page_title: UGM-27 Polaris
section_title: Operators
hierarchical_section_title: UGM-27 Polaris / Operators
caption_attribution_description: English: Map with former UGM-27 operators in red
context_page_description: The UGM-27 Polaris missile was a two-stage solid-fueled nuclear-armed submarine-launched ballistic missile. As the United States Navy's first SLBM, it served from 1961 to 1996.
  In the mid-1950s the Navy was involved in the Jupiter missile project with the U.S. Army, and had influenced the design by making it squat so it would fit in submarines. However, they had concerns about the use of liquid fuel rockets onboard ships, and some consideration was given to a solid fuel version, Jupiter S. In 1956, during an anti-submarine study known as Project Nobska, Edward Teller suggested that very small hydrogen bomb warheads were possible. A crash program to develop a missile suitable for carrying such warheads began as Polaris, launching its first shot less than four years later, in February 1960.
  As the Polaris missile was fired underwater from a moving platform, it was essentially invulnerable to counterattack. This led the Navy to suggest, starting around 1959, that they be given the entire nuclear deterrent role. This led to new infighting between the Navy and the U.S.
context_section_description:  United Kingdom
  Royal Navy
   United States
  United States Navy
   Italy
  Marina Militare (tests only, never fully operational)
caption: Map with former UGM-27 operators in red
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