engineers to Greenland to conduct experiments and scientific research on underground construction in the Arctic region.
The American people came to know about the main purpose of Project Iceworm in 1997, when the Danish Parliament released an investigation report to the public.
The United States already had a military airfield in Thule, Greenland. Construction of the project began 150 km from the airport. The place was named 'Camp Century'.Skilled US engineers dug huge tunnels under the ice in a short time using the best technology of the time. Railway lines were laid in these tunnels, which were placed thirty feet below the surface of the ice. The world's first 'mobile nuclear power plant' was set up to supply electricity, which could be moved from one place to another.