The US Fleet Ballistic Missile system: technology and nuclear war

Abstract

TRIDENT AT SEA An American Trident submarine is 560 feet long, or almost twice the length of a football pitch. Each can carry twenty-four missiles capable of delivering nuclear warheads to targets thousands of miles away. Each of these warheads can deliver an explosive yield many times as powerful as the bomb dropped on Hiroshima to within about a hundred yards of its target. This formidable destructive capability is the culmination of over thirty years of technological development, and six generations of missile: Polaris A1, Polaris A2, Polaris A3, Poseidon, Trident I, and Trident II. Trident submarines on patrol in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans have just one mission, as have had all fleet ballistic missile (FBM) submarines since the first Polaris submarine went on patrol in 1960; that is to be able to launch some or all of their complement of missiles at any time they are required to. To this end, the submarines must remain undetected by potential enemies, forever awaiting a message that they hope will never come. Various technologies have been brought together to make this possible. The missile itself principally consists of nuclear warheads inside protective reentry bodies, a guidance system, and steerable propulsion. Once fired, it becomes independent and cannot be recalled or destroyed (except for test missiles). The pattern for FBM patrols was set by Polaris which initially was restricted to the Norwegian Sea because of the missile's short range. Standard practice was for three submarines to form what is called a chain.