Venäjän hypersooniset asejärjestelmät
Abstrakti
Hypersonic weapon systems are not a completely new idea, but along last years’ political declarations they have become quite actual. The central property of a hypersonic – i.e. moving at multiple speed of sound – aerial vehicle is its ability to move quickly in the upper atmosphere. However, the assumed objects of the impact lie in the lower atmosphere. At the final part of the trajectory the aerial vehicle is gliding and the deceleration due to drag is significant. Properties of weapon systems are classified, but the laws of aerodynamics and ballistics are widely known. High rank political and military statements have been made about the properties of Russian hypersonic weapon systems from which quite a lot may be concluded. Generic models of aerodynamic aerial vehicles used in testing of concepts of hypersonic weapon systems are unclassified. In this report both the capability of new Russian hypersonic aerial vehicles to transport payload at intercontinental and midrange distances and the speed of these aerial vehicles at the final part of the trajectory in dense atmosphere are assessed with the use of simple models of trajectory.
