The 53T6 (
NATO reporting name
NATO uses a system of code names, called reporting names, to denote military aircraft and other equipment used by post-Soviet states, former Warsaw Pact countries, China, and other countries. The system assists military communications by providi ...
: ABM-3 ''Gazelle'', previously SH-08)
[Gazelle (SH-08/ABM-3)]
. is a USSR
anti-ballistic missile
An anti-ballistic missile (ABM) is a surface-to-air missile designed to Missile defense, destroy in-flight ballistic missiles. They achieve this explosively (chemical or nuclear), or via hit-to-kill Kinetic projectile, kinetic vehicles, which ma ...
. Designed in 1978 and in service since 1995,
[''A-135'']
it is a component of the
A-135 anti-ballistic missile system
The A-135 (NATO reporting name, NATO: ABM-4 Gorgon) is a Russian anti-ballistic missile system deployed around Moscow to intercept incoming warheads targeting the city or its surrounding areas. The system was designed in the Soviet Union and enter ...
.
The missile is able to intercept incoming
re-entry vehicle
Atmospheric entry (sometimes listed as Vimpact or Ventry) is the movement of an object from outer space into and through the gases of an atmosphere of a planet, dwarf planet, or natural satellite. Atmospheric entry may be ''uncontrolled entry ...
s at a distance of 80 km. The 53T6 is a two-stage
solid-propellant rocket
A solid-propellant rocket or solid rocket is a rocket with a rocket engine that uses solid propellants (fuel/ oxidizer). The earliest rockets were solid-fuel rockets powered by gunpowder. The inception of gunpowder rockets in warfare can be c ...
armed with a 10 kt
thermonuclear weapon
A thermonuclear weapon, fusion weapon or hydrogen bomb (H-bomb) is a second-generation nuclear weapon design. Its greater sophistication affords it vastly greater destructive power than first-generation nuclear bombs, a more compact size, a lowe ...
. (note: This is a
neutron bomb
A neutron bomb, officially defined as a type of enhanced radiation weapon (ERW), is a low-yield thermonuclear weapon designed to maximize lethal neutron radiation in the immediate vicinity of the blast while minimizing the physical power of the b ...
that partially fissions the radioactive materials in the RV and prevents detonation of the hydrogen explosive. A neutron bomb is an enhanced fission implosion trigger that encounters a neutron emitter and is not correctly described as thermonuclear while the incoming hydrogen bomb it disables is a thermonuclear weapon.) The missile is about 10 meters in length and 1.8 meters in diameter. Its launch weight is 10 tons.
[СИСТЕМА ПРО А-135](_blank)
.
The 53T6 missile is kept in a silo-based launch container. Prior to launch its cover is blown off.
The missile achieves speeds of approximately .specific impulse
Specific impulse (usually abbreviated ) is a measure of how efficiently a reaction mass engine, such as a rocket engine, rocket using propellant or a jet engine using fuel, generates thrust. In general, this is a ratio of the ''Impulse (physics), ...
, enabling acceleration from rest to Mach 16 within 3-4 seconds. Maximal load manoeuvre capability is 210 ''g'' longitudinal and 90 ''g'' transverse.
Radar support
The ''Gazelle'' missile system is supported by the Don-2N
The Don-2N radar (, NATO: Pill Box) is a large missile defense and early warning active electronically scanned array radar outside Moscow, and a key part of the Russian A-135 anti-ballistic missile system designed for the defense of the capital ...
''Pill Box'' radar.
See also
*List of missiles
Below is a list of missiles, sorted alphabetically into large categories and subcategories by name and purpose.
Other missile lists
Types of missiles:
* Conventional guided missiles
** Air-to-air missile
** Air-to-surface missile
** Anti-radia ...
*A-235 anti-ballistic missile system
System A-235 PL-19 ''Nudol'' () is a Russian hypersonic anti-ballistic missile and anti-satellite weapon system in development. It is designed to deflect a nuclear attack on Moscow and other regions within European Russia. The main developer of t ...
*Comparison of anti-ballistic missile systems
This is a table of the most widespread or notable anti-ballistic missile (ABM) systems, intended in whole or part, to counter ballistic missiles. Since many systems have developed in stages or have many iterations or upgrades, only the most notabl ...
Related US missiles
*Nike Zeus
Nike Zeus was an anti-ballistic missile (ABM) system developed by the United States Army during the late 1950s and early 1960s that was designed to destroy incoming Soviet intercontinental ballistic missile warheads before they could hit their ...
*Sprint (missile)
The Sprint was a two-stage, solid-fuel anti-ballistic missile (ABM), armed with a W66 enhanced-radiation thermonuclear warhead used by the United States Army during 1975–76. It was designed to intercept incoming reentry vehicles (RV) after ...
*Spartan (missile)
The LIM-49 Spartan was a United States Army anti-ballistic missile, designed to intercept attacking nuclear warheads from intercontinental ballistic missiles at long range and while still outside the atmosphere. For actual deployment, a five-mega ...
Treaties
*Strategic Arms Limitation Talks
The Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) were two rounds of bilateral conferences and corresponding international treaties involving the United States and the Soviet Union. The Cold War superpowers dealt with arms control in two rounds of ...
*Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty
The Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, also known as the ABM Treaty or ABMT, was an arms control treaty between the United States and the Soviet Union on the limitation of the anti-ballistic missile (ABM) systems used in defending areas against ball ...
References
External links
Video of test launching (This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by XMD-TV)
{{USAF/DoD reporting names
Missile defense
Cold War surface-to-air missiles of the Soviet Union
Cold War military equipment of the Soviet Union
NPO Novator products
Military equipment introduced in the 1990s