At last month's American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics' Space 2013 conference, University of Tokyo doctoral student Huai-Chien Chang presented an interesting suggestion for providing quick disaster relief to people in isolated areas: Take an existing intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), outfit it with thousands of pounds of supplies, convert it so that it lands softly upon arrival, and send it their way. Chang estimates that such a missile could deliver its contents in about an hour, saving time, equipment, and manpower.
