Edward N. Parker

Edward Nelson Parker
Nickname(s)	Butch
Born	(1904-07-26)26 July 1904 Avalon, Pennsylvania, US
Died	15 October 1989(1989-10-15) (aged 85) Pompano Beach, Florida, US
Place of burial	United States Naval Academy Cemetery, Annapolis, Maryland, US
Allegiance	United States
Service / branch	United States Navy
Years of service	1925–1963
Rank	Vice Admiral
Service number	0-59455
Commands	Armed Forces Special Weapons Project Cruiser Division 6 USS Newport News Destroyer Division 15 Destroyer Division 59 USS Parrott
Battles / wars	World War II Dutch East Indies campaign Battle of Balikpapan Battle of Badung Strait Battle of the Java Sea Guadalcanal campaign Naval Battle of Guadalcanal Chinese Civil War
Awards	Navy Cross (3) Navy Distinguished Service Medal Silver Star Legion of Merit Commendation Ribbon (2)

Edward Nelson Parker (26 July 1904 – 15 October 1989) was a United States Navy vice admiral. A graduate of the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland, class of 1925, he was awarded the Navy Cross three times during World War II. He commanded the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project and its successor, the Defense Atomic Support Agency, from 1957 to 1960, and was Deputy Director, Strategic Target Planning, at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska from August 1960 to January 1962 in charge of the development of Single Integrated Operational Plan (SIOP), the joint-service plan for the targeting of nuclear weapons in the event of a war with the Soviet Union. He then served as the first Assistant Director of the Weapons Evaluation and Control Bureau in the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency from January 1962 to November 1962, where he was responsible for organizing and initiating Project Cloud Gap, which tested the feasibility of arms control and disarmament measures.