An Astounding War

In 1938, there were only a few pulp science fiction magazines on the newsstands. Slowly at first, the number of such publications began to increase. Events of much greater importance were also occurring at this time. In September 1939, World War II began in Europe. Eventually, the United States would be drawn into that conflict. What possible connections did pulp science fiction magazines have with World War II? That is the question that is investigated in An ASTOUNDING War. The title of this book is taken from the magazine Astounding Science-Fiction, which was considered the top of the field at that time. It still exists today as Analog Science Fiction and Fact. This book uses Astounding as the means to look at the question in two directions. In the first direction, the effects of the war upon science fiction are explored. How were Astounding and the other pulp magazines affected by the war? What were the wartime activities of various authors? How was the content of Astounding, both fiction and non-fiction, influenced by the war? Looking in the other direction, what effects did science fiction or those people associated with the genre have upon the war? Did the appearance of the story "Deadline" reflect a breach of Manhattan Project security? Is it possible that another atomic warfare story affected U.S. planning for the development of the atomic bomb? Was the system by which the Navy manages battle information inspired or influenced by stories of massive battles in space? What technical contributions were made by people linked with Astounding?