Successful test of new version of ballistic missile
Recently, India successfully launched a new version of its medium-range ballistic missile.
Main point
- The missile launch was carried out under the auspices of the Strategic Force Command.
- The missile was tested from Abdul Kalam Island, a coastal launch base in Odisha.
- Earlier on 18 April 2024, DRDO had successfully flight tested the Indigenous Technology Cruise Missile (ITCM).
- The flight of the missile was monitored from Sukhoi-30-MK-I aircraft of the Indian Air Force
About ballistic missile
- Ballistic missile is a missile whose launch path is sub-orbital ballistic path.
- It is used to fire a weapon (usually a nuclear weapon) at a predetermined target.
- Ballistic missiles are initially propelled by rockets but then follow an unpowered, free-falling trajectory toward their target.
- They are classified based on the maximum distance they can travel, which depends on how powerful the missile’s engines (rockets) are and the weight of the missile’s payload.
- To add more range to a missile, rockets are placed on top of each other in a configuration called staging.
History
- The first ballistic missile was the A-4, also commonly known as the V-2 rocket. This missile was developed by Nazi Germany between 1930 and 1940 under the supervision of rocket scientist Wernher von Braun.
- The first successful test of the V-2 rocket took place on 3 October 1942, it was used against France on 6 September 1944 and against London two days later.
- By the end of World War II (May 1945), the V-2 rocket missile had been used more than 3,000 times.
- The general classifications of ballistic missiles are:
- short-range ballistic missiles, traveling less than 1,000 kilometers (about 620 miles);
- medium-range ballistic missiles; traveling between 1,000–3,000 kilometers (about 620–1,860 miles);
- intermediate-range ballistic missiles, traveling between 3,000–5,500 kilometers (about 1,860–3,410 miles);
- Intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), with a range of more than 5,500 kilometers.
- Short- and medium-range ballistic missiles are referred to as theater ballistic missiles, while ICBMs or long-range ballistic missiles are described as strategic ballistic missiles.
The first ballistic missile ‘A-4’ was developed under the supervision of which rocket scientist?
Wernher von Braun
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