Tungsten Rod Weapon

The tungsten rod weapon is a powerful missile launched from space, using mass, acceleration of gravity, and kinetic speed as the form of energy to penetrate and destroy enemy targets. It consists of a 6 m (20-ft) long tungsten rod, measuring 30-cm (1 foot) in diameter. Thus, it is almost the size of an old telephone pole but with the density and mass of tungsten, which is a silvery-white, heavy, and extremely hard metal; it has the highest melting point of all metals on Earth. The tungsten rod missile uses orbiting satellites as its launching platform. Therefore, it can be used to carry out kinetic orbital strike, which has the destructive power of a nuclear bomb.

The US Defense Department began doing research into the use of kinetic energy and heavy dense metal as a new form of destructive weapon in the 1960s. Launched from outer space, this missile uses kinetic energy, which is the result of mass, density (compactness), and gravitational acceleration, as its driving and boosting force. Such tungsten rod weapon has an energy roughly equal to its own mass in TNT, and it goes straight through the target, probably depositing most of this energy in the ground below. As a precision "bunker buster", it needs precision guidance to be an effective weapon. However, entry into the Earth atmosphere at hypersonic speed makes it difficult to implement, considering the plasma sheath will prevent using forward-looking sensors. Nevertheless, scientists were able to obtain a guidance system for this destructive missile, and it is, of course, confidential.

Because of their extremely high speed and lack of vulnerable points, defense against these solid metal rods is very difficult inside the atmosphere. The best approach might be finding and attacking them in space before the penetrators reenter. Therefore, it might be particularly interesting using it against heavily defended targets. The results of hitting a target with one of these rods is similar to boring a hole, placing in the hole an amount of explosive comparable in weight to that of the rod, and detonating it. For example, a two-meter rod weighing 50 pounds and penetrating to a depth of six to eight meters is similar to detonating 50 pounds of explosive in a hole slightly larger in diameter than the rod. As long as the rod penetrates to the interior of the target, the results are devastating.

AGM-154 JSOW

The AGM-154 JSOW is a stand-off smart weapon, which is dropped from a combat aircraft from a long way off distance, beyond the reach of land air defense radars. Although it looks like a cruise missile, it is in fact a precision glide bomb, which was developed and produced by the American firm Raytheon. It was introduced into operational service in 1999 and it was exported to several NATO countries. It was used in anger (combat action) for the first time in 2002, during the US-led invasion of Afghanistan. Then, in 2003, it would be employed again during the American and British invasion of Iraq. It is important to point out that this weapon has no installed power plant, such as a jet turbine, electric motor, or rocket; it just glides and heads towards its target pushed by inertia (the aircraft speed) and the mass acceleration by gravity.

Fitted with switch wings, the AGM-154 JSOW can glide for about 190 km to strike its target when dropped from high altitudes and it is guided by GPS and terminal infrared homing seeker. This is the real maximum effective range it can glide, not the 130 km published on some website. The JSOW (Joint Stand-Off Weapon) is a family of low-cost air-to-ground weapon which utilizes a global positioning system and inertial navigation system to reach its target. It is modular in design, with different versions that can integrate unitary HE bomb, hardened bunker penetrator bomb, and lethal sub-munitions with a guidance computer nose, switch wings and fins. Its launching platforms are the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, the F-16 Fighting Falcon, and the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft.

The AGM-154C variant is fitted with an imaging infrared seeker for last-stage high precision, plus a Broach multi-stage warhead that has both blast-fragmentation and hard target penetration capability. JSOW-C is in full rate production, and achieved initial operation capability in February 2005 with the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. JSOW Block II used this framework to reduce the weapon’s unit cost by 25%-33%, improve performance, and fund follow-on development of the AGM-154-C1. Key Block II decisions included redesigning the “airframe” to a major single piece instead of multiple parts, reducing the number of parts generally, using less expensive components, and employing advanced technologies.

Specifications

Type: smart glide bomb

Total Weight: 500 kg (1,096 lb)

Warhead: Mark-82 bomb (unitary warhead); BLU-108 sub-munitions.

Length: 4.1 m (160 inches)

Diameter: 0.33 m (13 inches)

Wing Span: 2.7 m (106 inches)

Maximum Range: 190 km (when dropped from high altitude)

Guidance System: GPS; terminal infrared homing seeker.

Above, the AGM-154 JSOW glide bomb with its wings folded up.

The AGM-154 JSOW dropped from a F/A-18 Super Hornet in action (video)

Khorramshahr-4 Missile

The Khorramshahr-4 missile is a medium-range, ballistic, rocket-propelled weapon. Its main characteristics are pin-point accuracy and destructive power as it is armed with an 1,800-kg warhead capable to penetrate into reinforced-concrete bunkers. First unveiled in early 2023 during test fire, the Khorramshahr-4 is propelled by a single-stage, liquid-fuel rocket. It can reach targets located at 3,500 km away, with precision, and it can sink a super aircraft carrier, hitting it in the middle of the flight deck. The missile shoots down vertically out of the sky like lightning at the speed of Mach 16. This is so, due to gravitational acceleration.

Like the others from the series, the Khorramshahr-4 missile was developed from the North Korean BM-25 missile; 25 meaning 2,500 km range. The Iranian engineers improved and upgraded its rocket and it presently has an effective range of 3,500 km. Thus, it can strike Diego Garcia airbase in the Indian Ocean. One of the most important improvements the Khorramshahr-3 underwent to become the Khorramshahr-4 is its detachable reentry vehicle (RV). Iranian defense engineers stated that the reentry vehicle is equipped with maneuvering capabilities designed to complicate missile defense interception efforts. This is managed through the controlled movable fins on the RV sides. Although much of the interior avionics and guidance architecture remain classified, it is known that the missile utilizes Beidou sytem, which is the Chinese GPS, as well as inertial navigation.

Although the missile is armed with a conventional HE warhead, the specifications of this hypersonic missile indicates that it could well be adapted for non-conventional payloads, like nuclear warhead. This is a concern that raises alarms in NATO countries. Ultimately, the Khorramshahr-4 is not just about firepower but it is also about warning, deterrence, and reshaping the strategic landscape in the Middle East. Thus, like the Sejjil missile, this dreaded weapon in the arsenal of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps allow Iran to exert geopolitical pressure to other actors in the international arena.

Specifications

Type: medium-range, ballistic missile

Total Weight: 20 tons

Warhead Weight: 1,800 kg (High Explosive)

Length: 13 m

Diameter: 1.5 m

Engine: liquid-fuel rocket

Fuel: hypergolic

Effective Range: 3,500 km

Accuracy: 10 m

Navigation System: Beidou; inertial

Sejjil

The Sejjil is an accurate, medium-range, ballistic missile, which is in active service with the Air Space Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps since 2014. First unveiled in 2008, today, it is the backbone of the strategic missile force which allows Iran to carry out precise strikes against enemy command centers, bunkers, telecommunication infrastructure, bridges, and power stations anywhere in the Middle East and Near East, as well as capable of hitting enemy surface warships, such aircraft carriers and destroyers sailing in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, Red Sea, and Eastern Mediterranean Sea.

The development of the Sejjil missile began at the end of the 1990s, using composite materials to build it. It was first used in combat action during the Twelve-Day War between Israel and Iran in 2025. This medium-range missile hit two mossad command centers and a military high-tech research center. It was designed and developed to replace the older Shahab-3 missile, which is a less accurate, slower liquid-fuel rocket projectile. The Sejjil is a much more advanced weapon than its predecessor as it flies at hypersonic speeds, especially during re-entry and descent towards its target. It is estimated that around 3,500 Sejjil missiles have been produced and kept in depots in military complexes deep in the Zagros Mountain range.

Technical Characteristics

The Sejjil missile is a solid-fuel, two-stage, ballistic missile, which carries a 1,000-kg warhead, which is enough to sink a super carrier. The first stage lifts it off the ground until it gains altitude, while the second stage boosts it higher into the upper layers of the Earth's atmosphere, reaching Mach 14 during its descent towards the ground. During its flight, the missile movable fins make quick and light adjustments to its trajectory to avoid being detected and intercepted. Since it is made of titanium and composite materials, it is lighter than conventional rockets and has an estimated maximum range of 2,600 km. Its solid-fuel rocket motor allows for fast mobile deployment so that it can be launched quickly, without delay, from anywhere in Iran, as it is carried in one piece on its platform on a truck, ready to be launched.

Specifications

Type: medium-range, surface-to-surface, hypersonic, ballistic missile

Weight: 22.5 tons

Warhead: 1,000-kg

Length: 18.2 m

Diameter: 1.25 m

Propulsion: two-stage rocket

Propellant: solid fuel

Maximum Speed: Mach 14

Range: 2,600 km

Accuracy: 15 m

Guidance: inertial navigation system

Above, the Sejjil in flight watched from the surface of the Earth at night. You can notice the change in its trajectory as it performs evasive maneuver.

The Iranian missile on its mobile platform ready to be launched

Map of the Middle East showing the 2,000-km geographical perimeter the Shahab-3 can reach and cover. The Sejjil goes well beyond the 2,000-km red line, reaching 2,600 km.

Raad-500

The Raad-500 is a short-range, hypersonic, tactical ballistic missile, which is part of the arsenal of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). It is an extremely precise weapon as it has an accuracy of 7-m, which means it can hit a very small area measuring 7 m in diameter, even if fired from a distance of 500 km. This amount to a lethal, out-of-the-blue, surgical strike. It is believed that this missile can be armed with a small nuclear warhead designed to sink large enemy aircraft carriers and destroy command centers that operate in deep underground bunkers. This high-tech, surface-to-surface, rocket-propelled projectile is another example and proof that Iran has one of the largest assortments of missiles in the world in its arsenal.

Technical Characteristics

The Raad-500 missile has an important construction feature which gives it an edge over the Western country missiles. It is lighter than other missiles of its type. Weighing about 1,800 kg, its casing is built with very advanced carbon fiber threads, instead of the heavy steel material employed in the past. Thus, using this material, it can also withstand extremely high temperature and pressure that arise from combustion. Due to its weight reduction, it has a greatly increased payload, which is estimated to be around 500 kg of high explosive, enough to wreak havoc on any enemy fleet.

The Raad-500 is also fitted with movable fins to enable it to change trajectory in flight to evade radar detection and AA defense system. Since it is a ballistic missile and not a cruise one, it means that, once launched, it soars up fast and high into the last layers of the Earth atmosphere to re-enter at the impressive speed of Mach 10, in a high arc trajectory. Therefore, it is almost impossible to intercept it. With a range of 500 km, it can destroy targets located anywhere in the Persian Gulf, the Straight of Hormuz, and the Gulf of Oman. This Iranian missile has yet another important characteristic; it has a detachable warhead, which means that the warhead separates from its body during the final descend phase to confuse enemy radars.

Specifications

Type: short-range, hypersonic ballistic missile

Weight: 1,800 kg (3,968.3 lb)

Length: 4.20 m

Diameter: 45 cm

Propulsion: Zohair, solid-fuel, rocket motor

Speed: Mach 10

Range: 500+ km

Guidance: GLONASS navigation satellite system and inertial.

The Raad-500 is powered by a Zohair, solid-fuel rocket.

Black-Shark Torpedo

The Black-Shark torpedo is an advanced and lethal naval weapon, which is in the arsenal of the Italian Navy since 2004. It is a heavyweight torpedo which was designed and produced by the Italian firm WASS Submarine System, whose specialty is the development and construction of torpedoes and sonars. It was conceived to be launched from both submarines and surface vessels. Its common platforms are the Italian Todaro-class submarine, which is a further development of the German Type 212A boat, and the Italian Orizzonte-class destroyers. It is also used by Spanish Navy's S-80 sub.

The Black-Shark torpedo was designed to counter menace by any type of surface warship, being capable of sinking large-size vessels. Since it is a heavyweight torpedo, with a 350-kg warhead, it can even sink large aircraft carriers. It can also be fired at any type of enemy submarine and hit it with precision. This underwater weapon can also be launched from the Norwegian Navy's Ula-class submarine.

Technical Characteristics

The Black-Shark is a powerful, long-range, and fully-stealth heavyweight torpedo, with a total weight of 1,600 kg. Once launched, it is guided by fiber-optic wire. It has non-Doppler shifted target discrimination capability. It is equipped with an electrical propulsion system and acoustic head shape, which was designed to reduce flow noise. The acoustic head of the Black-Shark, named ASTRA (Advanced Sonar Transmitting and Receiving Architecture), is a very advanced active and passive acoustic head for modern torpedoes. It is simple to interface with ship sensors and computing units.

Specifications

Type: heavyweight anti-ship and anti-submarine torpedo

Weight: 1,600 kg

Length: 6.3 m (21 feet)

Diameter: 533-mm (21 inches)

Warhead Weight: 350 kg

Warhead Type: High Explosive

Guidance: fiber-optic wire guidance communication link.

Propulsion: contra-rotating, direct-drive brushless electrical motor.

Range: 70 km

Maximum Speed: 50 knots (93 km/h)

Above, side view of the Black-Shark, which is 6.3 m in length.

Rear view of the torpedo shows the contra-rotating propeller blades.

P-500 Bazalt

The P-500 Bazalt (4K80) is a surface-to-surface, supersonic, anti-ship missile in the arsenal of the Russian Navy. It was developed by the Soviet Union between 1963 and 1974, entering service with the Soviet Navy in 1975. While the US Navy gave importance to the aircraft carrier, the Soviet Union defense minister considered it was more strategically efficient and cheaper to develop and manufacture anti-ship cruise missiles instead capable to sink an aircraft carrier from a long way off. Thus, the Soviets would develop a series of lethal anti-ship cruise missiles, of which the P-5 Pyatyorka was the first one. The 1982 Falkland War would prove that the Soviets were right as an Argentine Navy's French-made Exocet-39 cruise missile sank the British destroyer HMS Sheffield.

During the Cold War, the P-500 Bazalt was launched from the Juliet and Echo II class submarines. However, as these subs were withdrawn from service, today the Bazalt is launched from the Slava class cruisers and frigates. A submarine was able to successively launch eight P-500 missiles in a fast salvo, keeping communications with them. The missiles used a datalink system and were fed course updates if necessary. One of the missiles in the salvo would fly at a high altitude, up to 7,000 meters (23,000 feet), using its active radar seeker to hunt the target. The others would remain at medium to low altitude (down to about 30 meters / 100 feet), with their seekers in passive homing mode while acquiring targeting updates from the high-flying missile.

The first trials of the P-500 system began in 1969. After six years of tests, solving technical problems, the weapon system was finally introduced into service in 1975. Ten of the 29 ECHO II-class attack submarines were refitted to carry the P-500. The submarines could communicate with the targeting systems from periscope depth. They carried eight missiles each, usually six with conventional warheads and two with nuclear warheads. The P-500 Bazalt was also used by surface vessels, including the four KIEV-class cruiser-carrier vessels and four SLAVA-class cruisers. The KIEV ships had eight launchers forward, while the SLAVA-class cruisers have 16 launchers, and can use their Kamov Ka-27 Helix helicopters for over-the-horizon targeting. This missile was developed into the P-1000 Vulkan.

Specifications

Type: anti-ship cruise missile

Total Weight: 4,800 kg (10,580 pounds)

Warhead Weight: 1,000 kg (2,205 pounds), yielding 350 kt.

Warhead Type: High Explosive or nuclear

Length: 11.7 m (38 feet, 5 inches)

Diameter: 0.9 m (3 feet)

Wing Span: 2.6 m (8 feet, 6 inches)

Guidance System: semi-active radar homing; terminal active radar homing.

Maximum Speed: Mach 2

Range: 600 km

The P-500 Bazalt to be loaded aboard a cruiser.