Bernard Eastlund

Bernard J. Eastlund (1938 – December 12, 2007) was an American physicist who received his B.S. in physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and his Ph.D. in physics from Columbia University. In 1970 he received a Special Achievement Certificate from the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission for co-invention of the "fusion torch."

Career Eastlund attended MIT, receiving a B.S Physics degree in 1960. In 1965, he received a Ph.D. in plasma physics from Columbia University, and spent 3 years as a post-doc fellow there. Eastlund became a staff member at the fusion office at the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (USAEC) in 1968. The USAEC recognized Eastlund's paper, "The Fusion Torch" co-authored with William C. Gough, with a Special Award in 1970. Scientific American magazine published a review of fusion programs by Eastland and Gough in 1971.

He was active in astrophysics, and later work included co-authoring papers regarding pulsars and gamma bursters presented in the Astrophysical Journal and at scientific symposiums.

In later years, he continued to collaborate with Gough and George Miley on their fusion torch concepts. Eastlund died December 12, 2007, at his home in St. Louis, survived by his wife, Sherrie, and several children.

One of Eastlund's patents (US4686605 A) described an adaptation of concepts first proposed by Nikola Tesla. Eastlund's "Method and apparatus for altering a region in the earth's atmosphere, ionosphere, and/or magnetosphere", described as "grandiose", proposed a 40-mile square radio transmitter that used Alaskan natural gas to generate current to create electromagnetic radiation that would excite a section of the ionosphere. Eastlund's patent speculated on "possible ramifications and potential future developments" including magnetotelluric surveys, local weather modification, and missile defense. Eastlund later claimed that HAARP was built using his patents, prompting conspiracy theorists such as Nick Begich to claim that HAARP is capable of secretly controlling the weather. According to HAARP program manager John L. Heckscher, "HAARP certainly does not have anything to do with Eastlund's thing, that is just crazy. What we have here is a premier scientific research facility with military applications."