RAND began as a research division within Douglas Aircraft, exploring future weapons systems and technologies, immediately following World War II. RAND’s first report, a plan for launching the first artificial satellite, was published in 1946, 11 years before Sputnik, and helped set the trajectory for the aerospace industry. Funded by federal air forces, RAND (a contraction of the words “research" and “development") was instrumental in establishing early defensive and offensive systems for intercontinental warfare in the emerging Cold War, as well as early computer technology and systems theory. It evolved into an independent diversified national policy think tank, and is still headquartered in Santa Monica, next to the beach and City Hall.