A depiction of a 'long serpent' rocket launcher from the Wubei Zhi
The earliest rocket launchers documented in imperial China consisted of arrows modified by the attachment of a rocket motor to the shaft a few inches behind the arrowhead. The rocket was propelled by the burning of the black powder in the motor; these should not be confused with early fire arrows, which were conventional arrows carrying small tubes of black powder as an incendiary that ignited only after the arrow hit its target. The rocket launchers were constructed of wood, basketry, and bamboo tubes.[1] The launchers divided the rockets with frames meant to keep them separated, and the launchers were capable of firing multiple rockets at once. Textual evidence and illustrations of various early rocket launchers are found in the 1510 edition of the Wujing Zongyao translated by Needham and others at Princeton University. (The original Wujing Zongyao was compiled between 1040 and 1044 and described the discovery of black powder but preceded the invention of the rocket. Partial copies of the original survived and Wujing Zongyao was republished in 1231 during the Southern Song Dynasty, including military developments since the original 1044 publication. The British scientist, sinologist, historian Joseph Needham asserts that the 1510 edition is the most reliable in its faithfulness to the original and 1231 versions, since it was printed from blocks that were re-carved directly from tracings of the edition made in 1231 AD.) The 1510 Wujing Zongyao describes the "long serpent" rocket launcher, a rocket launcher constructed of wood and carried with a wheelbarrow, and the "hundred tiger" rocket launcher, a rocket launcher made of wood and capable of firing 320 rocket arrows.[2] The text also describes a portable rocket carrier consisting of a sling and a bamboo tube.[3]
Rocket launchers known as "wasp nest" launchers were used by the Ming dynasty in 1380 and in 1400 by Li Jinglong against Zhu Di.[4]
Rockets were introduced to the West during the Napoleonic Wars; the Congreve rocket was a British weapon devised by Sir William Congreve in 1804 after experiencing Indian rockets at the Siege of Seringapatam (1799). Congreve rockets were launched from an iron trough about 18 inches (45 centimetres) in length, called a chamber.[5] These chambers could be fixed to the ground for horizontal launching, secured to a folding copper tripod for high angle fire or mounted on frames on carts or the decks of warships.[6]
The collection of the royal armies includes man portable rocket launchers that appear (based on lock designs) to date from the two decades after 1820.[7] These don’t appear to have entered general use and no surviving documentation on them has been found.[7]
During the American Civil War, both the Union and the Confederate Military experimented upon and produced rocket launchers.[8] Confederate forces used Congreve rockets in limited uses due to its inaccuracies, while the Union forces used Hale patent rocket launcher which fired seven to ten inch rockets with fin stabilizers at a range of 2000 yards.
Pre-war research programmes into military rocket technology by many of the major powers led to the introduction of a number of rocket artillery systems with fixed or mobile launchers, often capable of firing a number of rockets in a single salvo. In the United Kingdom, solid fuel rockets were initially used in the anti-aircraft role; the 7-inch Unrotated Projectile was fired from single pedestal-mounted launchers on warships and a 3-inch version was used by shore based Z Batteries, for which multiple "projectors" were developed. Later developments of these weapons included the Land Mattress multiple launchers for surface-to-surface bombardment and the RP-3 air-to-ground rockets that were launched from rails fitted to fighter bomber aircraft. In Germany, the 15 cm Nebelwerfer 41 was an adaptation of a multiple barrelled smoke mortar for artillery rockets. The Soviet's Katyusha was a self-propelled system, being mounted on trucks, tanks and even trains. The United States Army deployed the tank mounted T34 Calliope system late in the war.[9]
The rocket launchers category includes shoulder-fired weapons, any weapon that fires a rocket-propelled projectile at a target yet is small enough to be carried by a single person and fired while held on one's shoulder. Depending on the country or region, people might use the terms "bazooka" or "RPG" as generalized terms to refer to such weapons, both of which are in fact specific types of rocket launchers. The Bazooka was an American anti-tank weapon which was in service from 1942–1957, while the RPG (most commonly the RPG-7) is a Soviet anti-tank weapon.
Recoilless rifles are sometimes confused with rocket launchers. A recoilless rifle launches its projectile using an explosive powder charge, not a rocket engine, though some such systems have sustainer rocket motors.
A rocket pod is a launcher that contains several unguided rockets held in individual tubes, designed to be used by attack aircraft or attack helicopters for close air support. In many cases, rocket pods are streamlined to reduce aerodynamic drag. The first pods were developed immediately after World War II, as an improvement over the previous arrangement of firing rockets from rails, racks or tubes fixed under the wings of aircraft. Early examples of pod-launched rockets were the US Folding-Fin Aerial Rocket and the French SNEB.[10]
^Joseph Needham (1974). Science and Civilisation in China: Military Technology The Gunpowder Epic. Cambridge University Press. p. 488. ISBN978-0-521-30358-3.
^Needham 1974, p. 493 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFNeedham1974 (help)
^Needham 1974, p. 495 harvnb error: no target: CITEREFNeedham1974 (help)
^Needham 1974, p. 514. sfn error: no target: CITEREFNeedham1974 (help)
^Congreve, William (1814), The Details of the Rocket System J. Whiting, London (p. 19)
^Bailey, Jonathan B. A. (2004), Field Artillery and Firepower, Naval Institute Press, Anapolis, ISBN1-59114-029-3 (p.177)
^ abJonathan Ferguson (23 January 2023). Who would want a flintlock rocket launcher? With firearms and weaponry expert Jonathan Ferguson. Royal Armouries. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
^Andrews, Evan. "8 Unusual Civil War Weapons". History. APRIL 9, 2013
^Bishop, Chris (2002), The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II, Metrobooks, ISBN978-1586637620 (pp. 169-178)
rocket, launcher, other, uses, disambiguation, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, boo. For other uses see Rocket launcher disambiguation This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Rocket launcher news newspapers books scholar JSTOR June 2013 Learn how and when to remove this template message A rocket launcher is a weapon that launches an unguided rocket propelled projectile An American soldier aims an M1 Bazooka Contents 1 History 1 1 World War II 2 Types 2 1 Shoulder fired 2 2 Rocket pod 2 3 Large scale 3 See also 4 ReferencesHistory EditMain article History of rockets Rocket carts from the Wubei Zhi A depiction of a long serpent rocket launcher from the Wubei Zhi The earliest rocket launchers documented in imperial China consisted of arrows modified by the attachment of a rocket motor to the shaft a few inches behind the arrowhead The rocket was propelled by the burning of the black powder in the motor these should not be confused with early fire arrows which were conventional arrows carrying small tubes of black powder as an incendiary that ignited only after the arrow hit its target The rocket launchers were constructed of wood basketry and bamboo tubes 1 The launchers divided the rockets with frames meant to keep them separated and the launchers were capable of firing multiple rockets at once Textual evidence and illustrations of various early rocket launchers are found in the 1510 edition of the Wujing Zongyao translated by Needham and others at Princeton University The original Wujing Zongyao was compiled between 1040 and 1044 and described the discovery of black powder but preceded the invention of the rocket Partial copies of the original survived and Wujing Zongyao was republished in 1231 during the Southern Song Dynasty including military developments since the original 1044 publication The British scientist sinologist historian Joseph Needham asserts that the 1510 edition is the most reliable in its faithfulness to the original and 1231 versions since it was printed from blocks that were re carved directly from tracings of the edition made in 1231 AD The 1510 Wujing Zongyao describes the long serpent rocket launcher a rocket launcher constructed of wood and carried with a wheelbarrow and the hundred tiger rocket launcher a rocket launcher made of wood and capable of firing 320 rocket arrows 2 The text also describes a portable rocket carrier consisting of a sling and a bamboo tube 3 Rocket launchers known as wasp nest launchers were used by the Ming dynasty in 1380 and in 1400 by Li Jinglong against Zhu Di 4 Rockets were introduced to the West during the Napoleonic Wars the Congreve rocket was a British weapon devised by Sir William Congreve in 1804 after experiencing Indian rockets at the Siege of Seringapatam 1799 Congreve rockets were launched from an iron trough about 18 inches 45 centimetres in length called a chamber 5 These chambers could be fixed to the ground for horizontal launching secured to a folding copper tripod for high angle fire or mounted on frames on carts or the decks of warships 6 The collection of the royal armies includes man portable rocket launchers that appear based on lock designs to date from the two decades after 1820 7 These don t appear to have entered general use and no surviving documentation on them has been found 7 During the American Civil War both the Union and the Confederate Military experimented upon and produced rocket launchers 8 Confederate forces used Congreve rockets in limited uses due to its inaccuracies while the Union forces used Hale patent rocket launcher which fired seven to ten inch rockets with fin stabilizers at a range of 2000 yards World War II Edit A World War II Katyusha rocket launcher mounted on a ZiS 6 truck Pre war research programmes into military rocket technology by many of the major powers led to the introduction of a number of rocket artillery systems with fixed or mobile launchers often capable of firing a number of rockets in a single salvo In the United Kingdom solid fuel rockets were initially used in the anti aircraft role the 7 inch Unrotated Projectile was fired from single pedestal mounted launchers on warships and a 3 inch version was used by shore based Z Batteries for which multiple projectors were developed Later developments of these weapons included the Land Mattress multiple launchers for surface to surface bombardment and the RP 3 air to ground rockets that were launched from rails fitted to fighter bomber aircraft In Germany the 15 cm Nebelwerfer 41 was an adaptation of a multiple barrelled smoke mortar for artillery rockets The Soviet s Katyusha was a self propelled system being mounted on trucks tanks and even trains The United States Army deployed the tank mounted T34 Calliope system late in the war 9 Types EditShoulder fired Edit Main article Shoulder fired missile The rocket launchers category includes shoulder fired weapons any weapon that fires a rocket propelled projectile at a target yet is small enough to be carried by a single person and fired while held on one s shoulder Depending on the country or region people might use the terms bazooka or RPG as generalized terms to refer to such weapons both of which are in fact specific types of rocket launchers The Bazooka was an American anti tank weapon which was in service from 1942 1957 while the RPG most commonly the RPG 7 is a Soviet anti tank weapon A smaller variation is the gyrojet a small arms rocket launcher with ammunition slightly larger than that of a 45 caliber pistol Recoilless rifles are sometimes confused with rocket launchers A recoilless rifle launches its projectile using an explosive powder charge not a rocket engine though some such systems have sustainer rocket motors Rocket pod Edit Su 20 aircraft with UB 32 rocket pods each carrying thirty two S 5 rockets A rocket pod is a launcher that contains several unguided rockets held in individual tubes designed to be used by attack aircraft or attack helicopters for close air support In many cases rocket pods are streamlined to reduce aerodynamic drag The first pods were developed immediately after World War II as an improvement over the previous arrangement of firing rockets from rails racks or tubes fixed under the wings of aircraft Early examples of pod launched rockets were the US Folding Fin Aerial Rocket and the French SNEB 10 Large scale Edit Larger scale devices which serve to launch rockets include the multiple rocket launcher a type of unguided rocket artillery system See also EditLaunch pad List of gun launched missiles List of rocket launchersReferences Edit Joseph Needham 1974 Science and Civilisation in China Military Technology The Gunpowder Epic Cambridge University Press p 488 ISBN 978 0 521 30358 3 Needham 1974 p 493harvnb error no target CITEREFNeedham1974 help Needham 1974 p 495harvnb error no target CITEREFNeedham1974 help Needham 1974 p 514 sfn error no target CITEREFNeedham1974 help Congreve William 1814 The Details of the Rocket System J Whiting London p 19 Bailey Jonathan B A 2004 Field Artillery and Firepower Naval Institute Press Anapolis ISBN 1 59114 029 3 p 177 a b Jonathan Ferguson 23 January 2023 Who would want a flintlock rocket launcher With firearms and weaponry expert Jonathan Ferguson Royal Armouries Retrieved 23 January 2023 Andrews Evan 8 Unusual Civil War Weapons History APRIL 9 2013 Bishop Chris 2002 The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II Metrobooks ISBN 978 1586637620 pp 169 178 Vectors Website 7 0 Unguided Rockets Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Rocket launcher amp oldid 1148212123, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
