EXTREMES
In the 1950s and 1960s, the Soviet Union was greatly concerned about the United States’ submarinelaunched Polaris missiles. The ballistic weapons carried small, relatively lightweight hydrogen bombs that could hit targets more than 2,000 miles away from their launch sites. Even more concerning, submarines could launch the missiles while remaining submerged. The Soviets were highly motivated to develop the means to identify, attack and destroy those submarines.
Enter Robert Bartini. Born in Austria-Hungary (in what is now Croatia) in 1897, the illegitimate son of a
