How do missiles work

The missile is destroyed when the bomb explodes. Cruise missiles come in a number of variations see the links at the end of the article for more information and can be launched from submarines , destroyers or aircraft. When you hear about hundreds of cruise missiles being fired at targets, they are almost always Tomahawk cruise missiles launched from destroyers.

Cruise missiles are 20 feet 6. At launch, they include a pound kg solid rocket booster and weigh 3, pounds kg. The booster falls away once it has burned its fuel. The wings, tail fins and air inlet unfold, and the turbofan engine takes over.

This engine weighs just pounds 65 kg and produces pounds of thrust burning RJ4 fuel. The fuel load is to 1, pounds about kg of fuel at launch, or approximately gallons liters. The missile has a cruising speed of mph kph. Some missiles use hybrid technology for propelling it to its intended point. The function of the guidance system is to maintain the missile in its desired flight path by using altitude control mechanism. This is done by controlling the pitch, roll and yaw of the weapon.

The guidance system operates as an auto-pilot, damping out fluctuations that tend to deflect the missile from its intended flight path. In others, the commands are transmitted to the weapon by some external source. The fins, wings and tail are the three major aerodynamic control surfaces used to steer the missile.

In case of precision weapons, the target seeker comes into picture when the missile starts detecting its target. A guided bomb is called a "smart" bomb. If powered and traveling underwater, it is termed a torpedo. The U. Minuteman 3 ICBM is a three-stage booster. Full Terms and Conditions apply to all Subscriptions. Or, if you are already a subscriber Sign in.

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