Warhead

The procedures commonly used to demilitari2e conventional munitions iaclude munitions disassembly, washout or steamout of explosives from projectiles and warheads, iaciaeration of reclaimed explosives, and open burning or detonation. Open burning and detonation of large quantities of... 

Supply Projections. Additional supphes are expected to be necessary to meet the projected production shortfall. A significant contribution is likely to come from uranium production centers such as Eastern Europe and Asia, which are not included in the capabihty projections (27). The remaining shortfall between fresh production and reactor requirements is expected to be filled by several alternative sources, including excess inventory drawdown. These shortfalls could also be met by the utili2ation of low cost resources that could become available as a result of technical developments or pohcy changes, production from either low or higher cost resources not identified in production capabihty projections, recycled material such as spent fuel, and low enriched uranium converted from the high enriched uranium (HEU) found in warheads (28). 

Once all technical and pohtical problems are resolved, reactor-grade uranium produced from HEU warhead material could contribute significantly to meeting the anticipated fresh uranium production shortfall. This source, however, is not expected to have a significant impact until the year 2000 or later. The discovery of new low cost resources is not expected to make a significant contribution to production until after the year 2005 because of the very low level of uranium exploration and the relatively long lead times required to develop new production centers (29). 

The amount of HEU that becomes avadable for civdian use through the 1990s and into the twenty-first century depends on the number of warheads removed from nuclear arsenals and the amount of HEU in the weapons complex that is already outside of the warheads, ie, materials stockpdes and spent naval reactor fuels. An illustrative example of the potential amounts of weapons-grade materials released from dismanded nuclear weapons is presented in Table 7 (36). Using the data in Table 7, a reduction in the number of warheads in nuclear arsenals of the United States and Russia to 5000 warheads for each country results in a surplus of 1140 t of HEU. This inventory of HEU is equivalent to 205,200 t of natural uranium metal, or approximately 3.5 times the 1993 annual demand for natural uranium equivalent. 

Number of warheads per arsenal United States Russia U.K., Prance, and China ... 

A = weapon-grade uranium that would be released from warheads after reducing to warhead number in left-hand column B = value in column A plus weapon-grade uranium already held outside warheads. 

Most modem projectiles and virtually all missiles contain explosives. The plasmas that result from explosives are intrinsic to operation of warheads, bombs, mines, and related devices. Nuclear weapons and plasmas are intimately related. Plasmas are an inevitable result of the detonation of fission and fusion devices and are fundamental to the operation of fusion devices. Compressed pellets, in which a thermonuclear reaction occurs, would be useful militarily for simulation of the effects of nuclear weapons on materials and devices. 

Missile payload varies from nuclear, through HE fitted with proximity fuzes, to chemical warheads. Electronic countermeasures equip-... 

Negro. A Ger manned torpedo of WWII, The pilot rode on a manually controlled electric torpedo with its warhead removed. He sat in a 20" plastic dome which rode just above the water. Attached beneath this vehicle was a regular electric torpedo with a live warhead which could be launched by the pilot Ref J. Quick, Dictionary of Weapons and Military Terms , McGraw-Hill, NY (1973), 322... 

Neutron Kill. A method of destroying objects, including enemy nuclear warheads in the atmosphere,... 

Nord SS.12. A spin-stabilized, wire-guided surface-to-surface missile system derived from the Nord SS.ll. The principal change is the incorporation of a much larger warhead (29.9kg of HE) which makes it effective against fortifications as well as tanks, ships and other vehicles. Available warheads include the Type OP.3C which can pierce... 

Nudets. A US nuclear detonation warning system. A matrix of seismic sensors spread thruout the USA intended to estimate the point of impact and power of nuclear-detonated nuclear warheads Ref E. Luttwak, A Dictionary of Modem War , Harper Row, NY (1971), 147-R... 

Another variable peculiar to composite, cast expls that must be controlled to achieve precision penetration and predictable destructiveness is the variation in density and compn of the expl within the warhead. In melt-loading operations with Octol, problems occur which do not arise in meltloading with TNT, Composition B, or Cyclotol. Specifically, there is a large amount of settling of HMX crystals while the charge is still molten. 

Partridge, Octol Melt-Loading Operations for the Ml8 Warhead , PATM 1740 (1965)... 

W. Larsen, Production Engineering Performance Evaluation and Reliability Assessment of the M131E1 Shillelagh Warhead , PATR 3617 (1967) 17) A. Reichel, Gegossene Spreng-... 

N. Maropis, Ultrasonic Enhancement of Explosives Melt-Casting in Shaped-Charge Warheads , RR 70-32, Technidyne Incorporated, West Chester, Pa (1 70) 23) L. Friedel, G. 

Distribution and Octol Density Variation in Shaped Charge Warheads (Shillelagh, TOW, DRAGON) , FATM 2134 (April 1974)... 

J.R. Hendrickson, Sr, Spatial Variations in Density and HMX Content in Octol Charges of M207 (TOW) and XM255 (DRAGON) Warheads , PATR 4716 (1975) 39) M. Hocken-... 

Volume III. Warhead , AFATL TR-67-13-Vol-3 (1967) (Conf) E) L. Aemow J.J. Piechocki, Multiple Fragment Impact Damage Study , DA-18-017-AMC-3447 (A) (1967) (Conf) F) R.E. Vincent, Scaled Prototype Warhead Study for Dragon (Medium Anti-Tank/ Assault Weapon-Maw) , DRD-15 (1967) (Conf) G) W.H. Snyder C.R, Hoggatt, Performance... 

Conf) O) Anon, Tripartite Anti-Tank Trials and Lethality Evaluation. Part II. Volume I. 1. Warhead Design Data. 

Kennedy A.W. Hall, X-Charge Investigation , FMC-338-001 (Jan 1974) (ConO U) D.R. Kennedy ir aj. meaacngci, rtliuauie v-.yiiuimi Warhead Prototype Development , AFATL TR-74-56 (1974) (ConO JJ) D.H. Mallory, Sequential Jet Shaped Charge , NWC-TR-5534... 

Orbital Bomb. A satellite contg a nuclear warhead which circles the earth in a low orbit and which can be commanded to descend on a particular target. No such weapons are now known to be operational, and their deployment would be prohibited under the terms of the Outer Space Treaty of 1966. However, this treaty does not prohibit anything making less than a full circle around the earth, hence the FOBS... 

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