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LIM-49A Spartan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Spartan, designation LIM-49A, was a United States Army anti-ballistic missile. It was a three-stage, solid-fuel surface-to-air missile that carried a 5 megaton W71 thermonuclear warhead to intercept incoming warheads at high altitude. The missile was launched from an underground silo, and radio command guided. The warhead was designed to destroy incoming nuclear weapons by X-ray flux rather than by blast. This very kill mechanism was, however, a major cause contributing to the phase-out of the nuclear-warheads in the antiaircraft and anti-ballistic missile rockets - a high-altitude nuclear explosion produced a strong electromagnetic pulse (EMP) that would destroy unhardened (i.e. unshielded) electronic devices, especially those working on the solid state component base, like transistors, integrated circuits etc. The higher integration and subtler the parts, the more damage from the EMP-induced currents in the circuitry would occur, causing damage to computers, data and communication networks, power-generating plants and grids, air traffic control systems etc.
The Spartan missile was in operational service for only a few months, from October, 1975 to early 1976. A combination of high costs and the SALT I treaties made the missiles an unattractive bargain.
| Missile | Spartan |
| Length | 16.8 m overall |
| Diameter | 1.08 m |
| Fin span | 2.98 m |
| Mass | 13100 kg |
| Maximum speed | >Mach 4 |
| Range | 740 km |
| Ceiling | 560 km |
| First stage | Thiokol TX-500 2200 kN |
| Second stage | Thiokol TX-454 |
| Third stage | Thiokol TX-239 |
| Warhead nuclear | W-71 nuclear 5 Mt |
- Anti-ballistic missile
- Surface-to-air missile
- Sprint (missile)
- Nike-Hercules Missile
- Nike Zeus
- Safeguard Program
- Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles
- a further development of the Nike Zeus B missile
- pictures, data Thirty Spartan and approximately 60 nuclear-armed Sprint missiles were deployed...
- Stanley R. Mickelson Safeguard site
- index of pictures
- Mickelsen Safeguard Complex
- LIM-49
- W71 nuclear warhead for the Spartan
- picture