The difference between a ballistic missile and an intercontinental missile. Russia creates the largest intercontinental ballistic missile

Information Agency"Arms of Russia" continues to publish ratings of weapons and military equipment. This time, the experts evaluated the ground-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) of Russia and foreign countries.

4:57 / 10.02.12

Land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles of Russia and foreign countries (rating)

The information agency "Arms of Russia" continues to publish ratings of weapons and military equipment. This time, the experts evaluated the ground-based intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) of Russia and foreign countries.

Comparative evaluation was carried out according to the following parameters:

• firepower (number of warheads (AP), total AP power, maximum firing range, accuracy - KVO)
• constructive perfection (launching mass of the rocket, overall characteristics, conditional density of the rocket - the ratio of the launch mass of the rocket to the volume of the transport and launch container (TLC))
• operation (based method - mobile ground missile system (PGRK) or placement in a silo launcher (silo), the time of the inter-regulation period, the possibility of extending the warranty period)

The sum of scores for all parameters gave an overall assessment of the compared MBR. At the same time, it was taken into account that each MBR taken from the statistical sample, compared with other MBRs, was estimated based on technical requirements of his time.

The variety of land-based ICBMs is so great that the sample includes only ICBMs that are currently in service with a range of more than 5,500 km - and only China, Russia and the United States have such (Great Britain and France abandoned land-based ICBMs , placing them only on submarines).

Intercontinental ballistic missiles

RS-20A SS-18 Satan	Russia
RS-20B S S-18 Satan	Russia
	China
	China

According to the number of points scored, the first four places were taken by:

1. Russian ICBM R-36M2 "Voevoda" (15A18M, START code - RS-20V, according to NATO classification - SS-18 Satan (Russian "Satan"))

• Adopted, g. - 1988
• Fuel - liquid
• Number of accelerating stages - 2
• Length, m - 34.3
• Maximum diameter, m - 3.0
• Starting weight, t - 211.4
• Start - mortar (for silos)
• Thrown mass, kg - 8 800
• Flight range, km -11 000 - 16 000
• Number of BB, power, kt -10X550-800
• KVO, m - 400 - 500

The sum of points for all parameters - 28.5

The most powerful ground-based ICBM is the 15A18M missile of the R-36M2 "Voevoda" complex (the designation of the Strategic Missile Forces is RS-20V, the NATO designation is SS-18mod4 "Satan". The R-36M2 complex has no equal in terms of technological level and combat capabilities.

15A18M is capable of carrying platforms with several dozen (20 to 36) individually targetable nuclear MIRVs, as well as maneuvering warheads. It is equipped with a missile defense missile defense system, which makes it possible to break through a layered missile defense system using weapons based on new physical principles. R-36M2 are on duty in ultra-protected mine launchers, which are resistant to shock waves at a level of about 50 MPa (500 kg / sq. cm).

The R-36M2 design is based on the ability to launch directly during the period of massive enemy nuclear impact on the positional area and blocking the positional area with high-altitude nuclear explosions. The missile has the highest ICBM resistance to damaging factors I'M IN.

The missile is covered with a dark heat-shielding coating that makes it easier for the cloud of a nuclear explosion to pass through. It is equipped with a system of sensors measuring neutron and gamma radiation, registering a dangerous level and turning off the control system for the time the rocket passes through the cloud of a nuclear explosion, which remains stabilized until the rocket exits. danger zone, after which the control system turns on and corrects the trajectory.

A strike of 8-10 15A18M missiles (fully equipped) ensured the destruction of 80% of the industrial potential of the United States and most of the population.

2. US ICBM LGM-118A "Peacekeeper" - MX

Basic tactics specifications(TTX):

• Adopted, g. - 1986
• Fuel - solid
• Number of accelerating stages - 3
• Length, m - 21.61
• Maximum diameter, m - 2.34
• Starting weight, t - 88.443
• Start - mortar (for silos)
• Thrown weight, kg - 3 800
• Flight range, km - 9 600
• Number of BB, power, kt - 10X300
• KVO, m - 90 - 120

The sum of points for all parameters - 19.5

The most powerful and advanced American ICBM, the three-stage MX solid-propellant missile, was equipped with ten with a capacity of 300 kt each. She had increased resistance to the effects of PFYAV and had the ability to overcome the existing missile defense system, limited by an international treaty.

The MX had the greatest capability of any ICBM in terms of accuracy and ability to hit a heavily protected target. At the same time, the MXs themselves were based only in the improved silos of the Minuteman ICBMs, which were inferior in terms of security to the Russian silos. According to American experts, the MX was 6-8 times superior in combat capabilities to the Minuteman-3.

In total, 50 MX missiles were deployed, which were on combat duty in a state of 30-second readiness for launch. Removed from service in 2005, missiles and all equipment of the positional area are mothballed. Options are being considered for using the MX for delivering high-precision non-nuclear strikes.

3. ICBM of Russia PC-24 "Yars" - Russian solid-propellant mobile-based intercontinental ballistic missile with multiple reentry vehicle

Main tactical and technical characteristics (TTX):

• Adopted, g. - 2009
• Fuel - solid
• Number of accelerating stages - 3
• Length, m - 22.0
• Maximum diameter, m - 1.58
• Starting weight, t - 47.1
• Start - mortar
• Thrown mass, kg - 1 200
• Flight range, km - 11 000
• Number of BBs, power, kt - 4x300
• KVO, m - 150

The total score for all parameters-17.7

Structurally, the PC-24 is similar to the Topol-M, and has three stages. Differs from RS-12M2 "Topol-M":

• a new platform for breeding blocks with warheads
• re-equipment of some part of the missile control system
• increased payload

The rocket enters service in the factory transport and launch container (TLC), in which it spends its entire service. The body of the rocket product is coated with special compositions to reduce the effects of a nuclear explosion. Probably, the composition was additionally applied using the stealth technology.

Guidance and control system (SNU) - autonomous inertial control system with onboard digital computer(BTsVM), astrocorrection is probably used. The alleged developer of the control system is the Moscow Research and Production Center for Instrumentation and Automation.

The use of the active section of the trajectory has been reduced. To improve the speed characteristics at the end of the third stage, it is possible to use a turn with the direction of a zero increment of the distance until the last stage is completely used up.

The instrument compartment is completely sealed. The missile is able to overcome the cloud of a nuclear explosion at the start and perform a program maneuver. For testing, the missile will most likely be equipped with a telemetry system - the T-737 Triada receiver-indicator.

To counter missile defense systems, the missile is equipped with a countermeasures complex. From November 2005 to December 2010, missile defense systems were tested using Topol and K65M-R missiles.

4. Russian ICBM UR-100N UTTH (GRAU index - 15A35, START code - RS-18B, according to NATO classification - SS-19 Stiletto (English "Stiletto"))

Main tactical and technical characteristics (TTX):

• Adopted, g. - 1979
• Fuel - liquid
• Number of accelerating stages - 2
• Length, m - 24.3
• Maximum diameter, m - 2.5
• Starting weight, t - 105.6
• Start - gas dynamic
• Thrown mass, kg - 4 350
• Flight range, km - 10,000
• Number of BB, power, kt - 6X550
• KVO, m - 380

The total score for all parameters is 16.6

ICBM 15A35 - two-stage intercontinental ballistic missile, made according to the "tandem" scheme with sequential separation of stages. The rocket has a very dense layout and virtually no "dry" compartments. According to official data, as of July 2009, the Russian Strategic Missile Forces had 70 deployed 15A35 ICBMs.

The last division was previously in the process of liquidation, however, by the decision of the President of the Russian Federation D.A. Medvedev in November 2008, the liquidation process was terminated. The division will continue to be on duty with 15A35 ICBMs until re-equipped with "new missile systems" (apparently either Topol-M or RS-24).

Apparently, in the near future, the number of 15A35 missiles standing on combat duty, will be reduced further up to stabilization at the level of about 20-30 units, taking into account the purchased missiles. The UR-100N UTTKh missile system is extremely reliable - 165 test and combat training launches were carried out, of which only three were unsuccessful.

The American magazine of the Air Force Missile Association called the UR-100N UTTKh missile "one of the most outstanding technical developments of the Cold War." The first complex, still with UR-100N missiles, was put on combat duty in 1975 with a warranty period of operation of 10 years. When it was created, all the best design solutions worked out on previous generations of "hundreds" were implemented.

The high reliability indicators of the missile and the complex as a whole, which were then achieved during the operation of the improved complex with the UR-100N UTTKh ICBM, allowed the military-political leadership of the country to set before the RF Ministry of Defense, the General Staff, the command of the Strategic Missile Forces and the lead developer in the person of NPO Mashinostroeniya the task of gradually extending the service life of the complex with 10 to 15, then to 20, 25 and finally to 30 and beyond.

The standard distance along the Earth's surface covered by intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) is 10,000 km. This is enough to allow old friends the US and Russia to hit any targets in each other's territory. It is more difficult for China because of the greater remoteness of America, although the ability of the Celestial Empire to launch spacecraft allows it to reach any point on the globe with a thermonuclear club. And to Russia, a good neighbor is "within a stone's throw."

Image Source:http://abyss.uoregon.edu/~js/space/lectures/lec18.html

Optimum in terms of energy consumption are trajectories with an apogee of 1000 - 1500 km. In this case, the flight time is about 30 minutes, and the active part of the trajectory ends at an altitude of 200 - 350 km.A relatively short acceleration section can be ignored when estimating the flight range of the missile warheads. The latter describe long ballistic curves, accelerating up to 7 km / s in the areas of descent towards the target. Let's simulate them numerically using the following equations of dynamics of a material point:

The center of the Earth is at the origin of coordinates, and when falling on its surface, the following occurs:

Suppose that at time t = 0 the breeding platform (bus) is at a height h km and has a speed v km/s directed at some angle to the horizontal (pitch angle). Neglecting the fact that the trajectory of each warhead changes slightly in the disengagement area, we summarize the results of calculations for different initial data in a table:

The table shows that a small reduction in flight range, which is not significant for SLBMs, leads to a sharp decrease in flight time. The time factor can be of critical importance in a situation where the attacking side delivers a preemptive strike against enemy control centers and nuclear forces.The first space velocity at the altitude h = 100 km is 7.843 km/s, and at the altitude h = 200 km it is 7.783 km/s. It can be seen that with the intercontinental flight range of the so-called. flat trajectories are possible only in the case when the rocket accelerates in the active section to a speed significantly exceeding 7 km / s and approaching the first space one.

Who are you, Mr Poplar M?

The most modern of the Russian ICBMs, which is a minor modification of another Soviet product, is the 15Zh65 missile, also known as the Topol-M. The propaganda myth that there is no effective missile defense against Topol became very popular in the 2000s. Let's take a closer look at this subject of national pride.

Length 22.5 m, maximum diameter 1.9 m, takeoff weight 47 tons. It has 3 stages with solid propellant engines and a warhead weighing 1.2 tons, which is equipped with a 0.55 Mt warhead. In addition to it, Topol's payload is served by dozens of decoys + electronic means of countering missile defense: both radar methods of target selection and infrared. According to information from http://rbase.new-factoria.ru/missile/wobb/topol_m/topol_m.shtml, the first stage engines create a thrust of 91 tons. Circular Probabilistic Deviation (CEP) expresses the radius of a circle in which a warhead will hit with a probability of at least 50%. The KVO indicator is critical in terms of strikes against missile silos and underground control centers. A vague estimate of 200 - 350 m is given for it. It is possible that in this Topol-M is not inferior to the veteran Minuteman-3, which has been the main American ICBM for more than 30 years.

There is no reliable information about the flight data of Topol-M. It is claimed that the range reaches 11,000 km and there is an estimate of the speed of 7.3 km / s, which the warhead has when entering the ballistic section of the trajectory. Numerical simulation leads to different options. For example, it is possible that the warhead separates at a level of 300 km with a pitch angle of 6 degrees and, rising to a maximum altitude of 550 km (apogee), covers a distance of 11,000 km along the surface of the globe in 27 minutes. However, such a flight profile is not adequate to popular ideas about the low, flat trajectory of Topol-M. The scenario looks very realistic, according to which the monoblock separates at an altitude of 200 km with an initial pitch of 5 degrees, flying as a result of 8,800 km in 21 minutes and reaching an apogee of 350 km. Such a range is quite enough to shell the US territory from various directions, and the flight time is significantly less than that typical for ICBMs at a distance of 10,000 km (~30 minutes). This creates additional difficulties for missile defense, which must have time to select a warhead among decoys. It is clear that reduced flight time is a more important factor in a preemptive strike than in a retaliatory strike.

In order to somehow understand the "exceptional" abilities of Topol-M, it is useful to compare it with American equivalent LGM-30 Minutemen-3. Length 18.2 m, maximum diameter 1.67 m, takeoff weight 36 tons. It has 3 stages with solid propellant engines and a warhead of unknown mass. Which is currently equipped with a W62 warhead with a yield of 170 kilotons, and also carries decoys along with small metal debris that makes radar detection difficult. KVO Minuteman-3 is estimated at 150 - 200 m. According to data from http://www.af.mil/information/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=113 , the starting thrust of the first stage reaches 92 tons, and when entering the ballistic area, the warhead has a speed of about 6.7 km / s. At the same time, the ICBM has a range of 9,600 km and an apogee1,120 km. Such a "classic" flight profile corresponds to an initial pitch angle of 15.5 degrees and an altitude of 450 km when entering the ballistic section. The flight time of the Minuteman is 28 minutes. With such modest speed characteristics, a flat trajectory of an intercontinental flight is out of the question. This contrasts with the thrust-to-weight ratio of the Minuteman-3, which is 1.3 times greater than the Topol-M. On launch videos, he doesn't look like a particularly agile sprinter.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHuFh_PNc68&feature=related , and the relic Minuteman-I took off no worse even without a “kick” from a mortar launchhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrnfRfawtI0&feature=related . Let's try to explain this discrepancy.

The available data on the flight data of the Minuteman-3 refers to its modification, which was equipped with three W78 335 Kt warheads, with individual targeting. But the same rocket is capable of accelerating a relatively light monoblock to a greater speed than the declared 24,000 km / h in order to throw it at a greater range and along a flatter trajectory. This is indirectly confirmed by the fact that there is information about the Miniman's maximum range of 15,000 km. For the United States, such a distance is relevant due to the growing military power of China, which is quite far from America. The high thrust-to-weight ratio of the Minuteman-3 could also have been important in a three-warhead configuration, providing a more energetic launch and a missile escape from a nuclear strike in the area of ​​​​launch silos.

Horror flying on the wings of the night?

Thus, Topol's outstanding abilities in terms of the ability to quickly pick up speed and enter a gentle trajectory are greatly exaggerated.But if the Topol-M warhead flies along a flat trajectory, then this means the following. At the end of the active segment, the monoblock practically enters a circular orbit, having an unlimited flight range. In this case, the trajectory can be very low (see lines 7, 8 in the table), although this circumstance is a dubious merit, given the capabilities of missile defense interceptorsoperate at altitudes up to 200 km. Oit is also obvious that a new generation of anti-missiles of the class Standard-3 reach great heights. In addition, a monoblock flying along a flat trajectory, as a target for interception, differs little from an ordinary satellite. And shooting down a satellite in low orbit is not a problem for a long time. At the same time, it will not work to go down too low, because. atmospheric resistance comes into its own - already ataltitude of 120 km Shuttles used aerodynamic maneuvering instead of rocket engines (new article on the problems of flat trajectory) .

This can be objected to by another popular property of Topol-M, which allegedly consists in the ability of a monoblock to perform maneuvers using special mini-engines in the ballistic section of the trajectory. This ability is partly mythological in nature, because. in many sources it is written only that Poplar may be equipped with such monoblocks. Enthusiastic reports about the elusive for interceptors and real the existing monoblock is not confirmed by serious sources, while the frivolous added to the fact that there are warheads with ramjet engines (ramjet) flying and maneuvering like hypersonic aircraft.

Orbital maneuvers of warheads have a bad downside, which is modestly silent about propaganda. Namely, with any maneuver of the monoblock, the surrounding shielding cloud of false targets, sources of interference and any metallized debris will remain aside, continuing to move along the ballistic trajectory. The warhead, as it were, will emerge from under the protective cover and remain naked, which will immediately remove the task of selection for the missile defense system. After the first maneuver, the monoblock will be visible on the radars, at a glance. At the same time, he will not have enough fuel and time to scour from side to side for a long time, given the not too large supply of the Topol-M payload and the need to aim at the target.

Thus, it is doubtful that a good Topol-M ICBM is significantly superior to the Minuteman-3 in any way, except for the use of a mobile launcher. However, according to various estimates, the number of such deployed installations is 20-25, so they are not the main part of the Russian nuclear deterrence forces. Interestingly, China also loves mobile ICBMs and has no less of them.

Dmitry Zotiev

Articles about flat trajectories, hypersonic warheads and other missile defense nightmares:

"Heat of the Stratosphere"

"Space Slalom".

This entry was posted in . Add to bookmarks.

The second half of the twentieth century became the era of rocket technology. The first satellite was launched into space, then its famous "Let's go!" said Yuri Gagarin, however, the beginning of the rocket era should not be counted from these fateful moments in the history of mankind.

On June 13, 1944, Nazi Germany attacked London with the help of V-1 projectiles, which can be called the first combat cruise missile. A few months later, a new development of the Nazis fell on the heads of Londoners - the V-2 ballistic missile, which claimed thousands of lives of civilians. After the end of the war, German rocket technology fell into the hands of the victors and began to work primarily for the war, and space exploration was just an expensive way of state PR. So it was in the USSR and in the USA. The creation of nuclear weapons almost immediately turned missiles into strategic weapons.

It should be noted that rockets were invented by man in ancient times. There are ancient Greek descriptions of devices that are very reminiscent of rockets. Especially loved rockets in Ancient China(II-III century BC): after the invention of gunpowder, these aircraft began to be used for fireworks and other entertainment. There is evidence of attempts to use them in military affairs, however, at the current level of technology, they could hardly cause significant damage to the enemy.

In the Middle Ages, along with gunpowder, rockets came to Europe. Many thinkers and naturalists of that era were interested in these aircraft. However, rockets were more of a curiosity; there was little practical sense from them.

At the beginning of the 19th century, Congreve rockets were adopted by the British army, but due to their low accuracy, they were soon superseded by artillery systems.

Practical work on the creation of rocket weapons resumed in the first third of the 20th century. Enthusiasts worked in this direction in the USA, Germany, Russia (then in the USSR). In the Soviet Union, the result of these studies was the birth of the BM-13 MLRS - the legendary Katyusha. In Germany, the brilliant designer Wernher von Braun was engaged in the creation of ballistic missiles, it was he who developed the V-2, and later was able to send a man to the moon.

In the 1950s, work began on the creation of ballistic and cruise missiles capable of delivering nuclear charges over intercontinental distances.

In this article, we will talk about the most known species ballistic and cruise missiles, the review will include not only intercontinental giants, but also well-known operational and operational-tactical missile systems. Almost all the missiles on our list were developed in design bureaus The USSR (Russia) or the USA are two states with the most advanced missile technologies in the world.

Scud B (R-17)

This is a Soviet ballistic missile, which is an integral part of the Elbrus operational-tactical complex. The R-17 missile was put into service in 1962, its flight range was 300 km, it could throw almost a ton of payload with an accuracy (CEP - circular probable deviation) of 450 meters.

This ballistic missile is one of the most famous examples of Soviet rocket technology in the West. The fact is that for many decades the R-17 was actively exported to various countries of the world that were considered allies of the USSR. Especially many units of these weapons were delivered to the Middle East: to Egypt, Iraq, Syria.

Egypt used P-17 against Israel during the war doomsday, during the first Gulf War, Saddam Hussein shelled Scud B territory Saudi Arabia and Israel. He threatened to use warheads with war gases, which caused a wave of panic in Israel. One of the missiles hit an American barracks, killing 28 US troops.

Russia used the R-17 during the second Chechen campaign.

Currently, the R-17 is used by Yemeni rebels in the war against the Saudis.

The technologies used in Scud B became the basis for the missile programs of Pakistan, North Korea, and Iran.

Trident II

This is a three-stage solid-propellant ballistic missile, which is currently in service with the US and British navies. The Trident-2 (Trident) missile was put into service in 1990, its flight range is more than 11,000 km, it has a warhead with individual targeting units, the power of each can be 475 kilotons. Weight Trident II - 58 tons.

This ballistic missile is considered one of the most accurate in the world, it is designed to destroy missile silos with ICBMs and command posts.

Pershing II "Pershing-2"

This is an American medium-range ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. She was one of the biggest fears of the citizens of the USSR at the final stage. cold war and a headache for Soviet strategists. The maximum range of the missile was 1770 km, the KVO was 30 meters, and the power of the monoblock warhead could reach 80 Kt.

The US placed these in West Germany, reducing the time of approach to Soviet territory to a minimum. In 1987, the US and the USSR signed an agreement on the destruction of medium-range nuclear missiles, after which the Pershings were removed from combat duty.

"Point-U"

This is a Soviet tactical complex, put into service in 1975. This missile can be equipped with a nuclear warhead with a capacity of 200 kt and deliver it to a range of 120 km. Currently, "Points-U" are in service with the Armed Forces of Russia, Ukraine, former republics USSR, as well as other countries of the world. Russia plans to replace these missile systems with more advanced Iskanders.

R-30 Bulava

This is a sea-based solid-fuel ballistic missile, the development of which began in Russia in 1997. The R-30 should become the main weapon of the submarines of projects 995 "Borey" and 941 "Shark". The maximum range of the Bulava is more than 8 thousand km (according to other sources - more than 9 thousand km), the missile can carry up to 10 individual guidance units with a capacity of up to 150 Kt each.

The first Bulava launch took place in 2005, and the last in September 2018. This rocket was developed by the Moscow Institute of Thermal Engineering, which was previously engaged in the creation of Topol-M, and the Bulava is made at the Federal State Unitary Enterprise Votkinsky Zavod, where Topols are produced. According to the developers, many of the nodes of these two missiles are identical, which can significantly reduce the cost of their production.

Saving public funds is, of course, a worthy desire, but it should not harm the reliability of products. Strategic nuclear weapons and their means of delivery are the main component of the concept of deterrence. Nuclear missiles must be as trouble-free and reliable as the Kalashnikov assault rifle, which cannot be said about the new Bulava missile. So far, it flies every other time: out of 26 launches made, 8 were considered unsuccessful, and 2 were partially unsuccessful. This is unacceptable for a strategic missile. In addition, many experts blame the Bulava's too low cast weight.

"Topol M"

This is a missile system with a solid-propellant missile capable of delivering a nuclear warhead with a capacity of 550 kt to a distance of 11,000 km. Topol-M is the first intercontinental ballistic missile put into service in Russia.

ICBM "Topol-M" has mine and mobile basing. Back in 2008, the Russian Defense Ministry announced the start of work on equipping Topol-M with multiple warheads. True, already in 2011, the military announced their refusal to continue buying this missile and a gradual transition to R-24 Yars missiles.

Minuteman III (LGM-30G)

This is an American solid-propellant ballistic missile, which was put into service in 1970 and is still on it today. It is believed that Minuteman III is the fastest rocket in the world, at the terminal stage of flight it can reach a speed of 24 thousand km / h.

The range of the missile is 13,000 km, it carries three warheads of 475 kt each.

Over the years of operation, Minuteman III has undergone several dozen upgrades, the Americans are constantly changing electronics, control systems, components power plants to more advanced ones.

As of 2008, the US had 450 Minuteman III ICBMs with 550 warheads. The fastest missile in the world will still be in service with the US Army until at least 2020.

V-2 (V-2)

This german rocket had a far from ideal design, its characteristics cannot be compared with modern analogues. However, the V-2 was the first combat ballistic missile, the Germans used it to bombard British cities. It was the V-2 that made the first suborbital flight, rising to a height of 188 km.

The V-2 is a single-stage liquid-fuel rocket that runs on a mixture of ethanol and liquid oxygen. She could deliver a warhead weighing one ton over a distance of 320 km.

The first combat launch of the V-2 took place in September 1944, in total over 4300 missiles were fired at Britain, of which almost half exploded at the start or collapsed in flight.

V-2 can hardly be called the best ballistic missile, but it was the first, for which it deserved a high place in our rating.

"Iskander"

This is one of the most famous Russian missile systems. Today this name in Russia has become almost a cult. Iskander was put into service in 2006, there are several modifications of it. There is the Iskander-M, armed with two ballistic missiles, with a range of 500 km, and the Iskander-K, a variant with two cruise missiles that can also hit the enemy at a distance of 500 km. The missiles can carry nuclear warheads with a yield of up to 50 kt.

Most of the trajectory of the Iskander ballistic missile passes at altitudes of more than 50 km, which greatly complicates its interception. In addition, the missile has hypersonic speed and actively maneuvers, which makes it a very difficult target for enemy missile defense. The angle of approach to the target of the missile is approaching 90 degrees, which greatly interferes with the operation of the enemy's radar.

"Iskanders" are considered one of the most advanced types of weapons that the Russian army has.

"Tomahawk"

This is an American long-range cruise missile with subsonic speed, which can perform both tactical and strategic missions. " Tomahawk"Was adopted by the US Army in 1983, has been repeatedly used in various armed conflicts. Currently, this cruise missile is in service with the fleets of the United States, Great Britain and Spain.

The range of some modifications of the Tomahawk reaches 2.5 thousand km. Missiles can be launched from submarines and surface ships. Previously, there were modifications of the "Tomahawk" for the Air Force and ground forces. The QUO of the latest modifications of the rocket is 5-10 meters.

The US used these cruise missiles during both Gulf Wars, the Balkans, and Libya.

R-36M "Satan"

This is the most powerful intercontinental ballistic missile ever created by man. It was developed in the USSR, in Yuzhnoye Design Bureau (Dnepropetrovsk) and put into service in 1975. The mass of this liquid fuel rocket was more than 211 tons, it could deliver 7.3 thousand kg to a range of 16 thousand km.

Various modifications of the R-36M "Satan" could carry one warhead (capacity up to 20 Mt) or be equipped with a multiple warhead (10x0.75 Mt). Even modern missile defense systems are powerless against such power. In the USA, it is not for nothing that the R-36M was dubbed "Satan", because it is really a real weapon of Armageddon.

Today, the R-36M remains in service. strategic forces Russia, 54 RS-36M missiles are on combat duty.

If you have any questions - leave them in the comments below the article. We or our visitors will be happy to answer them.

"... The maximum height means the distance measured along the normal to the earth's ellipsoid from its surface to highest point missile trajectory..."

Source:

ORDER of the President of the Russian Federation of December 15, 2000 N 574-rp

"ON SIGNING A MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING ON NOTIFICATIONS ON ROCKET LAUNCHES"

• - vertical distance from the aircraft in the air to the surface level, conditionally taken as zero. V. p. is usually divided into extremely small, small, medium, large, stratospheric, mesospheric ...

  Dictionary of military terms

• - a set of processes occurring in the launcher and missile systems from the moment the “Start” command is given until the missile leaves the launcher. The launch of a guided missile consists of preparing the control system for operation, ...

  Dictionary of military terms

• - vertical distance from the aircraft in flight to the surface level taken as zero. Distinguish absolute V. p., measured from sea level ...

  Encyclopedia of technology

• - vertical distance from the aircraft to the adopted beg. reading level...

  Big encyclopedic polytechnic dictionary

• - a self-propelled GUIDED MISSILE that flies, usually at low altitude, using modern system guidance, which includes a territory recognition contour ...

  Scientific and technical encyclopedic Dictionary

• - flight section with running rocket engines ...

  Marine vocabulary

• - a section of the missile trajectory where the engine does not work and the missile moves only under the action of inertia, gravity and resistance forces, i.e. like an artillery shell ...

  Marine vocabulary

• - a set of processes occurring in the systems of the launcher, on-board equipment and the propulsion system of the rocket from the moment the “Start” command is given and until the rocket leaves the launcher ...

  Marine vocabulary

• - "... safe flight altitude - the minimum allowable flight altitude of aircraft, guaranteeing against collision with earth's surface or with obstacles on it;..." Source: Order of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation dated July 31 ...

  Official terminology

• - "...30) "flight altitude" is a general term meaning the vertical distance from a certain level to the aircraft;..." Source: Order of the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation N 136, Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation N 42, Rosaviakosmos N 51 of 31.03. ..

  Official terminology

• - ".....

  Official terminology

• - see Rockets ...

  Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Euphron

• - part of a missile designed to inflict a damaging effect on a target. It houses the warhead, fuse and safety-actuator...
• - deliver weapons to the target. On constructive signs R. b. divided into ballistic missiles and cruise missiles, into guided and unguided ...

  Great Soviet Encyclopedia

• - weapons to destroy ground, air and sea targets. They are divided into ballistic missiles and cruise missiles, into guided and unguided ...

  Big encyclopedic dictionary

• - Incendiary rockets...

  Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

"Maximum flight altitude of a ballistic missile" in books

Ensuring the last missile firing of a ballistic missile from a diesel-electric submarine at the Pacific Fleet

From the book Admiral routes (or flashes of memory and information from outside) author Soldatenkov Alexander Evgenievich

Ensuring the last missile firing of a ballistic missile from a diesel-electric submarine at the Pacific Fleet

Airspeed and Altitude

From the book Beekeeping for Beginners author Tikhomirov Vadim Vitalievich

Flight speed and height Under favorable conditions, a bee flies for nectar at the speed of a car in the city - up to 60 km per hour, and returns with nectar also not slowly - 30–40 km per hour. In good weather, the flight takes place at an altitude of 10-12 m, in the wind - up to 1

Chapter 5 Maximum Power

From the book Project Russia. Path choice author author unknown

Chapter 5 Maximum Power Power should be like a powerful axis around which a huge state mechanism rotates confidently and smoothly. Just as an aluminum spoke cannot withstand a multi-ton turbine, no matter how balanced this turbine is, so a huge country cannot be

§ 1. Maximum injustice

From the author's book

§ 1. Maximum injustice Wealth does not reduce greed. Sallust The process taking place in the spiritual life of Western society can be described as "mpenization" (from the initial letters of the words "materialization", "primitivization", "egoism", "abnormality"). In that

"Maximum cleaning of the device ..."

From the book Stalin's Anti-Corruption Committee author Sever Alexander

"Maximum cleaning of the device ..." After finishing civil war at V.I. Lenin finally got the opportunity to come to grips with the problems of the top of the state apparatus. The conclusions and proposals of Lenin are contained in his widely known works, which received

Dynamic versus ballistic

From the book A Quick Guide to Flexibility author Osmak Konstantin Viktorovich

Dynamic versus ballistic It looks like one egg. I myself for a long time(five minutes) could not understand the difference. But it is! The point of including this type of preparatory exercises (and these are preparatory exercises) is to teach the stretched muscles

Domestic guided air-to-air missiles Part 2. Medium and long range missiles

From the book Technique and weapons 2006 02 author

Domestic guided missiles air-to-air class Part 2. Medium-range and long-range missiles The issue uses photographs by V. Drushlyakov, A. Mikheev, M. Nikolsky, S. Skrynkikov, as well as photos from the archive of the editorial office and the Aerospace Review magazine. Graphics by R.

I. SUBMARINE BALLISTIC MISSILES SURFACE LAUNCH MISSILES

From the book Technique and weapons 1997 11-12 author Magazine "Technique and weapons"

I. SUBMARINE BALLISTIC MISSILES SURFACE LAUNCH MISSILES Project for arming the P-2 submarine with R-1 missiles In 1949, the Central Committee B-18 developed a pre-draft design for the P-2 submarine. One of the project options provided for equipping it with ballistic missiles.

Domestic guided air-to-air missiles Part 1. Short-range missiles

From the book Technique and weapons 2005 09 author Magazine "Technique and weapons"

Domestic guided air-to-air missiles Part 1. Short-range missiles Rostislav Angelsky Vladimir Korovin In this work, an attempt is made to present in an orderly manner the process of creation and development of domestic air-to-air missiles. At

Maximum performance

From the book The Perfectionist Paradox author Ben-Shahar Tal

Peak Performance Psychologists Robert Yerkes and John Dodson have shown that performance improves as levels of mental and psychological arousal increase, to the point where further increases in arousal lead to worse performance.

31 December 2007 Russia: Successful test of a naval ballistic missile

From the book Translations of Polish forums for 2007 author author unknown

December 31, 2007 Russia: successful test of a naval ballistic missile http://forum.gazeta.pl/forum/72.2.html?f=9...amp;v=2&s=0Rosja: udana pr? The psychological war of the USSR continues. For many years at Christmas they always shoot something to scare

Max Strength

author Ferris Timothy

Maximum Strength Barry then makes his charges strong. Really strong. Currently, he uses the protocol, like that, which was guided by Allison in 2003, but the exercises were adjusted and became more limited. Pay

Max Speed

From the book Perfect Body in 4 Hours author Ferris Timothy

Max Speed Finally, after making the athletes strong, Barry sets out to make them fast. If running doesn't interest you, skip this section and read only the sidebars. And we will return to our story ... Each athlete first performs two test runs.

The experience of recreating the American rocket "Sidewinder". Air Combat Missiles

From the book Half a Century in Aviation. Academician's Notes author Fedosov Evgeny Alexandrovich

Recreation Experience American missile"Sidewinder". Missiles of maneuverable air combat American missile "Sidewinder". This is a very interesting rocket in terms of engineering, which has a number of truly ingenious solutions found by one person. His last name is McClean

§ 1.2 Fundamentals of the Ritz Ballistic Theory

From the book Ritz Ballistic Theory and the Picture of the Universe author Semikov Sergey Alexandrovich

§ 1.2 Fundamentals of the Ritz Ballistic Theory There was a great need for an intermediate link that was invented in order to explain the reason for the equality of action and reaction. I pointed out in the introduction that radiant energy, born and radiated at the speed of light,

May 10th, 2016

The intercontinental ballistic missile is a very impressive human creation. Huge size, thermonuclear power, a column of flame, the roar of engines and a formidable roar of launch. However, all this exists only on the ground and in the first minutes of launch. After their expiration, the rocket ceases to exist. Further into the flight and the performance of the combat mission, only what remains of the rocket after acceleration - its payload - goes.

With long launch ranges, the payload of an intercontinental ballistic missile goes into space for many hundreds of kilometers. It rises into the layer of low-orbit satellites, 1000-1200 km above the Earth, and briefly settles among them, only slightly behind their general run. And then, along an elliptical trajectory, it begins to slide down ...

A ballistic missile consists of two main parts - an accelerating part and another, for the sake of which acceleration is started. The accelerating part is a pair or three large multi-ton stages, stuffed to capacity with fuel and with engines from below. They give the necessary speed and direction to the movement of the other main part of the rocket - the head. The accelerating stages, replacing each other in the launch relay, accelerate this warhead in the direction of the area of ​​​​its future fall.

The head of a rocket is a complex cargo of many elements. It contains a warhead (one or more), a platform on which these warheads are placed along with the rest of the economy (such as means of deceiving enemy radars and anti-missiles), and a fairing. Even in the head part there is fuel and compressed gases. The entire warhead will not fly to the target. It, like the ballistic missile itself before, will be divided into many elements and simply cease to exist as a whole. The fairing will separate from it not far from the launch area, during the operation of the second stage, and somewhere along the road it will fall. The platform will fall apart upon entering the air of the impact area. Elements of only one type will reach the target through the atmosphere. Warheads.

Close up, the warhead looks like an elongated cone a meter or a half long, at the base as thick as a human torso. The nose of the cone is pointed or slightly blunt. This cone is a special aircraft whose task is to deliver weapons to the target. We will return to warheads later and get to know them better.

The head of the "Peacekeeper", The pictures show the breeding stages of the American heavy ICBM LGM0118A Peacekeeper, also known as MX. The missile was equipped with ten 300 kt multiple warheads. The missile was decommissioned in 2005.

Pull or push?

In a missile, all of the warheads are located in what is known as the disengagement stage, or "bus". Why a bus? Because, having freed itself first from the fairing, and then from the last booster stage, the breeding stage carries the warheads, like passengers, to the given stops, along their trajectories, along which the deadly cones will disperse to their targets.

Another "bus" is called the combat stage, because its work determines the accuracy of pointing the warhead at the target point, and hence the combat effectiveness. The breeding stage and its operation is one of the biggest secrets in a rocket. But we will still take a little, schematically, look at this mysterious step and its difficult dance in space.

The dilution step has different forms. Most often, it looks like a round stump or a wide loaf of bread, on which warheads are mounted on top with their points forward, each on its own spring pusher. The warheads are pre-positioned at precise separation angles (on a missile base, manually, with the help of theodolites) and look in different directions, like a bunch of carrots, like a hedgehog's needles. The platform, bristling with warheads, occupies a predetermined, gyro-stabilized position in space in flight. And at the right moments, warheads are pushed out of it one by one. They are ejected immediately after the completion of the acceleration and separation from the last accelerating stage. Until (you never know?) they shot down this entire unbred hive with anti-missile weapons or something failed on board the breeding stage.

But that was before, at the dawn of multiple warheads. Now breeding is a completely different picture. If earlier the warheads “sticked out” forward, now the stage itself is ahead along the way, and the warheads hang from below, with their tops back, turned upside down, like the bats. The “bus” itself in some rockets also lies upside down, in a special recess in the upper stage of the rocket. Now, after separation, the disengagement stage does not push, but drags the warheads along with it. Moreover, it drags, resting on four cross-shaped "paws" deployed in front. At the ends of these metal paws are rear-facing traction nozzles of the dilution stage. After separation from the booster stage, the "bus" very accurately, precisely sets its movement in the beginning space with the help of its own powerful guidance system. He himself occupies the exact path of the next warhead - its individual path.

Then, special inertia-free locks are opened, holding the next detachable warhead. And not even separated, but simply now not connected with the stage, the warhead remains motionless hanging here, in complete weightlessness. The moments of her own flight began and flowed. Like one single berry next to a bunch of grapes with other warhead grapes that have not yet been plucked from the stage by the breeding process.

Fiery Ten, K-551 "Vladimir Monomakh" - Russian nuclear submarine strategic purpose(Project 955 "Borey"), armed with 16 Bulava solid-fuel ICBMs with ten multiple warheads.

Delicate movements

Now the task of the stage is to crawl away from the warhead as delicately as possible, without violating its precisely set (targeted) movement of its nozzles by gas jets. If a supersonic nozzle jet hits a detached warhead, it will inevitably add its own additive to the parameters of its movement. During the subsequent flight time (and this is half an hour - fifty minutes, depending on the launch range), the warhead will drift from this exhaust “slap” of the jet half a kilometer-kilometer sideways from the target, or even further. It will drift without barriers: there is space there, they slapped it - it swam, not holding on to anything. But is a kilometer to the side an accuracy today?

To avoid such effects, four upper “paws” with engines spaced apart are needed. The stage, as it were, is pulled forward on them so that the exhaust jets go to the sides and cannot catch the warhead detached by the belly of the stage. All thrust is divided between four nozzles, which reduces the power of each individual jet. There are other features as well. For example, if on a donut-shaped breeding stage (with a void in the middle - with this hole it is put on the booster stage of the rocket, as wedding ring on the finger) of the Trident-II D5 missile, the control system determines that the separated warhead still falls under the exhaust of one of the nozzles, then the control system turns off this nozzle. Makes "silence" over the warhead.

The step gently, like a mother from the cradle of a sleeping child, fearing to disturb his peace, tiptoes away in space on the three remaining nozzles in low thrust mode, and the warhead remains on the aiming trajectory. Then the “donut” of the stage with the cross of the traction nozzles rotates around the axis so that the warhead comes out from under the zone of the torch of the switched off nozzle. Now the stage moves away from the abandoned warhead already at all four nozzles, but so far also at low gas. When a sufficient distance is reached, the main thrust is turned on, and the stage moves vigorously into the area of ​​​​the aiming trajectory of the next warhead. There it is calculated to slow down and again very accurately sets the parameters of its movement, after which it separates the next warhead from itself. And so on - until each warhead is landed on its trajectory. This process is fast, much faster than you read about it. In one and a half to two minutes, the combat stage breeds a dozen warheads.

Abyss of mathematics

The foregoing is quite enough to understand how the warhead's own path begins. But if you open the door a little wider and look a little deeper, you will notice that today the turn in space of the disengagement stage carrying the warheads is the area of ​​​​application of the quaternion calculus, where the onboard attitude control system processes the measured parameters of its movement with continuous construction of the orientation quaternion on board. A quaternion is such a complex number (over the field complex numbers lies the flat body of the quaternions, as mathematicians would say in their exact language of definitions). But not with the usual two parts, real and imaginary, but with one real and three imaginary. In total, the quaternion has four parts, which, in fact, is what the Latin root quatro says.

The breeding stage performs its work quite low, immediately after turning off the booster stages. That is, at an altitude of 100-150 km. And there the influence of gravitational anomalies of the Earth's surface, heterogeneities in the even gravitational field surrounding the Earth still affects. Where are they from? from uneven terrain, mountain systems, occurrence of rocks of different density, oceanic depressions. Gravitational anomalies either attract the step to themselves with an additional attraction, or, on the contrary, slightly release it from the Earth.

In such heterogeneities, the complex ripples of the local gravity field, the disengagement stage must place the warheads with precision. To do this, it was necessary to create a more detailed map of the Earth's gravitational field. It is better to “explain” the features of a real field in systems of differential equations that describe the exact ballistic motion. These are large, capacious (to include details) systems of several thousand differential equations, with several tens of thousands of constant numbers. And the gravitational field itself at low altitudes, in the immediate near-Earth region, is considered as a joint attraction of several hundred point masses of different "weights" located near the center of the Earth in a certain order. In this way, a more accurate simulation of the real gravitational field of the Earth on the flight path of the rocket is achieved. And more accurate operation of the flight control system with it. And yet ... but full! - let's not look further and close the door; we have had enough of what has been said.

Intercontinental ballistic missile R-36M Voyevoda Voyevoda,

Flight without warheads

The disengagement stage, dispersed by the missile in the direction of the same geographical area where the warheads should fall, continues its flight with them. After all, she can not lag behind, and why? After breeding the warheads, the stage is urgently engaged in other matters. She moves away from the warheads, knowing in advance that she will fly a little differently from the warheads, and not wanting to disturb them. The breeding stage also devotes all its further actions to warheads. This maternal desire to protect the flight of her “children” in every possible way continues for the rest of her short life.

Short, but intense.

The payload of an intercontinental ballistic missile spends most of the flight in the mode of a space object, rising to a height three times the height of the ISS. A trajectory of enormous length must be calculated with extreme precision.

After the separated warheads, it is the turn of other wards. To the sides of the step, the most amusing gizmos begin to scatter. Like a magician, she releases into space a lot of inflating balloons, some metal things resembling open scissors, and objects of all sorts of other shapes. durable air balloons sparkle brightly in the cosmic sun with a mercury sheen of a metallized surface. They are quite large, some shaped like warheads flying nearby. Their surface, covered with aluminum sputtering, reflects the radar signal from a distance in much the same way as the warhead body. Enemy ground radars will perceive these inflatable warheads on a par with real ones. Of course, in the very first moments of entry into the atmosphere, these balls will fall behind and immediately burst. But before that, they will distract and load the computing power of ground-based radars - both early warning and guidance of anti-missile systems. In the language of ballistic missile interceptors, this is called "complicating the current ballistic situation." And the entire heavenly host, inexorably moving towards the area of ​​​​fall, including warheads real and false, balloons, chaff and corner reflectors, all this motley flock is called "multiple ballistic targets in a complicated ballistic environment."

The metal scissors open and become electric chaff - there are many of them, and they reflect well the radio signal of the early warning radar beam that probes them. Instead of ten required fat ducks, the radar sees a huge fuzzy flock of small sparrows, in which it is difficult to make out anything. Devices of all shapes and sizes reflect different wavelengths.

In addition to all this tinsel, the stage itself can theoretically emit radio signals that interfere with enemy anti-missiles. Or distract them. In the end, you never know what she can be busy with - after all, a whole step is flying, large and complex, why not load her with a good solo program?

In the photo - the launch of the Trident II intercontinental missile (USA) from a submarine. At the moment, Trident ("Trident") is the only family of ICBMs whose missiles are installed on American submarines. The maximum casting weight is 2800 kg.

Last cut

However, in terms of aerodynamics, the stage is not a warhead. If that one is a small and heavy narrow carrot, then the step is an empty spacious bucket, with echoing empty fuel tanks, large non-streamlined hull and lack of orientation in the beginning flow. With its wide body with a decent windage, the step responds much earlier to the first breaths of the oncoming flow. The warheads are also deployed along the stream, penetrating the atmosphere with the least aerodynamic resistance. The step, on the other hand, leans into the air with its vast sides and bottoms as it should. It cannot fight the braking force of the flow. Its ballistic coefficient - an "alloy" of massiveness and compactness - is much worse than a warhead. Immediately and strongly it begins to slow down and lag behind the warheads. But the forces of the flow are growing inexorably, at the same time the temperature warms up the thin unprotected metal, depriving it of strength. The rest of the fuel boils merrily in the hot tanks. Finally, there is a loss of stability of the hull structure under the aerodynamic load that has compressed it. Overload helps to break bulkheads inside. Krak! Fuck! The crumpled body is immediately enveloped by hypersonic shock waves, tearing the stage apart and scattering them. After flying a little in the condensing air, the pieces again break into smaller fragments. The remaining fuel reacts instantly. Scattered fragments of structural elements made of magnesium alloys are ignited by hot air and instantly burn out with a blinding flash, similar to a camera flash - it was not without reason that magnesium was set on fire in the first flashlights!

America's submarine sword, the US Ohio-class submarine is the only type of missile carrier in service with the US. Carries 24 Trident-II (D5) MIRVed ballistic missiles. The number of warheads (depending on power) is 8 or 16.

Time does not stand still.

Raytheon, Lockheed Martin and Boeing have completed the first and key milestone associated with the development of a defense exoatmospheric kinetic interceptor (Exoatmospheric Kill Vehicle, EKV), which is part of a mega-project - the Pentagon's global missile defense, based on interceptor missiles, each of which is capable of carrying SEVERAL kinetic interception warheads (Multiple Kill Vehicle, MKV) to destroy ICBMs with multiple, as well as "dummy" warheads

"The milestone reached is an important part of the concept development phase," Raytheon said in a statement, adding that it "is in line with the MDA's plans and is the basis for further concept alignment scheduled for December."

It is noted that Raytheon in this project uses the experience of creating EKV, which is involved in the American global missile defense system that has been operating since 2005 - Ground system Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GBMD), which is designed to intercept intercontinental ballistic missiles and their warheads in outer space outside the Earth's atmosphere. Currently, 30 anti-missiles are deployed in Alaska and California to protect the US continental territory, and another 15 missiles are planned to be deployed by 2017.

The transatmospheric kinetic interceptor, which will become the basis for the currently created MKV, is the main striking element of the GBMD complex. A 64-kilogram projectile is launched by an anti-missile into outer space, where it intercepts and engages an enemy warhead thanks to an electro-optical guidance system protected from extraneous light by a special casing and automatic filters. The interceptor receives target designation from ground-based radars, establishes sensory contact with the warhead and aims at it, maneuvering in outer space with the help of rocket engines. The warhead is hit by a head-on ram on a head-on course with a total speed of 17 km/s: an interceptor flies at a speed of 10 km/s, an ICBM warhead at a speed of 5-7 km/s. The kinetic energy of the impact, which is about 1 ton of TNT, is enough to completely destroy the warhead of any conceivable design, and in such a way that the warhead is completely destroyed.

In 2009, the United States suspended the development of a program to combat multiple warheads due to the extreme complexity of the production of the disengagement mechanism. However, this year the program was revived. According to the analytical data of Newsader, this is due to the increased aggression on the part of Russia and the corresponding threats to use nuclear weapons, which have been repeatedly expressed by top officials of the Russian Federation, including President Vladimir Putin himself, who frankly admitted in a commentary on the situation with the annexation of Crimea that he allegedly was ready to use nuclear weapons in a possible conflict with NATO (recent events related to the destruction of a Russian bomber by the Turkish Air Force cast doubt on Putin's sincerity and suggest a "nuclear bluff" on his part). Meanwhile, as is known, it is Russia that is the only state in the world that allegedly owns ballistic missiles with multiple nuclear warheads, including "dummy" (distracting) ones.

Raytheon said that their brainchild will be able to destroy several objects at once using an advanced sensor and other the latest technologies. According to the company, during the time that has passed between the implementation of the Standard Missile-3 and EKV projects, the developers managed to achieve a record performance in intercepting training targets in space - more than 30, which exceeds the performance of competitors.

Russia also does not stand still.

According to open sources, this year will see the first launch of the new intercontinental ballistic missile RS-28 "Sarmat", which should replace the previous generation of RS-20A missiles, known by NATO classification as "Satan", but in our country as "Voevoda" .

The RS-20A ballistic missile (ICBM) development program was implemented as part of the "assured retaliatory strike" strategy. President Ronald Reagan's policy of aggravating the confrontation between the USSR and the United States forced him to take adequate retaliatory measures in order to cool the ardor of the "hawks" from the presidential administration and the Pentagon. American strategists believed that they were quite capable of providing such a level of protection of their country's territory from an attack by Soviet ICBMs that they could simply give a damn about the international agreements reached and continue to improve their own nuclear potential and missile defense (ABM) systems. "Voevoda" was just another "asymmetric response" to Washington's actions.

The most unpleasant surprise for the Americans was the missile's multiple warhead, which contained 10 elements, each of which carried an atomic charge with a capacity of up to 750 kilotons of TNT. On Hiroshima and Nagasaki, for example, bombs were dropped, the yield of which was "only" 18-20 kilotons. Such warheads were able to overcome the then American missile defense systems, in addition, the infrastructure for launching missiles was also improved.

The development of a new ICBM is designed to solve several problems at once: first, to replace the Voyevoda, whose ability to overcome modern American missile defense (ABM) has decreased; secondly, to solve the problem of the dependence of the domestic industry on Ukrainian enterprises, since the complex was developed in Dnepropetrovsk; finally, to give an adequate response to the continuation of the program for the deployment of missile defense in Europe and the Aegis system.

As expected National Interest, the Sarmat missile will weigh at least 100 tons, and the mass of its warhead can reach 10 tons. This means, the publication continues, that the rocket will be able to carry up to 15 separable thermonuclear warheads.
"The range of the Sarmat will be at least 9,500 kilometers. When it is put into service, it will be the largest missile in world history," the article notes.

According to press reports, NPO Energomash will become the head enterprise for the production of the rocket, while Perm-based Proton-PM will supply the engines.

The main difference between "Sarmat" and "Voevoda" is the ability to launch warheads into a circular orbit, which drastically reduces range restrictions; with this launch method, it is possible to attack enemy territory not along the shortest trajectory, but along any and from any direction - not only through North Pole, but also through the South.

In addition, the designers promise that the idea of ​​maneuvering warheads will be implemented, which will make it possible to counter all types of existing anti-missiles and advanced systems using laser weapons. Anti-aircraft missiles "Patriot", which form the basis of the American missile defense system, cannot yet effectively deal with actively maneuvering targets flying at speeds close to hypersonic.
Maneuvering warheads promise to become such an effective weapon, against which there are no countermeasures equal in reliability, that the option of creating an international agreement prohibiting or significantly limiting this type of weapon is not ruled out.

Thus, together with sea-based missiles and mobile railway systems, Sarmat will become an additional and quite effective deterrent.

If that happens, then efforts to deploy missile defense systems in Europe could be in vain, since the missile's launch trajectory is such that it is not clear exactly where the warheads will be aimed.

It is also reported that the missile silos will be equipped with additional protection against close explosions of nuclear weapons, which will significantly increase the reliability of the entire system.

First prototypes new rocket already built. Start of launch tests is scheduled for the current year. If the tests are successful, serial production of Sarmat missiles will begin, and in 2018 they will go into service.

sources