American nuclear missiles: how they work. Why nuclear rocket engines haven't become a reality

Soviet and American scientists have been developing nuclear-fueled rocket engines since the mid-20th century. These developments have not progressed beyond prototypes and single tests, but now the only rocket propulsion system that uses nuclear energy is being created in Russia. "Reaktor" studied the history of attempts to introduce nuclear rocket engines.

When humanity just began to conquer space, scientists were faced with the task of providing energy to spacecraft. Researchers have turned their attention to the possibility of using nuclear energy in space by creating the concept of a nuclear rocket engine. Such an engine was supposed to use the energy of fission or fusion of nuclei to create jet thrust.

In the USSR, already in 1947, work began on creating a nuclear rocket engine. In 1953, Soviet experts noted that “the use of atomic energy will make it possible to obtain practically unlimited ranges and sharply reduce the flight weight of missiles” (quoted from the publication “Nuclear Rocket Engines” edited by A.S. Koroteev, M, 2001). At that time, nuclear power propulsion systems were intended primarily to equip ballistic missiles, so the government's interest in the development was great. US President John Kennedy in 1961 named the national program to create a nuclear-powered rocket (Project Rover) one of four priority areas in the conquest of space.

KIWI reactor, 1959. Photo: NASA.

In the late 1950s, American scientists created KIWI reactors. They have been tested many times, the developers have done a large number of modifications. Failures often occurred during testing, for example, once the engine core was destroyed and a large hydrogen leak was discovered.

In the early 1960s, both the USA and the USSR created the prerequisites for the implementation of plans to create nuclear rocket engines, but each country followed its own path. The USA created many designs of solid-phase reactors for such engines and tested them on open stands. The USSR was testing the fuel assembly and other engine elements, preparing the production, testing, and personnel base for a broader “offensive.”

NERVA YARD diagram. Illustration: NASA.

In the United States, already in 1962, President Kennedy stated that “a nuclear rocket will not be used in the first flights to the Moon,” so it is worth directing funds allocated for space exploration to other developments. At the turn of the 1960s and 1970s, two more reactors were tested (PEWEE in 1968 and NF-1 in 1972) as part of the NERVA program. But funding was focused on lunar program, so the US nuclear engine program was reduced in scope and was closed in 1972.

NASA film about nuclear jet engine NERVA.

In the Soviet Union, the development of nuclear rocket engines continued until the 1970s, and they were led by the now famous triad of domestic academic scientists: Mstislav Keldysh, Igor Kurchatov and. They assessed the possibilities of creating and using missiles with nuclear engines quite optimistic. It seemed that the USSR was about to launch such a missile. Gone fire tests at the Semipalatinsk test site - in 1978, the power launch of the first reactor of the 11B91 nuclear rocket engine (or RD-0410) took place, then two more series of tests - the second and third devices 11B91-IR-100. These were the first and last Soviet nuclear rocket engines.

M.V. Keldysh and S.P. Korolev visiting I.V. Kurchatova, 1959

Every year, the systems installed here are becoming more and more like museum exhibits. At the top, new international agreements are being concluded, according to which these wells are being closed one after another. But every day, new US Air Force crews descend into concrete dungeons in anticipation of something that absolutely should not happen...

Another day of service Another watch carries suitcases with secret documentation, fastened with steel cables to their overalls. People will descend into the bunker on 24-hour watch, taking control of ballistic missiles hidden under the Montana grasslands. If the fateful order comes, these young Air Force officers will not hesitate to activate their apocalyptic weapons.

An inconspicuous ranch about fifteen meters off a rough two-lane road southeast of Great Falls, Montana. A primitive one-story building, a chain-link fence, an out-of-the-way garage, and a basketball backboard right above the driveway.

However, if you look more closely, you can notice some funny details - a red and white lattice microwave radio relay tower rises above the buildings, there is a helicopter landing pad on the front lawn, plus another conical UHF antenna sticking out on the lawn like a white fungus. You might think that some kind of university agricultural laboratory or, say, a weather station has settled here - the only thing that confuses us is the red banner on the fence, notifying that anyone who tries to enter the territory without permission will be met with lethal fire.

Inside the building, the security service scrupulously examines everyone entering. The slightest suspicion and guards with M4 carbines and handcuffs will immediately appear in the room. Massive Entrance door moves vertically upward - this way even winter snow drifts will not block it.

After the checkpoint, the interior becomes the same as in a regular barracks. In the center there is something like a wardroom - a TV, sofas with armchairs and several long tables for common meals. Further from the hall there are exits to cabins with bunk beds. The walls are covered with standard official posters about stupid talkers and ubiquitous spies.

Malmstrom Air Force Missile Base controls 15 launchers and 150 silos. Her entire farm spreads over an area of 35,000 km 2 . The bunkers with control panels were buried so deep and scattered so far apart in order to survive a nuclear attack from the Soviet Union and maintain the possibility of a retaliatory attack. nuclear strike. To disable such a system, the warheads must hit each starting position without missing.

One of the armored doors in the living area leads to a small side room. The dispatcher responsible for safety (Flight Security Controller, FSC) sits here - a non-commissioned officer, commander of the launcher security. The three-meter chest next to him is filled with M4 and M9 carbines. In this arsenal there is another door, which neither the dispatcher nor the guards should enter under any circumstances, unless an emergency situation requires it. Behind this door is an elevator that goes straight six floors underground without stopping.

In a calm voice, FSC communicates over the phone the codes for calling the elevator. The elevator will not rise until all passengers have exited and the front door in the security room is locked. The steel elevator door is opened manually in much the same way as the blinds used in small shops to protect windows and doors at night are rolled up. Behind it is a small booth with metal walls.

It will take us less than a minute to descend 22 m underground, but there, at the bottom of the hole, a completely different world will open up before us. The elevator door is built into the smoothly curving black wall of the round hall. Along the wall, breaking its monotony, thick columns of shock absorbers are installed, which should absorb shock wave, if a nuclear warhead explodes somewhere nearby.

Behind the walls of the hall, something rumbled and clanged exactly as the lifting gates of an ancient castle should clang, after which a massive hatch smoothly tilted outward, the metal handle of which was held by 26-year-old Air Force captain Chad Dieterle. Along the perimeter of this shockproof plug, which is a good one and a half meters thick, there are stencil letters INDIA. Dieterle's 24-hour watch as commander of India's Launch Control Center (LCC) is now halfway through, and the launch site itself was established here at Malmstrom Air Force Base back when the brave Air Force captain's parents went to school.

The mines and the launch control panel, located at a depth of 22 m underground, are guarded around the clock. The “Rocket Monkeys,” as they call themselves, train in a training silo, the same one that houses real rockets. They replace cables leading to gyroscopes and on-board computers. These computers are hidden in bulky boxes that protect the electronics from radiation.

LCC India is connected by cables to fifty other mines scattered within a 10-kilometer radius. Each silo contains one 18-meter Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

The Air Force command refuses to disclose the number of warheads on each missile, but it is known that there are no more than three. Each of the heads can destroy all living things within a radius of ten kilometers.

Having received the appropriate order, Dieterle and his assistants can send this weapon to any point within half an hour globe. Hiding in silence underground, he turns an inconspicuous ranch, lost in the vastness of Montana, into one of the most strategically important points on the planet.

Small but effective

The American nuclear arsenal consists of approximately 2,200 strategic warheads, which can be delivered using 94 bombers, 14 submarines and 450 ballistic missiles—remains to this day the basis of the entire national security system. Barack Obama never tires of declaring his desire for a world completely free of nuclear weapons, but this does not contradict his administration's clear postulate regarding nuclear policy: “As long as there are stockpiles of nuclear weapons in the world, the United States will maintain its nuclear forces in a state of full and effective combat readiness.”

Since the end of the Cold War, total nuclear warheads in the world has radically decreased. True, now states such as China, Iran or North Korea, are developing their own nuclear programs and constructing their own long-range ballistic missiles. Therefore, despite the high-flown rhetoric and even sincere good intentions, it is not right for America to part with its nuclear weapons, as well as with the planes, submarines and missiles that could deliver them to the target.

The missile component of the American nuclear triad has existed for 50 years, but year after year it is the focus of intense discussions between Moscow and Washington. Last year, the Obama administration signed with Russia new agreement on measures for further reduction and limitation of strategic offensive weapons - START III. As a result, the nuclear arsenals of these two countries must be limited to fewer than 1,550 strategic warheads within a seven-year period. Of the 450 American missiles on combat duty, only 30 will remain. In order not to lose support from the “hawks” and simply skeptical senators, The White house proposed adding $85 billion to modernize the remaining nuclear forces over the next ten years (this amount must be approved by the next meeting of Congress). “I will vote to ratify this treaty ... because our president clearly intends to ensure that the remaining weapons are truly effective,” says Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander.

Mine intercontinental ballistic missile. These mines hide their terrible nature behind a completely inconspicuous appearance. Some truck driver will pass by on the highway and not even look back. He will never know that nuclear weapons are hidden in these 30-meter-deep mines, maintained in a state of continuous combat readiness.

Nuclear missile umbrella

So why strategic rocket troops, symbol of the end of the Cold War, remain at the center of 21st century defense strategy, policy and diplomacy? If we take three types of delivery vehicles (airplanes, submarines and ballistic missiles), then intercontinental ballistic missiles remain the means of the most rapid response to enemy aggression, and indeed the most rapid weapon, allowing for a preventive strike. Submarines are good because they are practically invisible, nuclear bombers are capable of delivering precision pinpoint strikes, but only intercontinental missiles are always ready to deliver an irresistible nuclear strike anywhere on the globe, and can do this in a matter of minutes.

The American nuclear missile umbrella is now deployed over the whole world. “As representatives of the Air Force, we are convinced that America has an obligation to keep any enemy target at gunpoint and at risk, no matter where it is located, no matter how strong the defense covers it, no matter how deeply hidden it is,” he said Lieutenant General Frank Klotz, who just in January left his post as head of Global Strike Command, the structure that controls nuclear bombers and ballistic missiles.

Starting positions strategic missiles represent a major engineering achievement. All of these mines were built in the early 1960s, and since then they have been fully operational 99% of the time. What's even more interesting is that the Pentagon built these launch positions to last just a few decades. When the MinutemanIII missiles are retired, all silos and launchers at Malmstrom AFB will be mothballed and buried for 70 years.

So, Air Force manage the most powerful weapon in the world, and the equipment for controlling these weapons was created back in the space era, and not at all in  XXI century information technologies. And yet these old launch systems do their job much better than you might think. “To build a system that will stand the test of time and still perform brilliantly,” says Klotz, “is a true triumph of engineering genius. These guys in the 1960s thought everything through, generously building in several layers of redundant reliability.”

Thousands of dedicated officers at three Air Force bases - Malmstrom Air Force Base, 

F.E. 

Warren in Wyoming and Mino in North Dakota spare no effort to ensure that silo launchers are in constant combat readiness.

The Minuteman III model was stationed in mines in the 1970s and its retirement date was set for 2020, but last year the Obama administration extended the life of the series by another decade. In response to this demand, the Air Force leadership drew up a schedule for the reorganization of existing missile bases. A significant portion of the billions of dollars that were recently promised by the White House should go towards this. Norm is perfection Let's return to the India Launch Control Center, hidden under an inconspicuous ranch house. Not much has changed inside since the Kennedy administration. Of course, paper teletype printers have given way to digital screens, and servers installed above provide the underground team with Internet access and even live television broadcasting when the situation is calm. However, the electronics here - hefty blocks inserted into wide metal racks and studded with many shining lights and illuminated buttons - resemble the scenery from the first versions of the television series "

Star Trek

The missiles themselves and the equipment installed at ground level can still be somehow modernized, but with underground mines and the launch centers themselves, everything is much more complicated. But time does not spare them. It is very difficult to fight corrosion. Any ground movement can break underground communication lines.

The India Launch Control Center is one of 15 centers manned by rocket scientists air force base Malmstrom. “Take a regular house that's been around for 40 years,” says Col. Jeff Frankhauser, base maintenance team commander, “and bury it underground. And then think about how you will repair everything there. This is the same situation with us.”

This missile base includes 150 nuclear ballistic missiles scattered at launch sites over 35,000 km2 of mountains, hills and plains in Montana. Due to the large distance between the mines, the USSR could not in one massive missile strike disable all starting positions and command posts, which guaranteed America the possibility of a retaliatory strike.

This elegant doctrine of mutual deterrence implied the mandatory existence of a developed infrastructure. In particular, all these mines and command posts are interconnected by hundreds of thousands of kilometers of underground cables. The fist-thick bundles are woven from hundreds of insulated copper wires and encased in sheaths that support high blood pressure. If the air pressure in the pipe drops, the operations team concludes that a crack has formed somewhere in the containment.

The communications system, which extends throughout the surrounding expanse, is a constant source of concern for Malmstrom Base personnel. Every day, hundreds of people - 30 teams at control panels, 135 operating workers and 206 security guards - go to work, maintaining this entire facility in order. Some command posts are a three-hour drive from the base. They are grieved by heroes offended by fate, who are called “Farsiders” at the base. Every day, jeeps, trucks and bulky self-propelled units scurry along the surrounding roads to retrieve missiles from underground, and the total length of roads at this base is 40,000 km, 6,000 of which are dirt roads, enriched with gravel.

The mines were built on small plots purchased from the previous owners. You can wander freely along the fence, but once you step behind it, the security service can open fire to kill you.

The slogan reigns here: “Our norm is excellence,” and to ensure that no one ever forgets this strict principle, the staff is supervised a whole army controllers. Any mistake may result in removal from duty until the offender retakes the proficiency test. Such meticulous control applies to all services of the missile base.

The cook will receive a strict punishment from the officer for using expired sauce for the salad or not cleaning the hood above the stove in a timely manner. And this is correct - food poisoning can undermine the combat readiness of a launch platoon with the same success as a team of enemy special forces could do. Caution to the point of paranoia is basic principle for everyone who serves on this base. “At first glance, it may seem that we are playing it safe,” says Colonel Mohammed Khan (until the very end of 2010, he served at the Malmstrom base as commander of the 341st Missile Battalion), “but look at this matter seriously, here we have real nuclear warheads "

Everyday life in a bunker

To launch a nuclear ballistic missile, just turning the key is not enough. If the India launch center receives the appropriate command, Dieterle and his deputy, Captain Ted Givler, must check the encryption sent from the White House with the one stored in the center's steel safes.

Then each of them will take his triangular switch, fixing his gaze on the electronic clock ticking between the blocks of electronic equipment. At a given moment, they must turn the switches from the “ready” position to the “start” position. At the same moment, two rocket men at another launcher will turn their switches - and only after that the ballistic missile will break free.

Each mine is only suitable for one launch. In the very first seconds, electronic components, ladders, communication cables, safety sensors and sump pumps will burn out or melt. A ring of smoke will rise above the hills of Montana, comically accurately repeating the outline of a mine vent. Relying on a column of reactive gases, the rocket will burst into open space. Another half hour, and the warheads will begin to fall on their assigned targets.

The striking power of the weapons entrusted to these rocket men and the full extent of the responsibility assigned to them are clearly emphasized by the harsh situation in the bunker. In the far corner lies a simple mattress, fenced off with a black curtain so that the light does not hit the eyes. “It’s not a great pleasure to wake up in this nook,” says Dieterle.

And it’s time for us to return to the world that rocket scientists call “real.” Dieterle pulls the handle of the black shockproof plug until it begins to turn smoothly. He smiles reservedly in parting, and the door slams behind us with a heavy thud. We go up, and there, below, Dieterle and others like him remain - in tense, eternal anticipation.

Three days later, the city of Nagasaki was subjected to a second strike, and currently the last in human history. They tried to justify these bombings on the grounds that they ended the war with Japan and prevented further losses of millions of lives. In total, the two bombs killed approximately 240,000 people and ushered in a new atomic age.

From 1945 until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the world experienced cold war and the constant anticipation of a possible nuclear strike between the United States and Soviet Union. During this time, the parties built thousands of nuclear weapons, from small bombs and cruise missiles, to large intercontinental ballistic warheads (ICBMs) and Seaborne Ballistic Missiles (SLBMs). Britain, France and China have added their own nuclear arsenals to this stockpile. Today, the fear of nuclear annihilation is much less than in the 1970s, but several countries still possess large arsenals of these destructive weapons.

M51, France

After the United States and Russia, France deploys the third largest nuclear arsenal in the world.

In addition to nuclear bombs And cruise missiles, France relies on its SLBMs as its primary nuclear deterrent. The M51 missile is the most advanced component. It entered service in 2010 and is currently installed on the Triomphant class of submarines. The missile has a range of approximately 10,000 km and is capable of carrying 6 to 10 warheads per 100 kt.

The circular excursion probable (CEP) of the missile is noted to be between 150 and 200 meters. This means that the warhead has a 50% chance of striking within 150-200 meters of the target. The M51 is equipped with a variety of systems that make attempts to intercept warheads much more difficult.

DF-31/31A, China

The Dong Feng 31 is a road-mobile and bunker-series intercontinental ICBM system deployed by China since 2006.

The original model of this missile carried a large 1 megaton warhead and had a range of 8,000 km. The probable deflection of the rocket is 300 m.

The improved 31A has three 150 kt warheads and is capable of covering a distance of 11,000 km, with a probable deflection of 150 m. An additional fact is that these missiles can be carried and launched from a mobile launch vehicle, making them even more dangerous.

Topol-M, Russia

Known as the SS-27 by NATO, the Topol-M was introduced into Russian service in 1997.

The ICBM is based in bunkers, but several Topols are also mobile.

The missile is currently armed with a single 800 kt warhead, but can be equipped with a maximum of six warheads and decoys.

WITH maximum speed At 7.3 km per second, with a relatively flat flight path and a probable deflection of approximately 200 m, the Topol-M is a very effective nuclear missile that is difficult to stop in flight. The difficulty of tracking mobile units makes it a more effective weapon system worthy of this list.

RS-24 Yars, Russia

Bush Administration Plans to Develop the Network missile defense V Eastern Europe angered leaders in the Kremlin.

Despite the statement that the shield for protection against external impacts is not intended against Russia, Russian leaders viewed it as a threat to their own security and decided to develop a new ballistic missile.

The result was the development of the RS-24 Yars. This missile is closely related to the Topol-M, but delivers four warheads of 150-300 kilotons and has a deflection of 50 m.

Sharing many of the features of the Topol, the Yars can also change direction in flight and carry decoys, making interception by missile defense systems extremely difficult.

LGM-30G Minuteman III, USA

It is the only land-based ICBM deployed by the United States. First deployed in 1970, the LGM-30G Minuteman III was to be replaced by the MX Peacekeeper.

That program was canceled and the Pentagon instead spent $7 billion updating and modernizing the existing 450 LGM-30G Active Systems over the past decade. With a speed of almost 8 km/s and a deviation of less than 200 m ( exact number highly classified) the old Minuteman remains a formidable nuclear weapon.

This missile initially delivered three small warheads. Today, a single warhead of 300-475 kt is used.

RSM 56 Bulava, Russia

The RSM 56 Bulava naval ballistic missile is in Russian service.

In terms of naval missiles, Russia is somewhat behind the United States in operational efficiency and capability. To correct this shortcoming, the Bulava was created, a more recent addition to the Russian submarine arsenal. The missile was developed for the new Borei-class submarine.

After numerous failures during the testing phase, Russia accepted the missile into service in 2013.

The Bulava is currently equipped with six 150kt warheads, although reports say it can carry as many as 10. Like most modern ballistic missiles, the RSM 56 carries multiple decoys to increase survivability in the face of missile defenses. The range is approximately 8,000 km when fully loaded, with an estimated deviation of 300-350 meters.

R-29RMU2 Liner, Russia

Latest development in Russian weapons,The liner has been in operation since 2014.

The missile is effectively an updated version of the previous Russian SLBM (Sineva R-29RMU2), designed to make up for the problems and some of the shortcomings of the Bulava. The liner has a range of 11,000 km and can carry a maximum of twelve warheads of 100 kt each.

Warhead payload can be reduced and replaced with decoys to improve survivability. The warhead's deflection is kept secret, but is likely similar to the 350 meters of the Mace.

UGM-133 Trident II, USA

The current SLBM of the US and British submarine forces is the Trident II. The missile has been in service since 1990 and has been updated and modernized since then.

Fully equipped, Trident can carry 14 warheads on board.

This number was later reduced and the missile currently delivers 4-5 475 kt warheads.

The maximum range depends on the warhead load and varies between 7,800 and 11,000 km. The US Navy required a deflection probability of no more than 120 meters for the missile to be accepted for service. Numerous reports and military journals often state that the Trident's deflection actually exceeded this requirement by a fairly significant factor.

DF-5/5A, China

Compared to other missiles on this list, the Chinese DF-5/5A can be considered a gray workhorse.

The rocket does not stand out either in appearance or in complexity, but at the same time it is capable of completing any given task. The DF-5 entered service in 1981 as a message to any potential enemies that China was not planning preemptive strikes but would punish anyone who attacked it.

This ICBM can carry a huge 5 mt warhead and has a range of over 12,000 km. The DF-5 has a deflection of approximately 1 km, which means that the missile has one purpose - to destroy cities.

Warhead size, deflection and the fact that it full preparation Taking just an hour to launch, all this means is that the DF-5 is a punitive weapon, designed to punish any would-be attackers. The 5A version has increased range, improved 300m deflection, and the ability to carry multiple warheads.

R-36M2 "Voevoda"

R-36M2 “Voevoda” is a missile that in the West is called nothing less than Satan, and there are good reasons for this. First deployed in 1974, developed in Dnepropetrovsk (Ukraine), the R-36 has undergone many changes since then, including the relocation of the warhead.

The latest modification of this missile, the R-36M2 can carry ten 750 kt warheads and has a range of approximately 11,000 km. With a maximum speed of almost 8 km/s and a probable deflection of 220 m, Satan is a weapon that has caused great concern to US military planners.

There would have been much more concern if Soviet planners had been given the green light to deploy one version of this missile, which would have had 38 250 kt warheads.

10. France, P51

The M51 missile was put into service by the French in 2010. It is installed on Triomphant class submarines. Capable of covering a distance of 10 thousand km, having on board from six to 10 warheads with a capacity of 100 kilotons. The probable deviation is 150–200 meters. The M51 is difficult to intercept, which is why it deserves to be on this list.

9. China, Dong Feng 31

This missile has been in service in China since 2006. It is capable of carrying a large 1 megaton warhead over a distance of 8 thousand km. The probable deviation is 300 m. The improved version already has three 150 kt warheads and a distance of 11 thousand km with a probable deviation of 150 m. This weapon can be moved and launched from a mobile launch vehicle and that is why it poses a serious danger.

8. Russia, "Topol-M"

The Russian Ministry of Defense introduced Topol-M back in 1997. The missile can be fired from a bunker or from a mobile launch vehicle. It is armed with an 800 kt warhead, but can be equipped with six warheads and decoys. Speed 7.3 km per second. The probable deviation is 200 meters. All this makes it very effective and practically undetectable.

7. USA, LGM-30G Minuteman III

The Americans introduced this system back in 1970, but later modernized it. This is a ground-based ICBM that is capable of moving at a speed of 8 km per second. The probable deviation is less than 200 meters. The missile is capable of delivering a warhead with a yield of 375–400 kt.

6. Russia, RSM 56 "Bulava"

It is this rocket that allows us to catch up with the Americans in the field of development naval weapons. "Bulava" was developed for the new Borei-class submarine. In service since 2013. It is equipped with six 150 kt warheads, but can carry 10 warheads. There may also be decoys on board that can deceive the missile defense system. Range - 8 thousand km, probable deviation 300–350 meters.

5. Russia, R-29RMU2 "Liner"

The system was put into operation in 2014. This is an updated version of the previous Sineva SLBM. It was developed to make up for some of the shortcomings of the Bulava. The range of the "Liner" is 11 thousand km. It can carry 12 warheads of 100 kt each. Moreover, some of them can be replaced by false targets. The probable deviation is classified.

4. USA, UGM-133 Trident II

Trident II - hello from the 90s, but updated and modernized. This SLBM was capable of carrying 14 warheads, but after improvements their number was reduced to five (with a yield of 475 kt each). The range depends on the load and varies from 7.8 thousand km to 11 thousand. The probable deviation is only 120 meters, which makes it one of the most accurate nuclear missiles in the world.

3. China, DF-5/5A

Chinese armed forces This system was introduced back in 1981, but since then it has remained a leader in terms of efficiency. This ICBM is capable of carrying a 5 megaton warhead over a distance of 12 thousand km. The deviation in this case can be 1 km. This missile has one goal - to destroy cities. IN last years The PRC has improved the DF-5, increasing its range. In addition, the missile can now carry several warheads, and the deviation, according to some sources, is only 300 meters.

2. Russia, R-36M2 "Voevoda"

In the West this rocket is called "Satan". It was launched in 1974, but has undergone many changes since then. The latest modernization made it possible to install up to 10 750 kt warheads on the Voevoda. Range - 11 thousand km. Speed - 8 km per second. The probable deviation is 220 meters. These weapons were of greatest concern to the Pentagon before March 1, 2018.

1. Russia, R-36 "Sarmat"

Currently, the Ministry of Defense, together with enterprises of the rocket and space industry, has begun the active phase of testing a new missile complex with a heavy intercontinental missile - "Sarmat". Range new rocket and the number of warheads is greater than that of the Voevoda. "Sarmat" will be equipped wide range high-power nuclear weapons, including hypersonic ones. And the most modern systems overcoming missile defense.

NATO gave the name “SS-18 “Satan” (“Satan”) to a family of Russian missile systems with a heavy ground-based intercontinental ballistic missile, developed and put into service in the 1970s - 1980s. According to the official Russian classification, these are R-36M, R-36M UTTH, R-36M2, RS-20. And the Americans called this missile “Satan” for the reason that it is difficult to shoot it down, and in the vast territories of the United States and Western Europe These Russian missiles are going to raise hell.

SS-18 “Satan” was created under the leadership of chief designer V.F. Utkin. In terms of its characteristics, this missile surpasses the most powerful American missile, Minuteman-3.

Satan is the most powerful intercontinental ballistic missile on Earth. It is intended, first of all, to destroy the most fortified command posts, ballistic missile silos and air bases. The nuclear explosives of one missile can destroy Big city, a very large part of the USA. Hit accuracy is about 200-250 meters.

“The rocket is housed in the most durable silos in the world”; according to initial reports - 2500-4500 psi, some mines - 6000-7000 psi. This means that if there is no direct hit by American nuclear explosives on the mine, the rocket will withstand a powerful blow, the hatch will open and “Satan” will fly out of the ground and rush towards the United States, where in half an hour he will give the Americans hell. And dozens of such missiles will rush towards the United States. And each missile contains ten individually targetable warheads. The power of the warheads is equal to 1,200 bombs dropped by the Americans on Hiroshima. With one strike, the Satan missile can destroy US and Western European facilities over an area of up to 500 square meters. kilometers. And dozens of such missiles will fly towards the United States. This is complete kaput for the Americans. "Satan" penetrates easily American system missile defense.

She was invulnerable in the 80s and continues to be creepy for Americans today. Americans will not be able to create reliable protection against the Russian “Satan” until 2015-2020. But what scares the Americans even more is the fact that the Russians have begun developing even more satanic missiles.

“The SS-18 missile carries 16 platforms, one of which is loaded with decoys. When entering a high orbit, all “Satan” heads go “in a cloud” of false targets and are practically not identified by radars.”

But, even if the Americans see the “Satan” on the final segment of the trajectory, the heads of the “Satan” are practically not vulnerable to anti-missile weapons, because to destroy the “Satan” only a direct hit on the head of a very powerful anti-missile is necessary (and the Americans do not have anti-missiles with such characteristics ). “So such a defeat is very difficult and practically impossible with the level of American technology in the coming decades. As for the famous laser weapons for damaging heads, the SS-18 has them covered with massive armor with the addition of uranium-238, an extremely heavy and dense metal. Such armor cannot be “burned through” by a laser. In any case, with those lasers that can be built in the next 30 years. Impulses cannot knock down the SS-18 flight control system and its heads electromagnetic radiation, because all control systems of “Satan” are duplicated, in addition to electronic ones, by pneumatic automatic machines”

SATAN - the most powerful nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile

By mid-1988, 308 Satan intercontinental missiles were ready to fly from underground mines in the USSR towards the United States and Western Europe. “Of the 308 launch mines that existed in the USSR at that time, Russia accounted for 157. The rest were in Ukraine and Belarus.” Each missile has 10 warheads. The power of the warheads is equal to 1,200 bombs dropped by the Americans on Hiroshima. With one strike, the Satan missile can destroy US and Western European facilities over an area of up to 500 square meters. kilometers. And if necessary, three hundred such missiles will fly towards the United States. This is complete kaput for Americans and Western Europeans.

The development of the R-36M strategic missile system with a third-generation heavy intercontinental ballistic missile 15A14 and a silo launcher with increased security 15P714 was led by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau. The new missile used all the best developments obtained during the creation of the previous complex, the R-36.

The technical solutions used to create the rocket made it possible to create the world's most powerful combat missile system. It was significantly superior to its predecessor, the R-36:

in terms of shooting accuracy - 3 times.
in terms of combat readiness - 4 times.
in terms of the energy capabilities of the rocket - 1.4 times.
according to the initially established warranty period of operation - 1.4 times.
in terms of launcher security - 15-30 times.
in terms of the degree of utilization of the launcher volume - 2.4 times.

The two-stage R-36M rocket was made according to the “tandem” design with a sequential arrangement of stages. To optimize the use of volume, dry compartments were excluded from the rocket, with the exception of the second stage interstage adapter. The applied design solutions made it possible to increase the fuel supply by 11% while maintaining the diameter and reducing the total length of the first two stages of the rocket by 400 mm compared to the 8K67 rocket.

The first stage uses the RD-264 propulsion system, consisting of four 15D117 single-chamber engines operating in a closed circuit, developed by KBEM (chief designer - V.P. Glushko). The engines are hinged and their deflection according to commands from the control system provides control of the rocket's flight.

The second stage uses a propulsion system consisting of a main single-chamber 15D7E (RD-0229) engine operating in a closed circuit and a four-chamber steering engine 15D83 (RD-0230) operating in an open circuit.

The rocket's liquid-propellant rocket engines operated on high-boiling two-component self-igniting fuel. Unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (UDMH) was used as a fuel, and dinitrogen tetroxide (AT) was used as an oxidizing agent.

The separation of the first and second stages is gas-dynamic. It was ensured by the actuation of explosive bolts and the outflow of pressurized gases from the fuel tanks through special windows.

Thanks to the improved pneumohydraulic system of the rocket with complete ampulization of fuel systems after refueling and the elimination of leakage of compressed gases from the side of the rocket, it was possible to increase the time spent in full combat readiness to 10-15 years with the potential for operation up to 25 years.

The schematic diagrams of the rocket and control system were developed based on the possibility of using three variants of the warhead:

Lightweight monoblock with a charge capacity of 8 Mt and a flight range of 16,000 km;
Heavy monoblock with a charge capacity of 25 Mt and a flight range of 11,200 km;
Multiple warhead (MIRV) of 8 warheads with a capacity of 1 Mt each;

All missile warheads were equipped with an improved system of means to overcome missile defense. For the first time, quasi-heavy decoys were created for the 15A14 missile defense system to penetrate the missile defense system. Thanks to the use of a special solid-propellant booster engine, the progressively increasing thrust of which compensates for the aerodynamic braking force of the decoy, it was possible to imitate the characteristics of warheads in almost all selectivity characteristics in the extra-atmospheric part of the trajectory and a significant part of the atmospheric part.

One of the technical innovations that largely determined high level characteristics of the new missile system was the use of a mortar launch of a missile from a transport and launch container (TPC). For the first time in world practice, a mortar design for a heavy liquid-propelled ICBM was developed and implemented. At launch, the pressure created by the powder pressure accumulators pushed the rocket out of the TPK and only after leaving the silo the rocket engine was started.

The missile, placed at the manufacturing plant in a transport and launch container, was transported and installed in a silo launcher (silo) in an unfuelled state. The rocket was refueled with fuel components and the warhead was docked after installing the TPK with the rocket in the silo. Checks of onboard systems, preparation for launch and launch of the rocket were carried out automatically after the control system received the appropriate commands from a remote command post. To prevent unauthorized launch, the control system accepted for execution only commands with a specific code key. The use of such an algorithm became possible thanks to the implementation at all command posts Strategic Missile Forces new system centralized management.

The missile control system is autonomous, inertial, three-channel with multi-tier majority control. Each channel was self-tested. If the commands of all three channels did not match, control was assumed by the successfully tested channel. Onboard cable network(BCS) was considered absolutely reliable and was not defective in tests.

The acceleration of the gyroplatform (15L555) was carried out by forced acceleration automatic machines (AFAs) of digital ground-based equipment (TsNA), and in the first stages of work - by software devices for accelerating the gyroplatform (PUG). On-board digital computer (ONDVM) (15L579) 16-bit, ROM - memory cube. Programming was done in machine codes.

The developer of the control system (including the on-board computer) was the Electrical Instrumentation Design Bureau (KBE, now JSC Khartron, Kharkov), the on-board computer was produced by the Kiev Radio Plant, the control system was mass-produced at the Shevchenko and Kommunar factories (Kharkov).

The development of the third generation strategic missile system R-36M UTTH (GRAU index - 15P018, START code - RS-20B, according to the US and NATO classification - SS-18 Mod.4) with a 15A18 missile equipped with a 10-block multiple warhead has begun August 16, 1976.

The missile system was created as a result of the implementation of a program to improve and increase the combat effectiveness of the previously developed 15P014 (R-36M) complex. The complex ensures the destruction of up to 10 targets with one missile, including high-strength small-sized or particularly large area targets located on terrain of up to 300,000 km², in conditions of effective counteraction by enemy missile defense systems. Increased efficiency of the new complex was achieved through:

increasing shooting accuracy by 2-3 times;
increasing the number of warheads (BB) and the power of their charges;
increasing the BB breeding area;
the use of highly protected silo launchers and command posts;
increasing the probability of bringing launch commands to the silo.

The layout of the 15A18 rocket is similar to the 15A14. This is a two-stage rocket with a tandem arrangement of stages. The new rocket uses the first and second stages of the 15A14 rocket without modifications. The first stage engine is a four-chamber liquid propellant rocket engine RD-264 of a closed design. The second stage uses a single-chamber propulsion rocket engine RD-0229 of a closed circuit and a four-chamber steering rocket engine RD-0257 of an open circuit. The separation of stages and the separation of the combat stage is gas-dynamic.

The main difference of the new missile was the newly developed propagation stage and MIRV with ten new high-speed units with increased power charges. The propulsion stage engine is a four-chamber, dual-mode (thrust 2000 kgf and 800 kgf) with multiple (up to 25 times) switching between modes. This allows you to create the most optimal conditions when disengaging all warheads. Another one design feature This engine has two fixed positions of the combustion chambers. In flight, they are located inside the propulsion stage, but after separation of the stage from the rocket special mechanisms the combustion chambers are brought out beyond the outer contour of the compartment and deployed to implement the “pulling” scheme for disengaging the warheads. The MIR itself is made according to a two-tier design with a single aerodynamic fairing. The memory capacity of the onboard computer was also increased and the control system was modernized to use improved algorithms. At the same time, the shooting accuracy was improved by 2.5 times, and the readiness time for launch was reduced to 62 seconds.

The R-36M UTTH missile in a transport and launch container (TPK) is installed in a silo launcher and is on combat duty in a fueled state in full combat readiness. To load the TPK into a mine structure, SKB MAZ has developed special transport and installation equipment in the form of a high-cross-country semi-trailer with a tractor based on the MAZ-537. The mortar method of launching a rocket is used.

Flight design tests of the R-36M UTTH rocket began on October 31, 1977 at the Baikonur test site. According to the flight test program, 19 launches were carried out, 2 of which were unsuccessful. The reasons for these failures were clarified and eliminated, and the effectiveness of the measures taken was confirmed by subsequent launches. A total of 62 launches were carried out, of which 56 were successful.

On September 18, 1979, three missile regiments began combat duty at the new missile complex. As of 1987, 308 R-36M UTTH ICBMs were deployed in five missile divisions. As of May 2006, the Strategic Missile Forces included 74 silo launchers with R-36M UTTH and R-36M2 ICBMs, equipped with 10 warheads each.

The high reliability of the complex has been confirmed by 159 launches as of September 2000, of which only four were unsuccessful. These failures during the launch of serial products are due to manufacturing defects.

After the collapse of the USSR and economic crisis In the early 1990s, the question arose about extending the service life of the R-36M UTTH until they were replaced by new complexes Russian development. For this purpose, on April 17, 1997, the R-36M UTTH rocket, manufactured 19.5 years ago, was successfully launched. NPO Yuzhnoye and the 4th Central Research Institute of the Moscow Region carried out work to increase the warranty period of missiles from 10 years successively to 15, 18 and 20 years. On April 15, 1998, a training launch of the R-36M UTTH rocket was carried out from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, during which ten training warheads hit all training targets at the Kura training ground in Kamchatka.

A joint Russian-Ukrainian venture was also created for the development and further commercial use of the Dnepr light-class launch vehicle based on the R-36M UTTH and R-36M2 missiles

On August 9, 1983, by a resolution of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau was tasked with modifying the R-36M UTTH missile so that it could overcome the promising American missile defense (ABM) system. In addition, it was necessary to increase the protection of the missile and the entire complex from damaging factors nuclear explosion.

View of the instrument compartment (expansion stage) of the 15A18M rocket from the warhead side. Elements of the propagation engine are visible (aluminum-colored - fuel and oxidizer tanks, green - spherical cylinders of the displacement supply system), control system instruments (brown and sea-green).

The upper bottom of the first stage is 15A18M. On the right is the undocked second stage, one of the steering engine nozzles is visible.

The fourth generation missile system R-36M2 "Voevoda" (GRAU index - 15P018M, START code - RS-20V, according to the US and NATO classification - SS-18 Mod.5/Mod.6) with a multi-purpose heavy-class intercontinental missile 15A18M is intended for hitting all types of targets protected modern means PRO, in any conditions combat use, including with repeated nuclear impacts in a positional area. Its use makes it possible to implement a strategy of a guaranteed retaliatory strike.

As a result of using the latest technical solutions, the energy capabilities of the 15A18M rocket are increased by 12% compared to the 15A18 rocket. At the same time, all conditions for restrictions on dimensions and starting weight imposed by the SALT-2 agreement are met. Missiles of this type are the most powerful of all intercontinental missiles. In terms of technological level, the complex has no analogues in the world. Used in the missile system active protection silo launcher from nuclear warheads and high-precision non-nuclear weapons, and for the first time in the country, low-altitude non-nuclear interception of high-speed ballistic targets was carried out.

Compared to the prototype, the new complex managed to achieve improvements in many characteristics:

increasing accuracy by 1.3 times;
3 times increase in battery life;
reducing the combat readiness time by 2 times.
increasing the area of the warhead disengagement zone by 2.3 times;
the use of high-power charges (10 individually guided multiple warheads with a power of 550 to 750 kt each; total throw weight - 8800 kg);
the possibility of launching from the constant combat readiness mode according to one of the planned target designations, as well as operational retargeting and launching according to any unplanned target designation transmitted from the highest level of control;

To ensure high combat effectiveness in particularly difficult combat conditions during the development of the R-36M2 Voevoda complex Special attention focused on the following areas:

increasing the security and survivability of silos and command posts;
ensuring the stability of combat control in all conditions of use of the complex;
increasing the autonomy time of the complex;
increasing the warranty period;
ensuring the missile's resistance in flight to the damaging factors of ground-based and high-altitude nuclear explosions;
expanding operational capabilities to retarget missiles.

One of the main advantages of the new complex is the ability to support missile launches in conditions of a retaliatory strike when exposed to ground-based and high-altitude nuclear explosions. This was achieved by increasing the survivability of the missile in the silo launcher and significantly increasing the resistance of the missile in flight to the damaging factors of a nuclear explosion. The rocket body has a multifunctional coating, protection of the control system equipment from gamma radiation has been introduced, the speed of the executive bodies of the control system stabilization machine has been increased by 2 times, the head fairing is separated after passing through the zone of high-altitude blocking nuclear explosions, the engines of the first and second stages of the rocket have been increased in thrust.

As a result, the radius of the missile's damage zone with a blocking nuclear explosion, compared to the 15A18 missile, is reduced by 20 times, the resistance to X-ray radiation is increased by 10 times, and to gamma-neutron radiation by 100 times. The missile is resistant to the effects of dust formations and large soil particles present in the cloud during a ground-based nuclear explosion.

For the missile, silos with ultra-high protection from damaging factors of nuclear weapons were built by re-equipping the silos of the 15A14 and 15A18 missile systems. The implemented levels of missile resistance to the damaging factors of a nuclear explosion ensure its successful launch after a non-damaging nuclear explosion directly at the launcher and without reducing combat readiness when exposed to an adjacent launcher.

The rocket is made according to a two-stage design with a sequential arrangement of stages. The missile uses similar launch schemes, stage separation, warhead separation, and disengagement of combat equipment elements, which have shown a high level of technical excellence and reliability in the 15A18 missile.

The propulsion system of the first stage of the rocket includes four hinged single-chamber liquid propellant engines with a turbopump fuel supply system and made in a closed circuit.

The second stage propulsion system includes two engines: a sustainer single-chamber RD-0255 with a turbopump supply of fuel components, made in a closed circuit, and a steering RD-0257, a four-chamber, open circuit, previously used on the 15A18 rocket. Engines of all stages operate on liquid high-boiling components of UDMH+AT fuel; the stages are completely ampulized.

The control system is developed on the basis of two high-performance digital control systems (on-board and ground-based) of a new generation and a high-precision complex of command instruments continuously operating during combat duty.

A new nose fairing has been developed for the rocket, providing reliable protection of the warhead from the damaging factors of a nuclear explosion. The tactical and technical requirements provided for equipping the missile with four types of warheads:

two monoblock warheads - with a “heavy” and a “light” warhead;
MIRV with ten unguided warheads with a capacity of 0.8 Mt;
Mixed MIRV consisting of six uncontrolled and four controlled warheads with a homing system based on terrain maps.

As part of the combat equipment, highly effective missile defense penetration systems have been created (“heavy” and “light” decoys, dipole reflectors), which are placed in special cassettes, and thermally insulating BB covers are used.

Flight design tests of the R-36M2 complex began at Baikonur in 1986. The first launch on March 21 ended in an emergency: due to an error in the control system, the first stage propulsion system did not start. The missile, emerging from the TPK, immediately fell into the shaft of the mine, its explosion completely destroyed the launcher. There were no human casualties.

The first missile regiment with the R-36M2 ICBM went on combat duty on July 30, 1988. On August 11, 1988, the missile system was put into service. Flight testing of the new intercontinental missile The fourth generation R-36M2 (15A18M - “Voevoda”) with all types of combat equipment were completed in September 1989. As of May 2006, the Strategic Missile Forces included 74 mines launchers with R-36M UTTH and R-36M2 ICBMs, equipped with 10 warheads each.

On December 21, 2006, at 11:20 am Moscow time, a combat training launch of the RS-20V was carried out. According to the head of the information service and public relations Strategic Missile Forces Colonel Alexander Vovk, combat training missile units launched from Orenburg region(Ural region), with a given accuracy, hit conditional targets at the Kura training ground of the Kamchatka Peninsula in Pacific Ocean. The first stage fell in the Vagaisky, Vikulovsky and Sorokinsky districts of the Tyumen region. It separated at an altitude of 90 kilometers, the remaining fuel burned as it fell to the ground. The launch took place as part of the Zaryadye development work. The launches gave an affirmative answer to the question about the possibility of operating the R-36M2 complex for 20 years.

On December 24, 2009, at 9:30 a.m. Moscow time, the RS-20V intercontinental ballistic missile (“Voevoda”) was launched, said Colonel Vadim Koval, press secretary of the press service and information department of the Ministry of Defense for the Strategic Missile Forces: “December twenty-four, 2009 At 9.30 Moscow time, the Strategic Missile Forces launched a missile from the position area of the formation stationed in the Orenburg region,” Koval said. According to him, the launch was carried out as part of development work in order to confirm the flight performance characteristics of the RS-20V missile and extend the service life of the Voevoda missile system to 23 years.