Military Use of Rockets
Rockets have been utilized in warfare for hundreds of year. The Chinese used rockets against the Mongols during the battle of Kai-Keng in 1232 A.D.. They made arrows with small rockets on them called fire-arrows. These mechanisms had a tube capped at one end that had gunpowder. The opposing end was left ajar to give the reaction a place to expel the result. This tube was attached to an arrow. A soldier would ignited the gunpowder, and the reaction would produce fire, smoke, and gas that gave a thrust. Using the arrow as a guide, the whole system flew into the air. No one knows how effective as weapons these actually were, but it did affect the Mongols in a psychological way.
The Mongols started to make their own rockets and are sometimes thought of as responsible for the spread of the invention to Europe. In the 13th through 15th centuries, there were many experiments of rocketry. Jean Froissart discovered that the flights could be more accurate by launching the rockets through tubes. This idea led to the modern-day bazooka. Joanes de Fontana, from Italy, made a surface-running rocket-powered torpedo that was utilized to set enemy ships on fire.
In the early 1800's, rockets were developed that could carry explosives by Colonel William Congreve of the British Army. These were around 32 pounds, and traveled 1 3/4 miles. They were used against the United States during the War of 1812. William Hale, an English inventor, substituted the normal three fins for a long tail made of wood. Increasing the accuracy of military rockets. United States troops used this newly improved rocket during 1846-1848 in the Mexican War. Both sides of the American Civil War in 1861-1865 used rockets.
Today, rockets are used it numerous ways for warfare. Soldiers carry small, shoulder-fired rocket launchers. Armies can use rockets to fire explosives behind enemy lines or to shoot down enemy aircraft. Fighter airplanes carry rocket-powered guided missiles that are used to attack other planes and ground targets. Naval ships use guided missiles to attack enemy ships, planes, and land targets.
Powerful rockets can propel a type of long-range guided missile called an intercontinental ballistic missile or an ICBM. It can travel 3,400 miles or more to bomb an enemy target with nuclear explosives. It generally employs two or three separate stages to propel the ICBM during the early part of its flight, then coasts the rest of the way.
The Mongols started to make their own rockets and are sometimes thought of as responsible for the spread of the invention to Europe. In the 13th through 15th centuries, there were many experiments of rocketry. Jean Froissart discovered that the flights could be more accurate by launching the rockets through tubes. This idea led to the modern-day bazooka. Joanes de Fontana, from Italy, made a surface-running rocket-powered torpedo that was utilized to set enemy ships on fire.
In the early 1800's, rockets were developed that could carry explosives by Colonel William Congreve of the British Army. These were around 32 pounds, and traveled 1 3/4 miles. They were used against the United States during the War of 1812. William Hale, an English inventor, substituted the normal three fins for a long tail made of wood. Increasing the accuracy of military rockets. United States troops used this newly improved rocket during 1846-1848 in the Mexican War. Both sides of the American Civil War in 1861-1865 used rockets.
Today, rockets are used it numerous ways for warfare. Soldiers carry small, shoulder-fired rocket launchers. Armies can use rockets to fire explosives behind enemy lines or to shoot down enemy aircraft. Fighter airplanes carry rocket-powered guided missiles that are used to attack other planes and ground targets. Naval ships use guided missiles to attack enemy ships, planes, and land targets.
Powerful rockets can propel a type of long-range guided missile called an intercontinental ballistic missile or an ICBM. It can travel 3,400 miles or more to bomb an enemy target with nuclear explosives. It generally employs two or three separate stages to propel the ICBM during the early part of its flight, then coasts the rest of the way.