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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION TO MISSILES A guided missile can be defined as a bomb like flying weapon that is steered to its target. Some guided missiles contain a computer and other special equipment to steer themselves. Some of these missiles can even chase and destroy enemy airplanes or other moving targets and others follow directions radioed to them from controllers. Most guided missiles resemble rockets with stubby airplane like wings. Most actually consist of a rocket with one or more explosive sections called warheads. A few kinds of missiles are powered by a jet engine instead of a rocket motor. Still others may be winged bombs with no engine. Guided missiles have a wide range of sizes from about 4 feet long which can be launched on the battlefield at a tank or an airplane. A giant missile about 60 feet tall can reach one third of the way around the world; such a missile with a nuclear warhead can destroy an entire city. Nuclear missiles can reach such distant targets and cause such great destructions that they rank among the worlds most feared weapons. BRIEF HISTORY The Chinese used unguided rockets as fireworks perhaps as early as the 1200s. By the 1300s such rockets were used widely in Asia and Europe. During the 1800s, William Congreve developed unguided, rocket powered missiles that could carry explosives, which were widely used in wars fought in Asia, Europe and North and South America. The Chinese, who invented gunpowder, were also the first to employ explosives to power missiles and the first, in the 1300s, to fire a multi-stage missile. By the 17th century western military forces were experimenting with "war" rockets. Yet not until World War II were long range (up to 180 miles) rockets-the Nazi V-1-and ballistic missiles-the A-4, renamed the V-2-developed. Although it was possible to counter the noisy, relatively slow V-1, there was virtually no defense against the ballistic V-2. As the wartime Allied coalition split, the new antagonists concentrated on developing long range intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) that could carry nuclear warheads. Strategic defenses were oriented more toward aircraft rather than missiles for the simple reason that the technology for the latter was not available. Very early U.S.
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attempts at developing anti-missile missiles such as the short range hit-to-kill Thumper and the longer range Wizard were poorly funded and inconclusive. Nonetheless, aware that the Soviets were pressing ahead with their missile developments, the Pentagon continued research on missile defenses. Then, on October 4, 1957, the Soviets launched into orbit the Sputnik satellite atop a multi-stage missile. A few weeks later the first U.S. attempt ended in disaster when the Vanguard rocket blew up on the launch pad. Not until January 1958, when a Pentagon ban on Army missile launches was lifted, did a U.S. Jupiter-C lost its Explorer I satellite into orbit. Both offensive and defensive long-range missile development became priorities in a matter of a few weeks.

Launch of the Zenith missile

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CHAPTER 2 PARTS OF A MISSILE

A guided missile consists basically of a warhead attached to a tube like body. The missile may be powered by a rocket or a jet engine. Special equipment in the missile guides it to target. They various parts can be classified as: 1) The warhead 2) The engine 3) Guidance and control systems 4) Launching equipment THE WARHEAD The warhead may contain a high explosive such as TNT or a nuclear device. High explosive warheads work in various ways. Some damage their target by creating a tremendous blast of air pressure. Others explode and shoot of various metal fragments in all directions, which damage the target. A nuclear warhead may contain an atomic or hydrogen device. Some nuclear missiles contain several warheads, when the missiles near the target area, the warheads separate and each proceed towards its own target. Such warheads are called Multiple Independently Targetable Reentry Vehicles (MIRVs). Every missile has a fuzing system that prevents the warhead from exploding at the wrong time. This system first puts the warhead in a ready condition so that it will explode when triggered. In this condition the warhead is said to be armed. At the proper time, the fuzing system triggers the main explosion by setting off a small charge. This action may occur automatically after the missile has come near its target and in some cases, human controllers trigger the explosion. THE ENGINE A rocket engine powers most guided missiles. This engine works by burning chemicals. The burning produces gases that have very high pressure. The high pressure forces the gases backward out of the engine and at the same time, the pressure pushes the engine- and the missile forward i.e. the thrust.

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The chemicals burned in a rocket engine are called propellants. Most guided missiles use solid propellants shaped in the form of a hollow rod called a grain. Some missile engines use liquid propellants which are carried in special tanks inside the body of the missile. Rocket propellants include two types, the fuel and the oxidizer. The fuel provides the basic burning substance. The oxidizer supplies the oxygen needed to make the fuel burn. In solid propellant rockets, the fuel and oxidizer are both in the solid form and are combined in the grain. Once the grain has been set on fire, the two propellants unite and continue to burn. In missiles that use liquid propellants, the propellants must be pumped or forced in some other way into the engines combustion chamber. There the propellants unite and burn. A jet engine powers some guided missiles. A jet engine uses fuel, as does a rocket. But it gets its oxygen from the atmosphere, taking in air as it flies. Because a jet engine needs air, jet powered missiles cannot operate in space where there is no air. Rocket missiles carry their own oxidizer, and so they can work in space. Parts of a Missile

GUIDANCE AND CONTROL SYSTEMS These systems are responsible to work together in order to keep the missile on course. The guidance system may include a computer and other special instruments.

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These instruments are programmed to maintain the target destination and send electric steering instructions to the control system. The control system includes fins, vanes, wings and other devices to control the missiles flight. These systems use the instructions from the guidance system to turn the missile in the desired direction. Various types of missiles have their own unique kinds of guidance systems. LAUNCHING EQUIPMENT They guide a missile while it is being launched. Some missiles are launched from a tube. Others take off from a launcher that has tracks or rails, along which the missile runs. Launching equipment set up in a permanent location makes up a missile site. An underground site is called a silo. Some silo-based missiles are launched from their underground position. On the battlefield, trucks called transporter-erectors move missiles to desired launching locations. Equipment on the trucks erects the missile into firing position. Various kinds of launchers can be attached to the wings or body of an airplane or set up on a ship. Missile submarines have special kinds of launchers underwater. These devices use compressed air to push the missile up to the surface, where the rocket engine takes over.

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CHAPTER 3 MISSILE PROPULSION

3.1 JET PROPULSION Jet propulsion is the production of motion in one direction by releasing a highpressure stream of gas in the opposite direction. Apart from missiles both airplanes and rockets are also powered by jet propulsion. Jet-propelled airplanes can reach much higher speeds than propeller driven airplanes. Jet propulsion has enabled aircraft and missiles to travel at speeds faster than the speed of sound, jet propulsion as also made it possible to fly at extremely high altitudes and even in outer space. Jet engines cause less vibration than do piston engines, this smoothness of operation results in a more safer and comfortable ride. Jet engines are generally smaller and lighter in weight than piston engines that produce the same amount of thrust- the forward driving force. However jet engines burn more fuel than do piston engines to create an equal amount of thrust. The first flight of an airplane powered by a jet engine occurred in Germany in 1939. Since then the jet propulsion has powered aircraft, missiles and rockets of all kinds including supersonic airliners and spacecraft that have journeyed to other planets. 3.1.1 PRINCIPLE OF JET PROPULSION The principle of jet propulsion can be demonstrated with a simple garden hose connected to a water supply. When the nozzle at the end of the hose is closed, the water pushes in all directions again the inside surface of the nozzle. It also pushes back against the water in the hose that is trying to squeeze into the nozzle. When the nozzle is open, some of the water squirts out through the opening. This action upsets the balance of pressure inside the nozzle. It releases the pressure pushing forward just inside the nozzle opening. But the water that is still in the nozzle continues pressing backwards and to the sides. This force will hence propel the nozzle backwards, opposite to the direction of the jet of water escaping from the nozzle. Jet propulsion drives the missile in much the same way. Air pressure builds up inside the engine. The pressure pushing in one direction is released in a powerful stream of exhaust escaping from the rear of the engine causes an equal and opposite reaction that pushes the engine forward.

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3.1.2 POWER IN A JET ENGINE The power in a jet engine is produced by the combustion of the jet fuel in the combustion chamber. The combustion gases then rush out through the nozzle, creating the jet thrust. Air enters the jet engine through an inlet duct. It is then compressed until it has from 3 to 30 times as much as pressure as that of the outside air. The compressed air then flows into the compression chamber. There, part of the air is mixed with a fine spray of jet fuel. Most jet engines use a liquid petroleum fuel similar to kerosene. The mixture of fuel and air is then is ignited and it burns releasing a large amount of energy. The temperature of combustion ranges from about 3300 to 3600 deg. F. These high temperatures could damage the jet engine. However, the remainder of the compressed air is mixed with the hot combustion gases to lower the temperature of the gases somewhat and to cool the walls of the combustion chamber. The exhaust gases then gases then escape through a nozzle at an extremely high speed. Combustion is defined as the state of burning. It describes a chemical process that converts fuels into products. This is often accompanied by heat and light emissions. A jet propulsion engine creates thrust by accelerating a small amount of gas to great speeds. The exhaust of the jet propulsion contains much unused energy in the form of heat. By contrast, a propeller moves a large amount of air at low speed, leaving little unused energy in the air. For this reason, a propeller wastes less energy and generates thrust more efficiently than a jet engine does. The amount of thrust produced by a jet propulsion engine is about the same at all speeds. But the amount of thrust produced by the propeller drops of as the speed increases. Thus, jet propulsion can reach much higher flight speeds than by propeller propulsion. An engines thrust is measured in a specifically designed chamber. Such a chamber can create the different conditions that the engine may encounter. It can provide a flow of air to the engine similar to the occurring in flight at different speeds and altitudes. The thrust produced by an aircraft engine is expressed in pounds or newtons. For example, each of the four huge jet engines used on many Boeing 747 airliners produce 232,000 newtons of thrust.

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3.1.3 PARTS OF A JET ENGINE

Fan - The fan is the first component in a turbofan. The large spinning fan sucks in large quantities of air. Most blades of the fan are made of titanium. It then speeds this air up and splits it into two parts. One part continues through the "core" or center of the engine, where it is acted upon by the other engine components. The second part "bypasses" the core of the engine. It goes through a duct that surrounds the core to the back of the engine where it produces much of the force that propels the airplane forward. This cooler air helps to quiet the engine as well as adding thrust to the engine. Compressor - The compressor is the first component in the engine core. The compressor is made up of fans with many blades and attached to a shaft. The compressor squeezes the air that enters it into progressively smaller areas, resulting in an increase in the air pressure. This results in an increase in the energy potential of the air. The squashed air is forced into the combustion chamber. Combustor - In the combustor the air is mixed with fuel and then ignited. There are as many as 20 nozzles to spray fuel into the airstream. The mixture of air and fuel catches fire. This provides a high temperature, high-energy airflow. The fuel burns with the oxygen in the compressed air, producing hot expanding gases. The inside of the combustor is often made of ceramic materials to provide a heat-resistant chamber. The heat can reach 2700. Turbine - The high-energy airflow coming out of the combustor goes into the turbine, causing the turbine blades to rotate. The turbines are linked by a shaft to turn the blades in the compressor and to spin the intake fan at the front. This rotation takes some energy from the high-energy flow that is used to drive the fan and the compressor. The
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gases produced in the combustion chamber move through the turbine and spin its blades. The turbines of the jet spin around thousands of times. They are fixed on shafts which have several sets of ball-bearing in between them. Nozzle - The nozzle is the exhaust duct of the engine. This is the engine part which actually produces the thrust for the plane. The energy depleted airflow that passed the turbine, in addition to the colder air that bypassed the engine core, produces a force when exiting the nozzle that acts to propel the engine, and therefore the airplane, forward. The combination of the hot air and cold air are expelled and produce an exhaust, which causes a forward thrust. The nozzle may be preceded by a mixer, which combines the high temperature air coming from the engine core with the lower temperature air that was bypassed in the fan. The mixer helps to make the engine quieter. 3.2 TYPES OF JET ENGINES There are four major types of jet engines: ramjet turbojet turbofan turboprop

These differ chiefly in the portion of their total thrust that they produce directly by jet propulsion. Turboprops and turbofans generate most of their thrust by turning propellers or propeller like fans rather than by pure jet propulsion. Jet engines also differ the way in the way they compress the air that enters the intake ducts. 3.2.1 RAMJET ENGINE A ramjet engine must be brought to supersonic speed by a rocket or another jet engine before it can operate. Air rushes into the engine through air inlets. The air slows down as it approaches the combustion chamber. It is compressed by more air entering the inlet behind it. In the combustion chamber, the compressed air is mixed with the fuel supplied by the fuel injector and then burned. The pressure produced by the burning fuel and air sends hot exhaust gases out the jet nozzle and drives the engine forward. Ramjets operate best at high, steady speeds.
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The main disadvantage of ramjets is that they are not able to work a low flight speeds. This is because they rely purely on the forward motion of the aircraft to compress the air entering them. However, as aircraft velocity increases, ramjets continue to increase in efficiency. This makes them an ideal propulsion device for aircraft missiles. Uses: They are chiefly used to propel guided missiles such as the Meteor Missile shown below.

3.2.2 TURBOJET ENGINES Turbojet engines have a compressor with a fan like blades that squeeze the incoming air. The compressor blades also force the compressed air into a set of combustion chambers. There the compressed air is mixed with fuel and ignited, forming burning gases. The gases expand rapidly and rush through the blades of the turbine, making it spin. The turbine is connected by a shaft to the compressor which keeps the compressor running. An after-burner gives a turbojet extra thrust by supplying the hot exhaust gases with extra fuel. The fuel is burned, increasing the speed of the jet exhaust. Metal grids called flame holders prevent the fast moving gases from blowing out the flames. Uses: Turbojet engines are widely used in military aircraft such as F-5E Tiger 2 aircraft.

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3.2.3 TURBOFAN ENGINES Turbofan engines resemble turbojet engines but have a huge propeller like fan at the air inlet. Most of the air drawn through the fan passes around the rest of the engine, creating the thrust. The rest of the air enters the enclosed engine which acts like a turbojet to produce thrust. It consists of a compressor, combustion chamber, and two kinds of turbines. One turbine drives the compressor and the other, called a fan turbine, turns the fan. By using two methods to create thrust, a turbofan can create more thrust at lower speeds than a turbojet can. The turbofan also runs more quietly and uses less fuel. The turbofan is the most common type of jet engine. Uses: Turbofans power many commercial airliners such as the DC-10.

3.2.4 TURBOPROP ENGINES Turboprop engines consist of a propeller and a turbojet engine. The turbojet engine is used chiefly to turn the propeller, which supplies most of the turboprops driving power. The propeller rotates when burning gases from the combustion chambers turn the power turbine. This turbine is then connected to shaft that drives the propeller by a system of gears. When the hot gases escape from the engine, they provide a small amount of additional thrust. Turboprop engines are most efficient at relatively low flight speeds. They are smaller and lighter in weight than piston engines that produce the same amount of power.

Uses: Turboprops are widely used in small business aircraft such as the Beechcraft Super King Air.
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3.3 ROCKET PROPULSION

A rocket is a machine that develops thrust by the rapid expulsion of matter. The major components of a chemical rocket assembly are a rocket motor or engine, propellant consisting of fuel and an oxidizer, a frame to hold the components, control systems and a payload such as a warhead. A rocket differs from other engines in that it carries its fuel and oxidizer internally; therefore it will burn in the vacuum of space as well as within the Earth's atmosphere.

3.3.1 TYPES OF ROCKET ENGINES There are four basic kinds of rockets: Solid-propellant rockets Liquid-propellant rockets Electric rockets Nuclear rockets

SOLID PROPELLANT ROCKETS Solid propellant rockets are basically combustion chamber tubes packed with a propellant that contains both fuel and oxidizer blended together uniformly. The solidpropellant motor is the oldest and simplest of all forms of rocketry, dating back to the ancient Chinese. It's simply a casing, usually steel, filled with a mixture of solid-form chemicals (fuel and oxidizer) which burn at a rapid rate, expelling hot gases from a nozzle to achieve thrust.

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Solid propellant The principal advantage is that a solid propellant is relatively stable therefore it can be manufactured and stored for future use. Solid propellants have a high density and can burn very fast. They are relatively insensitive to shock, vibration and acceleration. No propellant pumps are required thus the rocket engines are less complicated. Disadvantages are that, once ignited, solid propellants cannot be throttled, turned off and then restarted because they burn until all the propellant is used. The surface area of the burning propellant is critical in determining the amount of thrust being generated. LIQUID PROPELLANT ROCKETS Liquid propellant rocket engines burn two separately stored liquid chemicals, a fuel and an oxidizer, to produce thrust. Cryogenic Propellant A cryogenic propellant is one that uses very cold liquefied gases as the fuel and the oxidizer. Liquid oxygen boils at 297 F and liquid hydrogen boils at 423 F. Cryogenic propellants require special insulated containers and vents to allow gas from the evaporating liquids to escape. The liquid fuel and oxidizer are pumped from the storage tanks to an expansion chamber and injected into the combustion chamber where they are mixed and ignited by a flame or spark. The fuel expands as it burns and the hot exhaust gases are directed out of the nozzle to provide thrust. Hypergolic Propellant A hypergolic propellant is composed of a fuel and oxidizer that ignite when they come into contact with each other. No spark is needed. Hypergolic

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propellants are typically corrosive so storage requires special containers and safety facilities.

Liquid Propellant ELECTRIC ROCKETS Electric rockets use electric power to produce thrust. These rockets include arc jet rockets, plasma jet rockets and ion rockets. Electric rockets can operate much longer than other rockets, but they produce less thrust. An electric rocket could not lift a spacecraft out of the earths atmosphere, but it could propel a vehicle through space. Arc jet rockets heat a propellant gas with an electric spark called an electric arc. The spark can heat the gas to a temperature three or four times as great as that produced by a solid or a liquid-propellant rocket. Electric Rocket

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NUCLEAR ROCKETS Nuclear rockets heat fuel with a nuclear reactor, a machine that produces energy by splitting atoms. The heated fuel becomes hot, rapidly expanding gas. Such rockets can produce two or three times more power than do rockets that burn solid or liquid propellants. In nuclear rockets, liquid hydrogen is pumped to the reactor through a jacket surrounding the rocket engine. The pumping process helps cool the rocket and it also preheats the liquid hydrogen. Hundreds of narrow chambers pass through the nuclear reactor. As the liquid hydrogen flows through these channels, heat from the reactor changes the fuel into rapidly expanding gas. The gas flows through the exhaust nozzle at speeds up to 22,000 miles per hour. Nuclear Rocket

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CHAPTER 4 GUIDED MISSILES

Guided missiles can be classified in various ways, depending on such characteristics as how far they fly and what targets they attack. Guided missiles may be grouped into four types, depending on where their flight begins and ends. These types are: surface-to-surface surface-to-air air-to-air air-to-surface

4.1 TYPES OF MISSILES 4.1.1 SURFACE-TO-SURFACE MISSILES (SSMs) SSM's are launched from the ground or the sea against surface targets. SSM's include a wide variety of weapons, some carrying nuclear warheads. The largest SSM's are the intercontinental ballistic missiles. Small, short-range surface-to-surface missiles can support battlefield operations by knocking out such targets as enemy supply dumps. Such SSM's travel up to 400 miles (640 kilometers). The smallest battlefield support missiles can be fired by one soldier at nearby troops or tanks. Antisubmarine missiles are an important kind of SSM. These missiles fly through the air, plunge into the water above an enemy submarine, and then dive down to destroy the sub. Antisubmarine SSM's may be fired from surface ships or submarines. 4.1.2 SURFACE-TO-AIR MISSILES (SAMs) SAM's are fired from the ground or from ships at airplanes or missiles. The Redeye, a surface-to-air missile used by the U.S. Army, is small enough for one soldier to carry and launch. The U.S. Army's Patriot missile, on the other hand, weighs about 2,000 pounds (910 kilograms). Missiles designed to be launched against approaching missiles are called antimissile missiles. A special type, called an antiballistic missile (ABM), guards against ballistic missiles. The Patriot missile is an ABM.

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4.1.3 AIR-TO-AIR MISSILES (AAMs) AAM's are launched from fighter airplanes or helicopters against enemy aircraft. In the U.S. Air Force, such missiles are called air interceptor missiles (AIM's). Most of them are small, short-range weapons. The Air Force Sidewinder missile, for example, has a range of about 12 miles (19 kilometers). 4.1.4 AIR-TO-SURFACE MISSILES (ASMs) ASM's are launched from aircraft at targets on the ground or at ships. During the Persian Gulf War, allied forces destroyed Iraqi radar-controlled missile sites with air-to-surface High Speed Anti-Radiation Missiles (HARM's). These missiles find the enemy radar beam and destroy the transmitter.

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CHAPTER 5 MISSILE GUIDANCE SYSTEMS

One or more kinds of guidance systems may steer a missile to its target. For example, one kind may control a missile during the early part of its flight, and another kind may take over for the final attack. The four main kinds of missile guidance systems are: Preset Command Beam-riding Homing

5.1 PRESET GUIDANCE Preset guidance makes a missile follow a course that is mapped out before the missile is launched. The guidance system is set to direct the missile to its target. Some preset systems turn the missile's control vanes according to a set pattern and turn off the missile engine at a planned time. Others measure the accuracy of the flight and make corrections as necessary.

Preset Guidance The preset guidance system of the U.S. Navy's Tomahawk cruise missile is so accurate that the missile could fly through the goal posts at both ends of a football field after flying hundreds of miles. The missile obtains this accuracy through terrain contour mapping (TERCOM). The missile takes pictures of the terrain at regular

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intervals during its journey and compares them with images stored on its on-board computer. The missile can then correct its course at a specific point or landmark. 5.2 COMMAND GUIDANCE

Command Guidance System Command guidance enables the missile launching crew to steer the missile. There are several ways to send command (steering) signals to the missile. In a wirecommand system, electronic signals go to the missile over long wires that remain attached to the missile in flight. 5.3 BEAM-RIDING GUIDANCE

Beam guidance system Beam-riding guidance leads a missile to its target by means of radar or a laser beam. The main use of this kind of system is to destroy airplanes. First, an aiming station in the launching area directs a narrow radar beam at the enemy aircraft. Then,

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the missile is launched. The missile, controlled by a computer inside it, "rides" the beam to the target. 5.4 HOMING GUIDANCE Homing guidance enables a missile to hit a target by following some form of energy coming from the target. For example, the target may give off heat, or it may reflect radar signals. The missile follows the heat or radar signals "home" to the target.

Homing Guidance System Guidance systems that home on heat include the one in the U.S. Army's Redeye missile. This weapon follows the trail of hot gases produced by the target aircraft's jet engines. Homing systems that use radar are of two types. In one type, equipment in the missile itself sends out radar signals that are reflected by the target. In the other type, the radar signals come from an aircraft, a ground station, or a ship, instead of from the missile. CONCLUSION As the technology advances more and more fierce and potentially deadly missiles will no doubt, be invented. These, irrespective of the technology involved, will be meant only for destruction. Hence, as humans, we should make use of this, only if there is no other choice.

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