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| President Eisenhower created DARPA in 1958 in response to the surprise Russian launch of Sputnik, and his guidance was clear: find and quickly develop advanced technology for the Armed Forces so the United States would never again suffer a technological surprise by another nation.
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Initially, DARPA concentrated on space projects and developed the Saturn V rocket—which enabled the United States to launch the Apollo missions to the moon—and the first surveillance satellites that gave U.S. presidents accurate intelligence information on Russian missile program activities.
DARPA began the information revolution by creating the ARPANET, which led to the Internet. DARPA changed warfare by developing stealth aircraft, advanced precision munitions, and the Predator and Global Hawk unmanned air vehicles, both of which are used in Iraq and Afghanistan today.
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