Missile defense emerged as a response to the creation of the most powerful weapon in the history of human civilization - ballistic missiles with nuclear warheads. The best minds of the planet were involved in the creation of protection against this threat, the latest scientific developments were studied and applied in practice, objects and structures were built, comparable to the Egyptian pyramids.
Missile defense of the USSR and the Russian Federation
For the first time, the problem of missile defense began to be considered in the USSR since 1945 in the framework of countering the German short-range ballistic missiles "V-2" (project "Anti-Fau"). The project was implemented by the Scientific Research Bureau of Special Equipment (NIBS), headed by Georgy Mironovich Mozharovsky, organized at the Zhukovsky Air Force Academy. The large dimensions of the V-2 rocket, the short firing range (about 300 kilometers), as well as the low flight speed of less than 1.5 kilometers per second, made it possible to consider the anti-aircraft missile systems (SAM) being developed at that time as missile defense systems. designed for air defense (air defense).
The appearance by the end of the 50s of the XX century ballistic missiles with a flight range of over three thousand kilometers and a detachable warhead made the use of "conventional" air defense systems against them impossible, which required the development of fundamentally new missile defense systems.
In 1949, G. M. Mozharovsky presented the concept of a missile defense system capable of protecting a limited area from the impact of 20 ballistic missiles. The proposed missile defense system was supposed to include 17 radar stations (radars) with a viewing range of up to 1000 km, 16 near-field radars and 40 precise bearing stations. Target capture for tracking was to be carried out from a distance of about 700 km. A feature of the project, which made it unrealizable at that time, was an interceptor missile, which should be equipped with an active radar homing head (ARLGSN). It is worth noting that missiles with ARLGSN became widespread in air defense systems towards the end of the 20th century, and even at the moment their creation is a difficult task, as evidenced by the problems in creating the newest Russian air defense system S-350 Vityaz. On the basis of the element base of the 40s - 50s, it was unrealistic in principle to create missiles with ARLGSN.
Despite the fact that it was impossible to create a really functioning missile defense system on the basis of the concept presented by G. M. Mozharovsky, it showed the fundamental possibility of its creation.
In 1956, two new designs of missile defense systems were presented for consideration: the Barrier zonal missile defense system, developed by Alexander Lvovich Mints, and the three-range system, System A, proposed by Grigory Vasilyevich Kisunko. The Barrier missile defense system involved the sequential installation of three meter-range radars, oriented vertically upward with an interval of 100 km. The trajectory of a missile or warhead was calculated after successively crossing three radars with an error of 6-8 kilometers.
In the project of G. V. Kisunko, the latest at that time decimeter station of the "Danube" type was used, being developed at NII-108 (NIIDAR), which made it possible to determine the coordinates of an attacking ballistic missile with meter accuracy. The disadvantage was the complexity and high cost of the Danube radar, but taking into account the importance of the problem being solved, the issues of economy were not a priority. The ability to target with meter accuracy made it possible to hit the target not only with a nuclear, but also with a conventional charge.
In parallel, OKB-2 (KB "Fakel") was developing an anti-missile, designated B-1000. The two-stage anti-missile missile included a first solid-propellant stage and a second stage equipped with a liquid-propellant engine (LPRE). The controlled flight range was 60 kilometers, the interception height was 23-28 kilometers, with an average flight speed of 1000 meters per second (maximum speed of 1500 m / s). The rocket weighing 8.8 tons and a length of 14.5 meters was equipped with a conventional warhead weighing 500 kilograms, including 16 thousand steel balls with a tungsten carbide core. The target was hit in less than one minute.
Experienced missile defense "System A" was created at the Sary-Shagan training ground since 1956. By the middle of 1958, construction and installation work was completed, and by the fall of 1959, work was completed on connecting all systems.
After a series of unsuccessful tests, on March 4, 1961, the warhead of an R-12 ballistic missile with a weight equivalent of a nuclear charge was intercepted. The warhead collapsed and partially burned out in flight, which confirmed the possibility of successfully hitting ballistic missiles.
The accumulated groundwork was used to create the A-35 missile defense system, designed to protect the Moscow industrial region. The development of the A-35 missile defense system started in 1958, and in 1971 the A-35 missile defense system was put into service (the final commissioning took place in 1974).
The A-35 missile defense system included the Danube-3 radar station in the decimeter range with phased antenna arrays with a capacity of 3 megawatts, capable of tracking 3000 ballistic targets at a distance of up to 2500 kilometers. Target tracking and anti-missile guidance was provided by the RKTs-35 escort radar and the RKI-35 guidance radar, respectively. The number of simultaneously fired targets was limited by the number of RKTs-35 radars and RKI-35 radars, since they could only operate on one target.
The heavy two-stage anti-missile A-350Zh ensured the defeat of enemy missile warheads at a range of 130-400 kilometers and an altitude of 50-400 kilometers with a nuclear warhead with a capacity of up to three megatons.
The A-35 missile defense system was modernized several times, and in 1989 it was replaced by the A-135 system, which included the 5N20 Don-2N radar, the 51T6 Azov long-range intercept missile and the 53T6 short-range intercept missile.
The 51T6 long-range interceptor missile ensured the destruction of targets with a range of 130-350 kilometers and an altitude of the order of 60-70 kilometers with a nuclear warhead of up to three megatons or a nuclear warhead of up to 20 kilotons. The short-range intercept 53T6 anti-missile missile ensured the destruction of targets at a range of 20-100 kilometers and an altitude of about 5-45 kilometers with a warhead of up to 10 kilotons. For modification 53T6M, the maximum damage height was increased to 100 km. Presumably, neutron warheads can be used on 51T6 and 53T6 (53T6M) interceptors. At the moment, the 51T6 interceptor missiles have been removed from service. On duty are modernized 53T6M short-range interceptor missiles with extended service lives.
On the basis of the A-135 missile defense system, the Almaz-Antey concern is creating an upgraded A-235 Nudol missile defense system. In March 2018, the sixth tests of the A-235 rocket were carried out in Plesetsk, for the first time from a standard mobile launcher. It is assumed that the A-235 missile defense system will be able to hit both ballistic missile warheads and objects in near space, with nuclear and conventional warheads. In this regard, the question arises of how the anti-missile guidance will be carried out in the final sector: optical or radar guidance (or combined)? And how will the interception of the target be carried out: by a direct hit (hit-to-kill) or by a directed fragmentation field?
US missile defense
In the United States, the development of missile defense systems began even earlier - in 1940. The first projects of antimissiles, the long-range MX-794 Wizard and the short-range MX-795 Thumper, did not receive development due to the lack of specific threats and imperfect technologies at that time.
In the 1950s, the R-7 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) appeared in service with the USSR, which spurred work in the United States on the creation of missile defense systems.
In 1958, the US Army adopted the MIM-14 Nike-Hercules anti-aircraft missile system, which has limited capabilities to destroy ballistic targets, subject to the use of a nuclear warhead. The Nike-Hercules SAM missile ensured the destruction of enemy missile warheads at a range of 140 kilometers and an altitude of about 45 kilometers with a nuclear warhead with a capacity of up to 40 kilotons.
The development of the MIM-14 Nike-Hercules air defense system was the LIM-49A Nike Zeus complex, developed in the 1960s, with an improved missile with a range of up to 320 kilometers and a target hitting height of up to 160 kilometers. The destruction of ICBM warheads was to be carried out with a 400-kiloton thermonuclear charge with an increased yield of neutron radiation.
In July 1962, the first technically successful interception of an ICBM warhead by the Nike Zeus missile defense system took place. Subsequently, 10 out of 14 tests of the Nike Zeus missile defense system were recognized as successful.
One of the reasons that prevented the deployment of the Nike Zeus missile defense system was the cost of antimissiles, which exceeded the cost of ICBMs at the time, which made the deployment of the system unprofitable. Also, mechanical scanning by rotating the antenna provided an extremely low response time of the system and an insufficient number of guidance channels.
In 1967, at the initiative of US Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, the development of the Sentinell missile defense system ("Sentinel") was initiated, later renamed Safeguard ("Precaution"). The main task of the Safeguard missile defense system was to protect the positioning areas of American ICBMs from a surprise attack by the USSR.
The Safeguard missile defense system created on the new element base was supposed to be significantly cheaper than the LIM-49A Nike Zeus, although it was created on its basis, more precisely, on the basis of an improved version of Nike-X. It consisted of two anti-missiles: heavy LIM-49A Spartan with a range of up to 740 km, capable of intercepting warheads in near space, and light Sprint. The LIM-49A Spartan anti-missile missile with a W71 5 megaton warhead could hit an unprotected ICBM warhead at a distance of up to 46 kilometers from the epicenter of the explosion, protected at a distance of up to 6.4 kilometers.
The Sprint anti-missile missile with a range of 40 kilometers and a target hitting height of up to 30 kilometers was equipped with a W66 neutron warhead with a capacity of 1-2 kilotons.
Preliminary detection and target designation was carried out by the Perimeter Acquisition Radar radar with a passive phased antenna array capable of detecting an object with a diameter of 24 centimeters at a distance of up to 3200 km.
The warheads were escorted and the interceptor missiles were guided by the Missile Site Radar radar with a circular view.
Initially, it was planned to protect three air bases with 150 ICBMs on each, in total 450 ICBMs were protected in this way. However, due to the signing of the Treaty on the Limitation of Anti-Ballistic Missile Systems between the United States and the USSR in 1972, it was decided to limit the deployment of the Safeguard missile defense only at the Stanley Mikelsen base in North Dakota.
A total of 30 Spartan missiles and 16 Sprint missiles were deployed to positions at Safeguard missile defense positions in North Dakota. The Safeguard missile defense system was put into operation in 1975, but already in 1976 it was mothballed. The shift in emphasis of the American strategic nuclear forces (SNF) in favor of submarine missile carriers made the task of protecting the positions of ground-based ICBMs from the first strike of the USSR irrelevant.
Star Wars
On March 23, 1983, the fortieth US President Ronald Reagan announced the beginning of a long-term research and development program with the aim of creating the groundwork for the development of a global missile defense (ABM) system with space-based elements. The program received the designation "Strategic Defense Initiative" (SDI) and the unofficial name of the "Star Wars" program.
SDI's goal was to create an echeloned anti-missile defense of the North American continent from massive nuclear attacks. The defeat of ICBMs and warheads was to be carried out practically along the entire flight path. Dozens of companies were involved in solving this problem, billions of dollars were invested. Let's briefly consider the main weapons being developed under the SDI program.
Laser weapon
At the first stage, taking off Soviet ICBMs had to meet chemical lasers placed in orbit. The operation of a chemical laser is based on the reaction of certain chemical components, as an example is the YAL-1 iodine-oxygen laser, which was used to implement the aviation version of missile defense based on a Boeing aircraft. The main disadvantage of a chemical laser is the need to replenish stocks of toxic components, which in relation to a spacecraft actually means that it can be used only once. However, within the framework of the objectives of the SDI program, this is not a critical drawback, since most likely the entire system will be disposable.
The advantage of a chemical laser is the ability to obtain a high operating radiation power with a relatively high efficiency. Within the framework of Soviet and American projects, it was possible to obtain radiation power of the order of several megawatts using chemical and gas-dynamic (a special case of chemical) lasers. As part of the SDI program in space, it was planned to deploy chemical lasers with a power of 5-20 megawatts. Orbital chemical lasers were supposed to defeat the launching ICBMs until the disengagement of warheads.
The USA built an experimental deuterium fluoride laser MIRACL capable of developing a power of 2.2 megawatts. During tests carried out in 1985, the MIRACL laser was able to destroy a liquid-propellant ballistic missile fixed 1 kilometer away.
Despite the absence of commercial spacecraft with chemical lasers on board, work on their creation has provided invaluable information on the physics of laser processes, the construction of complex optical systems, and heat removal. On the basis of this information, in the near future, it is possible to create a laser weapon capable of significantly changing the appearance of the battlefield.
An even more ambitious project was the creation of nuclear-pumped X-ray lasers. A package of rods made of special materials is used as a source of hard X-ray radiation in a nuclear-pumped laser. A nuclear charge is used as a pumping source. After the detonation of the nuclear charge, but before the evaporation of the rods, a powerful pulse of laser radiation in the hard X-ray range is formed in them. It is believed that to destroy an ICBM, it is necessary to pump a nuclear charge with a power of the order of two hundred kilotons, with a laser efficiency of about 10%.
The rods can be oriented in parallel to hit a single target with a high probability, or distributed over multiple targets, which would require multiple targeting systems. The advantage of nuclear-pumped lasers is that the hard X-rays generated by them have a high penetrating power, and it is much more difficult to protect a missile or warhead from it.
Since the Outer Space Treaty prohibits the placement of nuclear charges in outer space, they must be launched into orbit immediately at the time of an enemy attack. To do this, it was planned to use 41 SSBNs (nuclear submarine with ballistic missiles), which previously housed the withdrawn from service ballistic missiles "Polaris". Nevertheless, the high complexity of the development of the project led to its transfer to the category of research. It can be assumed that the work has reached a dead end largely due to the impossibility of conducting practical experiments in space for the above reasons.
Beam weapon
Even more impressive weapons could be developed particle accelerators - the so-called beam weapons. Sources of accelerated neutrons placed on automatic space stations were supposed to hit warheads at a distance of tens of thousands of kilometers. The main damaging factor was supposed to be the failure of the electronics of the warheads due to the deceleration of neutrons in the material of the warhead with the release of powerful ionizing radiation. It was also assumed that the analysis of the signature of the secondary radiation arising from the hitting of neutrons on the target would distinguish real targets from false ones.
The creation of beam weapons was considered an extremely difficult task, in connection with which the deployment of weapons of this type was planned after 2025.
Rail weapon
Another element of the SDI was the rail guns, called "railguns" (railgun). In a railgun, the projectiles are accelerated using the Lorentz force. It can be assumed that the main reason that did not allow the creation of railguns within the SDI program was the lack of energy storage devices capable of providing the accumulation, long-term storage and quick release of energy with a capacity of several megawatts. For space systems, the problem of guide rail wear inherent in "ground" railguns due to the limited operating time of the missile defense system would be less critical.
It was planned to defeat targets with a high-speed projectile with kinetic target destruction (without detonating the warhead). At the moment, the United States is actively developing a combat railgun in the interests of the naval forces (Navy), so the research carried out under the SDI program is unlikely to be wasted.
Atomic buckshot
This is an auxiliary solution designed for the selection of heavy and light warheads. The detonation of an atomic charge with a tungsten plate of a certain configuration was supposed to form a cloud of debris moving in a given direction at a speed of up to 100 kilometers per second. It was assumed that their energy would not be enough to destroy warheads, but enough to change the trajectory of light decoys.
An obstacle to the creation of atomic buckshot, most likely, was the impossibility of placing them in orbit in advance and conducting tests due to the Space Treaty signed by the United States.
Diamond pebble
One of the most realistic projects is the creation of miniature interceptor satellites, which were to be launched into orbit in the amount of several thousand units. They were supposed to become the main component of SDI. The defeat of the target was to be carried out in a kinetic way - by the blow of the kamikaze satellite itself, accelerated to 15 kilometers per second. The guidance system was supposed to be based on lidar - a laser radar. The advantage of the "diamond pebble" was that it was built on existing technologies. In addition, a distributed network consisting of several thousand satellites is extremely difficult to destroy with a preemptive strike.
Development of the "diamond pebble" was discontinued in 1994. The developments on this project formed the basis for the kinetic interceptors currently in use.
conclusions
SOI's program is still controversial. Some blame it for the collapse of the USSR, they say, the leadership of the Soviet Union got involved in an arms race, which the country could not pull off, others talk about the most grandiose "cut" of all times and peoples. Sometimes it is surprising that people who proudly recall, for example, the domestic project "Spiral" (they talk about a ruined promising project), are immediately ready to write down any unrealized project of the United States in the "cut".
The SDI program did not change the balance of forces and did not lead at all to any massive deployment of serial weapons, nevertheless, thanks to it, a huge scientific and technical reserve was created, with the help of which the newest types of weapons have already been created or will be created in the future. Failures of the program were caused by both technical reasons (the projects were too ambitious) and political - the collapse of the USSR.
It should be noted that the existing missile defense systems of that time and a significant part of the developments under the SDI program provided for the implementation of many nuclear explosions in the atmosphere of the planet and in near space: anti-missile warheads, pumping X-ray lasers, volleys of atomic buckshot. With a high probability, this would cause electromagnetic interference that would render most of the rest of the missile defense systems and many other civil and military systems inoperable. It was this factor that most likely became the main reason for the refusal to deploy global missile defense systems at that time. At the moment, the improvement of technologies has made it possible to find ways to solve missile defense problems without the use of nuclear charges, which predetermined a return to this topic.
In the next article, we will consider the current state of the US missile defense systems, promising technologies and possible directions for the development of missile defense systems, the role of missile defense in the doctrine of a sudden disarming strike.
