Crazy Cold War Projects, Part 3 Online Trivia | History

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. In 1959, Project Horizon was developed by the US Army Ballistic Missile Agency to create a military base where none had existed before. Where did they plan on putting it?

Answer: The moon

Two years before President Kennedy's challenge for NASA to put a man on the moon and bring him back alive by the end of the 1960s, Heinz-Hermann Koelle decided that by the middle of the decade the United States could send dozens of missions to the moon for the aim of keeping men there for the long-term.

The main building would be only ten feet by twenty feet, and was supposed to hold up to twelve people at one time. It also included two nuclear reactors, two lunar rovers, and eventually a bioscience and physics laboratory.

2. Despite the fact that Project Mercury had just begun at NASA when Project Horizon was conceived, it was expected to go into effect in January 1965. What actual mission was launched in that month?

Answer: Gemini 2

Project Horizon was in no way short of daring in its aims. In 1964, it planned forty Saturn rocket launches followed by stocking and manning missions the following year. By late 1966, the entire outpost was meant to be operational after nearly 150 launches, all of which would land on the moon. However, the project was deemed not feasible and was scrapped early on.

3. In 1952, Britain conducted Operation Cauldron, where they tested agents such as bubonic plague and brucellosis on monkeys and guinea pigs. Where were the experiments conducted?

Answer: At sea off of the Isle of Lewis

Operation Cauldron included infecting several thousand guinea pigs and dozens of monkeys with multiple biological agents through various means at sea. After their exposure, they would be taken on board the "Ben Lomond" and if the animals died, they would be dissected and studied.

4. Towards the end of Operation Cauldron, the trawler "Carella" sailed through the middle of the biological agent testing area. Instead of admitting to biological testing, the ship was allowed to land at Blackpool for shore leave. When did the crew find out about their exposure?

Answer: In 2005 when preparing for a BBC interview about the incident

On September 16, 1952, one minute before the "Ben Lomond" released another trial of biological agents, the "Carella" came into view and was warned to stay clear of the area. The "Carella" ignored the warnings, and sailed within two miles of the "Ben Lomond." The British government was not want to admit to biological testing with the bubonic plague, so the ship was allowed to dock at Blackpool while being shadowed by several vessels monitoring radio signals to see if they called for medical help. When no symptoms were reported, they determined that there was no point in telling the crew after the fact.

It was not until 2005, when BBC radio was going to broadcast a report about the experiment, that the surviving crew find out about the incident.

5. In September 1954, the United States conducted Operation Big Itch over the Dugway Proving Ground in Utah. It involved testing possible entomological infection dispersal using an uninfected insect inside cluster bombs. What insect was used?

Answer: Fleas

Two types of cluster bombs were used to hold either 100,000 or 200,000 fleas to be dropped. However, the E23 bomb (which was supposed to hold 200,000 fleas) misfired inside the aircraft and the smaller bomb was used for the rest of the trials.

6. Operation Big Itch was determined to be a success, as the insects used in the test survived the fall and attached themselves to the target guinea pigs on the ground. How long did the insects stay active once dropped?

Answer: 1 day

The fleas dropped around the area suffered very little die-off and they were able to find the guinea pigs with no problems, although they did not live for more than a day. A similar experiment, Operation Big Buzz, was used with mosquitoes and included far more detailed statistics, including the specific cost per death that the infection would cause with yellow fever.

7. One of the few strictly voluntary projects, Operation Whitecoat, went on for twenty years at Fort Detrick in the United States. Over 2,000 Army volunteers were infected with diseases in order to find ways to treat possible biological attacks by the Soviet Union in the future. What disease was NOT used in the trial?

Answer: AIDS

Operation Whitecoat allowed all potential subjects to know what would happen to them and were also allowed to contact their family and clergy (many were Seventh-day Adventists) for advice. All of them were conscientious objectors, and therefore were the perfect group for the Army to test as they would not be fighting.

In the end, 80% of those invited to participate chose to go ahead with the project.

8. Over the twenty years (1954-1973) that Operation Whitecoat spent studying the effects of vaccinations and treatments of possible biological agents, many treatments used today were developed. During the testing period, how many of the 2,300 subjects died of their diseases?

Answer: 0

During the time that the testing went on, no subjects died from their diseases, although a few claimed to feel effects of the trial after it was completed. For the scientific community, the operation was a success, leading to FDA-approved vaccines for yellow fever and hepatitis, and also drugs for several other diseases.

The US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) also developed equipment and procedures to contain and treat the diseases properly.

9. The subjects for Operation Midnight Climax did not have the luxury of volunteering for the experiment. They were lured to hotel rooms using prostitutes under CIA hire and then dosed with powerful substances. What was the main substance the CIA wanted to test the effects of?

Answer: LSD

The prostitutes brought the men back to CIA safe houses, where the subjects were given doses of LSD in order for the agency to study its effect behind one-way mirrors inside the house. In the end, the CIA gained ample information on the possible use of drugs in the field as well as the possibility of using the same techniques against Soviet assets.

10. Due to its serious ethical and political problems, Operation Midnight Climax was shut down in 1966 and most of the records of the trials were destroyed. However, a few documents made their way to the "New York Times," prompting an investigation into the larger Project MKULTRA that Midnight Climax was a part of. What were the main subjects that Project MKULTRA wanted to study?

Answer: Interrogation and mind control

While members of the CIA insist it was not trying to create mind control techniques, several projects were developed for the specific purpose of attempting to make subjects perform actions against their own will. Still, its main purpose was to create the most effective ways to perform interrogations.

The agency knew that while controlling someone's mind could have its perks, it was far too risky, and getting reliable information from assets was much more reliable.

Source: Author illiniman14

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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Crazy Cold War Projects, Part 3 Quiz

The Cold War was a time of hysteria and paranoia, and those feelings led to some of the most insane government ideas of all time.

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