To put strong shock‐wave research in perspective it is appropriate to recall its origins. In 1848, Stokes and Challis observed that simple soundwave theory will break down when the disturbance amplitude becomes large. Subsequent work by Earnshaw, Riemann, Rankine, and Hugoniot placed the early theory of large‐amplitude gas dynamic waves, or shock waves, on a firm theoretical basis. Laboratory experiments with shock waves began about 1899 with the work of Vielle. About 1900, detonations and explosion research by Chapman and jouguet revealed that supersonic propagation of combustion waves have shock‐like behavior. From that time on, basic research in physics, chemistry, mathematics, and aerodynamics has accelerated our state of understanding of shock waves, and the scope of this research field now encompasses nearly all of physics.