Posted on 11/13/2004 7:04:14 PM PST by Pokey78
American scientists are developing hypersonic cruise missiles that will fly 10 times faster than current rockets, penetrate concrete armouring and could be launched from any site in the world.
The missiles would have a range of 9,000 miles, more than a third of Earth's circumference and be able to reach their targets within two hours. First prototypes are expected to be tested next year, though the missile is not expected to be deployed until the end of the decade.
'If someone is messing with us - or Britain - from far away, we could whack them straight away,' said Preston Carter, an aerospace engineer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, in California.
The new missiles will exploit supersonic combustion ramjet - or scramjet - technology. Nasa engineers will tomorrow attempt to fly a robot X-43A scramjet over the Pacific at speeds around 7,200 mph, 10 times the speed of sound.
The flight will be crucial in demonstrating the feasibility of hypersonic travel. Most media attention has focused on its commercial exploitation for jets that could travel from London to Sydney in two hours. The prime aim is to create hypersonic rockets that would replace current cruise missiles.
'The new missiles could strike pretty much anywhere within a couple of hours,' said Graham Warwick, Americas editor of Flight International . 'Current cruise missile have to be carried on a B52 bomber. That involves planning and takes at least 24 hours. The military want a quick solution, so if they knew bin Laden was sipping coffee at a cafe they could get a bomb on target in two hours.'
Scramjets work on the same principle as all jets, by igniting fuel in compressed air and using the expanding gases to propel the aircraft. Standard turbojets use fans to compress the air: scramjets use a plane's forward motion alone to bring air into the combustion chamber and require an initial boost from a rocket.
The entire aircraft then becomes an enormous scoop that receives air which is compressed and injected - and ignited - with a chemical called silane before hydrogen fuel is added. The feat compares to 'lighting a match in a hurricane', says Nasa.
'We'll see a military application initially as a "bunker buster" that would hit its target and bore into the ground before exploding,' said Carter.'
'We are talking about the ability to strike more cost-effectively. If the US has to deploy troops to the other side of the world, it is expensive. This may keep enemies in check and act as a deterrent.'
How long do you think this program would have lasted under a Kerry Administration? < shudder >
We already have these--they're called ICBMs and can reach targets anywhere within 1/2 hour. They can be configured to carry non-nuclear munitions. Of course, if we used them a$$holes would pucker all over the world.
too bad in the 60s and 70s we used to see stuff going out of vandenberg all the time it was awesome
LOVE IT!
STOLE IT!
LOL
;^D
Mach 10 ! Doh!
Santa has been alerted.
On it's first use, perhaps 'Jimmah' might be strapped to the missile....a'la, Slim Pickens.
We got such need toys on the drawing boards!
Guam.
Laff. They're NEAT toys too :)
The first military application will probably be bunker busting bombs.
With that kind of speed I doubt an explosive warhead would be necessary. The kinetic energy of it would do a great deal of damage. It would make one heck of a pinpoint weapon.
Maybe you can estimate an approximation with this meteor impact calculator. http://www.lpl.arizona.edu/impacteffects/
OBL: Yes, I demand you give me a double-mocha grand latte, with extra foam, and just a dash, a dash mind you, you infidel, of cinnamon. You, of course, are not aware that the infidels stole all the cinnamon which are the natural right of the greater Islamic nation, blah, blah, blah....
Starbucks Minion: Will that be all sir?
OBL: I have just begun! Attend to me that which belongs to the nation of Islam... and oh yes, I'll take one of those biscotti.
WHOOSH! KA-BOOM! OBL vanishes in a puff of cafe au lait, biscotti, and a copy of the Sunday NY Times.
Do they use Ritalin?
But they're very pricy and would cause alarm for non targeted countries along the way. A ramjet could carry more payload, because it doesn't have to carry oxidizer the way a rocket does.
I think you're right. The high speed means they would have tremendous amounts of kinetic energy when they strike. It would allow them to penetrate deeper before exploding.
This would seem to be rather dangerous. Launching one of these (without previous publicity) could be considered an attack by certain nervous countries. One hopes that the nervous countries (North Korea, China, Russia, inter alia) do not have a "Launch On Warning" policy. It's the same problem as an unannounced launch of an ICBM would have.
can we make the scramjet work first? =o)
we wouldn't need precision weapons to get Moore, he blocks out the radar scopes.
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