90-448: A rocketeer is a person who uses rockets . It may also refer to: Rocket A rocket (from Italian : rocchetto , lit. ''bobbin/spool'', and so named for its shape) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using any surrounding air . A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely from propellant carried within
180-464: A rocket if it is unguided. Anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles use rocket engines to engage targets at high speed at a range of several miles, while intercontinental ballistic missiles can be used to deliver multiple nuclear warheads from thousands of miles, and anti-ballistic missiles try to stop them. Rockets have also been tested for reconnaissance , such as the Ping-Pong rocket , which
270-420: A multi-stage rocket , and also pioneered the concept of a rocket launch pad (a rocket standing upright against a tall building before launch having been slowly rolled into place) and the rocket-launch countdown clock. The Guardian film critic Stephen Armstrong states Lang "created the rocket industry". Lang was inspired by the 1923 book The Rocket into Interplanetary Space by Hermann Oberth, who became
360-565: A nozzle . They may also have one or more rocket engines , directional stabilization device(s) (such as fins , vernier engines or engine gimbals for thrust vectoring , gyroscopes ) and a structure (typically monocoque ) to hold these components together. Rockets intended for high speed atmospheric use also have an aerodynamic fairing such as a nose cone , which usually holds the payload. As well as these components, rockets can have any number of other components, such as wings ( rocketplanes ), parachutes , wheels ( rocket cars ), even, in
450-399: A rocket engine in the form of a fluid jet to produce thrust . For chemical rockets often the propellants are a fuel such as liquid hydrogen or kerosene burned with an oxidizer such as liquid oxygen or nitric acid to produce large volumes of very hot gas. The oxidiser is either kept separate and mixed in the combustion chamber, or comes premixed, as with solid rockets. Sometimes
540-475: A vehicle may usefully employ for propulsion, such as in space. In these circumstances, it is necessary to carry all the propellant to be used. However, they are also useful in other situations: Some military weapons use rockets to propel warheads to their targets. A rocket and its payload together are generally referred to as a missile when the weapon has a guidance system (not all missiles use rocket engines, some use other engines such as jets ) or as
630-462: A 4.8 kg (11 lb) lead ball. The great general and divine cannons were the last indigenous Chinese cannon designs prior to the incorporation of European models in the 16th century. When the Portuguese reached China in the early 16th century, they were unimpressed with Chinese firearms compared with their own. With the progression of the earliest European arquebus to the matchlock and
720-773: A body of theory that has provided the foundation for subsequent spaceflight development. The British Royal Flying Corps designed a guided rocket during World War I . Archibald Low stated "...in 1917 the Experimental Works designed an electrically steered rocket… Rocket experiments were conducted under my own patents with the help of Cdr. Brock ." The patent "Improvements in Rockets" was raised in July 1918 but not published until February 1923 for security reasons. Firing and guidance controls could be either wire or wireless. The propulsion and guidance rocket eflux emerged from
810-412: A bore-filling projectile; rather, they were designed for the low-nitrate flamethrower fire lance that shot small coviative missiles. This was called the "bandit-striking penetrating gun" (ji zei bian chong). Some of these low–nitrate gunpowder flamethrowers used poisonous mixtures such as arsenious oxide , and would blast a spray of porcelain shards as fragmentation . Another fire lance described in
900-415: A cardboard tube filled with black powder , but to make an efficient, accurate rocket or missile involves overcoming a number of difficult problems. The main difficulties include cooling the combustion chamber, pumping the fuel (in the case of a liquid fuel), and controlling and correcting the direction of motion. Rockets consist of a propellant , a place to put propellant (such as a propellant tank ), and
990-432: A chemical reaction is initiated between the fuel and the oxidizer in the combustion chamber, and the resultant hot gases accelerate out of a rocket engine nozzle (or nozzles ) at the rearward-facing end of the rocket. The acceleration of these gases through the engine exerts force ("thrust") on the combustion chamber and nozzle, propelling the vehicle (according to Newton's Third Law ). This actually happens because
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#17327880855441080-499: A decomposing monopropellant ) that emit a hot exhaust gas . A rocket engine can use gas propellants, solid propellant , liquid propellant , or a hybrid mixture of both solid and liquid . Some rockets use heat or pressure that is supplied from a source other than the chemical reaction of propellant(s), such as steam rockets , solar thermal rockets , nuclear thermal rocket engines or simple pressurized rockets such as water rocket or cold gas thrusters . With combustive propellants
1170-530: A failed launch. A successful escape of a crewed capsule occurred when Soyuz T-10 , on a mission to the Salyut 7 space station , exploded on the pad. Solid rocket propelled ejection seats are used in many military aircraft to propel crew away to safety from a vehicle when flight control is lost. A model rocket is a small rocket designed to reach low altitudes (e.g., 100–500 m (330–1,640 ft) for 30 g (1.1 oz) model) and be recovered by
1260-435: A fixed location on the ground, but would also be possible from an aircraft or ship. Rocket launch technologies include the entire set of systems needed to successfully launch a vehicle, not just the vehicle itself, but also the firing control systems , mission control center , launch pad , ground stations , and tracking stations needed for a successful launch or recovery or both. These are often collectively referred to as
1350-402: A frame shaped like a dragon, or else conveniently a tube of wood or bamboo to contain it. In the late 14th century, the rocket launching tube was combined with the fire lance. This involved three tubes attached to the same staff. As the first rocket tube was fired, a charge was ignited in the leading tube which expelled a blinding lachrymatory powder at the enemy, and finally the second rocket
1440-561: A high pressure combustion chamber . These nozzles turn the hot gas from the combustion chamber into a cooler, hypersonic , highly directed jet of gas, more than doubling the thrust and raising the engine efficiency from 2% to 64%. His use of liquid propellants instead of gunpowder greatly lowered the weight and increased the effectiveness of rockets. In 1921, the Soviet research and development laboratory Gas Dynamics Laboratory began developing solid-propellant rockets , which resulted in
1530-543: A pointed tip traveling at high speeds, model rocketry historically has proven to be a very safe hobby and has been credited as a significant source of inspiration for children who eventually become scientists and engineers . Hobbyists build and fly a wide variety of model rockets. Many companies produce model rocket kits and parts but due to their inherent simplicity some hobbyists have been known to make rockets out of almost anything. Rockets are also used in some types of consumer and professional fireworks . A water rocket
1620-614: A rail at extremely high speed. The world record for this is Mach 8.5. Larger rockets are normally launched from a launch pad that provides stable support until a few seconds after ignition. Due to their high exhaust velocity—2,500 to 4,500 m/s (9,000 to 16,200 km/h; 5,600 to 10,100 mph)—rockets are particularly useful when very high speeds are required, such as orbital speed at approximately 7,800 m/s (28,000 km/h; 17,000 mph). Spacecraft delivered into orbital trajectories become artificial satellites , which are used for many commercial purposes. Indeed, rockets remain
1710-693: A reference to 1264, recording that the "ground-rat", a type of firework , had frightened the Empress-Mother Gongsheng at a feast held in her honor by her son the Emperor Lizong . Subsequently, rockets are included in the military treatise Huolongjing , also known as the Fire Drake Manual, written by the Chinese artillery officer Jiao Yu in the mid-14th century. This text mentions the first known multistage rocket ,
1800-504: A sense, a person ( rocket belt ). Vehicles frequently possess navigation systems and guidance systems that typically use satellite navigation and inertial navigation systems . Rocket engines employ the principle of jet propulsion . The rocket engines powering rockets come in a great variety of different types; a comprehensive list can be found in the main article, Rocket engine . Most current rockets are chemically powered rockets (usually internal combustion engines , but some employ
1890-454: A solid combination of fuel with oxidizer ( solid fuel ), or solid fuel with liquid or gaseous oxidizer ( hybrid propellant system ). Chemical rockets store a large amount of energy in an easily released form, and can be very dangerous. However, careful design, testing, construction and use minimizes risks. In China, gunpowder -powered rockets evolved in medieval China under the Song dynasty by
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#17327880855441980-724: A variety of means. According to the United States National Association of Rocketry (nar) Safety Code, model rockets are constructed of paper, wood, plastic and other lightweight materials. The code also provides guidelines for motor use, launch site selection, launch methods, launcher placement, recovery system design and deployment and more. Since the early 1960s, a copy of the Model Rocket Safety Code has been provided with most model rocket kits and motors. Despite its inherent association with extremely flammable substances and objects with
2070-435: Is a "poison-fog divine smoke eruptor," in which "blinding gunpowder" and "poisonous gunpowder" were packed into hollow shells used in burning the faces and eyes of enemies, along with choking them with a formidable spray of poisonous smoke. Cannons were mounted on frames or on wheeled carriages so that they could be rotated to change directions. The Huolongjing also contains a hand held organ gun with up to ten barrels. For
2160-409: Is a Chinese military treatise compiled and edited by Jiao Yu and Liu Bowen of the early Ming dynasty (1368–1683) during the 14th century. The Huolongjing is primarily based on the text known as Huolong Shenqi Tufa ( Illustrations of Divine Fire Dragon Engines ), which no longer exists. The Huolongjing' s intended function was to serve as a guide to "fire weapons" involving gunpowder during
2250-416: Is a type of model rocket using water as its reaction mass. The pressure vessel (the engine of the rocket) is usually a used plastic soft drink bottle. The water is forced out by a pressurized gas, typically compressed air. It is an example of Newton's third law of motion. The scale of amateur rocketry can range from a small rocket launched in one's own backyard to a rocket that reached space. Amateur rocketry
2340-484: Is considered by some historians to be the ancestor of modern cluster munitions. Needham says that the written material and illustration of this rocket come from the oldest stratum of the Huolongjing , which can be dated to about 1300-1350 from the book's part 1, chapter 3, page 23. The fire lance or fire tube—a combination of a firearm and flamethrower —had been adapted and changed into several different forms by
2430-406: Is less necessary, a pressurised fluid is used as propellant that simply escapes the spacecraft through a propelling nozzle. The first liquid-fuel rocket , constructed by Robert H. Goddard , differed significantly from modern rockets. The rocket engine was at the top and the fuel tank at the bottom of the rocket, based on Goddard's belief that the rocket would achieve stability by "hanging" from
2520-558: Is split into three categories according to total engine impulse : low-power, mid-power, and high-power . Hydrogen peroxide rockets are used to power jet packs , and have been used to power cars and a rocket car holds the all time (albeit unofficial) drag racing record. Corpulent Stump is the most powerful non-commercial rocket ever launched on an Aerotech engine in the United Kingdom. Launches for orbital spaceflights , or into interplanetary space , are usually from
2610-580: Is the Heilongjiang hand cannon , dated to 1288 using contextual evidence. The History of Yuan records that in that year a rebellion of the Christian Mongol prince Nayan broke out and the Jurchen commander Li Ting who, along with a Korean brigade conscripted by Kublai Khan , suppressed Nayan's rebellion using hand cannons and portable bombards . The predecessor of the metal barrel
2700-496: The 'fire-dragon issuing from the water' (Huo long chu shui), thought to have been used by the Chinese navy. Medieval and early modern rockets were used militarily as incendiary weapons in sieges . Between 1270 and 1280, Hasan al-Rammah wrote al-furusiyyah wa al-manasib al-harbiyya ( The Book of Military Horsemanship and Ingenious War Devices ), which included 107 gunpowder recipes, 22 of them for rockets. In Europe, Roger Bacon mentioned firecrackers made in various parts of
2790-414: The Huolongjing was called the 'lotus bunch' shot arrows accompanied by a fiery blast. In addition to fire lances, the Huolongjing also illustrates a tall, vertical, mobile shield used to hide and protect infantry, known as the "mysteriously moving phalanx -breaking fierce-flame sword-shield". This large, rectangular shield would have been mounted on wheels with five rows of six circular holes each where
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2880-616: The Italian rocchetta , meaning "bobbin" or "little spindle", given due to the similarity in shape to the bobbin or spool used to hold the thread from a spinning wheel. Leonhard Fronsperger and Conrad Haas adopted the Italian term into German in the mid-16th century; "rocket" appears in English by the early 17th century. Artis Magnae Artilleriae pars prima , an important early modern work on rocket artillery , by Casimir Siemienowicz ,
2970-710: The Jurchen conquerors of Kaifeng City in 1126. An even earlier text, the Wujing Zongyao (武经总要, "Collection of the Most Important Military Techniques"), written in 1044 by Song scholars Zeng Gongliang and Yang Weide, described the use of three spring or triple bow arcuballista that fired arrow bolts holding gunpowder. Although written in 1630 (second edition in 1664), the Wulixiaoshi of Fang Yizhi said that fire arrows were presented to Emperor Taizu of Song in 960. Even after
3060-743: The Red Turban Rebellion and revolt against the Yuan dynasty , while the oldest material found in his text dates to 1280. Jiao Yu was a firearm manufacturer for the first Ming emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang , during the mid-14th century. He was eventually put in charge of the Shenjiying armoury where all the firearms were stored. A second and third volume to the Huolongjing known as Huolongjing Erji ( Fire Dragon Manual Volume Two ) and Huolongjing Sanji ( Fire Dragon Manual Volume Three ) were published in 1632 with content describing weapons such as
3150-557: The Saturn V and Soyuz , have launch escape systems . This is a small, usually solid rocket that is capable of pulling the crewed capsule away from the main vehicle towards safety at a moments notice. These types of systems have been operated several times, both in testing and in flight, and operated correctly each time. This was the case when the Safety Assurance System (Soviet nomenclature) successfully pulled away
3240-549: The musket and breech-loading cannons. After the end of the Ming dynasty , the Qing dynasty outlawed reprinting of the Huolongjing for using expressions such as 'northern barbarians,' which offended the ruling Manchu elite. Although its destructive force was widely recognized by the 11th century, gunpowder continued to be known as a "fire-drug" (huo yao) because of its original intended pharmaceutical properties. However soon after
3330-496: The wheellock , and the advent of the flintlock musket of the 17th century, they surpassed the level of earlier Chinese firearms. Illustrations of Ottoman and European riflemen with detailed illustrations of their weapons appeared in Zhao Shizhen's book Shenqipu of 1598, and Ottoman and European firearms were held in great esteem. However, by the 17th century Đại Việt had also been manufacturing muskets of their own, which
3420-475: The " ground segment ". Orbital launch vehicles commonly take off vertically, and then begin to progressively lean over, usually following a gravity turn trajectory. Huolongjing The Huolongjing ( traditional Chinese : 火龍經 ; simplified Chinese : 火龙经 ; pinyin : Huǒ Lóng Jīng ; Wade-Giles : Huo Lung Ching ; rendered in English as Fire Drake Manual or Fire Dragon Manual ), also known as Huoqitu (“Firearm Illustrations”),
3510-432: The "divine rocket-arrow block". Rockets described in the Huolongjing were not all in the shape of standard fire arrows and some had artificial wings attached. An illustration shows that fins were used to increase aerodynamic stability for the flight path of the rocket, which according to Jiao Yu could rise hundreds of feet before landing at the designated enemy target. The Huolongjing also describes and illustrates
3600-543: The "match-holding lance gun" (chi huo–sheng qiang), it described its arrangement as a match brought down to the touch hole of three gun barrels, one after the other. During the reign of the Yongle Emperor (1402–1424), the Shenjiying , a specialized military body, was in part a cavalry force that utilized tubes filled with inflammable materials holstered to their sides, and also a firearm infantry division that handled light artillery and their transportation, including
3690-424: The 'submarine dragon–king' is made of wrought iron, and carried on a (submerged) wooden board, [appropriately weighted with stones]. The (mine) is enclosed in an ox-bladder. Its subtlety lies in the fact that a thin incense(–stick) is arranged (to float) above the mine in a container. The (burning) of this joss stick determines the time at which the fuse is ignited, but without air its glowing would of course go out, so
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3780-494: The 1280s to 1350s. Its predecessor, the Huolong Shenqi Tufa (Fire-Drake Illustrated Technology of Magically (Efficacious) Weapons), has since been lost. The Huolongjing was one of three early Ming military treatises that were mentioned by Jiao Xu, but only the Huolongjing remains. Although the earliest edition of the Huolongjing was written by Jiao Yu, a Ming general, sometime between 1360-1375, its preface
3870-569: The 13th century. They also developed an early form of multiple rocket launcher during this time. The Mongols adopted Chinese rocket technology and the invention spread via the Mongol invasions to the Middle East and to Europe in the mid-13th century. According to Joseph Needham, the Song navy used rockets in a military exercise dated to 1245. Internal-combustion rocket propulsion is mentioned in
3960-572: The Congreve rocket in 1865. William Leitch first proposed the concept of using rockets to enable human spaceflight in 1861. Leitch's rocket spaceflight description was first provided in his 1861 essay "A Journey Through Space", which was later published in his book God's Glory in the Heavens (1862). Konstantin Tsiolkovsky later (in 1903) also conceived this idea, and extensively developed
4050-571: The L3 capsule during three of the four failed launches of the Soviet Moon rocket, N1 vehicles 3L, 5L and 7L . In all three cases the capsule, albeit uncrewed, was saved from destruction. Only the three aforementioned N1 rockets had functional Safety Assurance Systems. The outstanding vehicle, 6L , had dummy upper stages and therefore no escape system giving the N1 booster a 100% success rate for egress from
4140-591: The Ming considered to be superior to both European and Ottoman firearms, including Japanese imports as well. Vietnamese firearms were copied and disseminated throughout China in quick order. The 16th-century breech-loading model entered China around 1517 when Fernão Pires de Andrade arrived in China. However, he and the Portuguese embassy were rejected as problems in Ming-Portuguese relations were exacerbated when
4230-439: The Ming wars. Chinese cannon development reached internal maturity with the muzzle loading wrought iron "great general cannon" (大將軍炮), otherwise known by its heavier variant name "great divine cannon" (大神銃), which could weigh up to 600 kg (1,300 lb) and was capable of firing several iron balls and upward of a hundred iron shots at once. The lighter "great general cannon" weighed up to 360 kg (790 lb) and could fire
4320-520: The Mongols in 1259, the official Li Zengbo wrote in his Ko Zhai Za Gao, Xu Gao Hou that the city of Qingzhou was manufacturing one to two thousand strong iron-cased bomb shells a month, and delivered them to Xiangyang and Yingzhou in loads of about ten to twenty thousand shells at a time. The Huolongjing' s primary contribution to gunpowder was in expanding its role as a chemical weapon. Jiao Yu proposed several gunpowder compositions in addition to
4410-460: The Song dynasty. In China, gunpowder weapons underwent significant technological changes which resulted in a vast array of weapons that eventually led to the cannon. The cannon's first confirmed use occurred during the Mongol Yuan dynasty in a suppression of rebel forces by Yuan Jurchen forces armed with hand cannons. Cannon development continued into the Ming and saw greater proliferation during
4500-441: The Song prohibited the populaces of Hedong ( Shanxi ) and Hebei from selling sulphur and saltpetre to foreigners. In 1132 gunpowder was referred to specifically for its military values for the first time and was called "fire bomb medicine" rather than "fire medicine". While Chinese gunpowder formulas by the late 12th century and at least 1230 were powerful enough for explosive detonations and bursting cast iron shells, gunpowder
4590-634: The Soviet Katyusha rocket in the artillery role, and the American anti tank bazooka projectile. These used solid chemical propellants. The Americans captured a large number of German rocket scientists , including Wernher von Braun, in 1945, and brought them to the United States as part of Operation Paperclip . After World War II scientists used rockets to study high-altitude conditions, by radio telemetry of temperature and pressure of
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#17327880855444680-779: The Soviet Union ( Vostok , Soyuz , Proton ) and in the United States (e.g. the X-15 ). Rockets came into use for space exploration . American crewed programs ( Project Mercury , Project Gemini and later the Apollo programme ) culminated in 1969 with the first crewed landing on the Moon – using equipment launched by the Saturn V rocket. Rocket vehicles are often constructed in the archetypal tall thin "rocket" shape that takes off vertically, but there are actually many different types of rockets including: A rocket design can be as simple as
4770-410: The air cannot escape the effects of the explosion". Explosive devices include the "flying-sand divine bomb releasing ten thousand fires", which consisted of a tube of gunpowder placed in an earthenware pot filled with quicklime , resin, and alcoholic extracts of poisonous plants. Jiao Yu called the earliest fire arrows shot from bows (not rocket launchers) "fiery pomegranate shot from a bow" because
4860-689: The atmosphere, detection of cosmic rays , and further techniques; note too the Bell X-1 , the first crewed vehicle to break the sound barrier (1947). Independently, in the Soviet Union's space program research continued under the leadership of the chief designer Sergei Korolev (1907–1966). During the Cold War rockets became extremely important militarily with the development of modern intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). The 1960s saw rapid development of rocket technology, particularly in
4950-454: The cannon, called the "eruptor", as a cast bronze device which had an average length of 53 inches (130 cm). He wrote that some cannons were simply filled with about 100 lead balls, but others, called the "flying-cloud thunderclap eruptor" (飞云霹雳炮; feiyun pili pao) had large rounds that produced a bursting charge upon impact. The ammunition consisted of hollow cast iron shells packed with gunpowder to create an explosive effect. Also mentioned
5040-404: The chemical formula for gunpowder was recorded in the Wujing Zongyao of 1044, evidence of state interference in gunpowder affairs began appearing. Realizing the military applications of gunpowder, the Song court banned private transactions involving sulphur and saltpeter in 1067 despite the widespread use of saltpeter as a flavor enhancer, and moved to monopolize gunpowder production. In 1076
5130-409: The container is connected with the mine by a (long) piece of goat's intestine (through which passes the fuse). At the upper end the (joss stick in the container) is kept floating by (an arrangement of) goose and wild–duck feathers, so that it moves up and down with the ripples of the water. On a dark (night) the mine is sent downstream (towards the enemy's ships), and when the joss stick has burnt down to
5220-410: The deflecting cowl at the nose. In 1920, Professor Robert Goddard of Clark University published proposed improvements to rocket technology in A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitudes . In 1923, Hermann Oberth (1894–1989) published Die Rakete zu den Planetenräumen ( The Rocket into Planetary Space ). Modern rockets originated in 1926 when Goddard attached a supersonic ( de Laval ) nozzle to
5310-463: The dynamics of rocket propulsion is due to William Moore (1813). In 1814, Congreve published a book in which he discussed the use of multiple rocket launching apparatus. In 1815 Alexander Dmitrievich Zasyadko constructed rocket-launching platforms, which allowed rockets to be fired in salvos (6 rockets at a time), and gun-laying devices. William Hale in 1844 greatly increased the accuracy of rocket artillery. Edward Mounier Boxer further improved
5400-425: The engine like a pendulum in flight. However, the rocket veered off course and crashed 184 feet (56 m) away from the launch site , indicating that the rocket was no more stable than one with the rocket engine at the base. Rockets or other similar reaction devices carrying their own propellant must be used when there is no other substance (land, water, or air) or force ( gravity , magnetism , light ) that
5490-609: The exhaust stream , propellant flow, spin , or gravity . Rockets for military and recreational uses date back to at least 13th-century China . Significant scientific, interplanetary and industrial use did not occur until the 20th century, when rocketry was the enabling technology for the Space Age , including setting foot on the Moon . Rockets are now used for fireworks , missiles and other weaponry , ejection seats , launch vehicles for artificial satellites , human spaceflight , and space exploration . Chemical rockets are
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#17327880855445580-698: The film's scientific adviser and later an important figure in the team that developed the V-2 rocket. The film was thought to be so realistic that it was banned by the Nazis when they came to power for fear it would reveal secrets about the V-2 rockets. In 1943 production of the V-2 rocket began in Germany. It was designed by the Peenemünde Army Research Center with Wernher von Braun serving as
5670-553: The fire lances could be placed. The shield itself would have been accompanied by swordsmen on either side to protect the gunmen. In China, the first cannon-barrel design portrayed in artwork was a stone sculpture dated to 1128 found in Sichuan province. The oldest extant cannon containing an inscription is a bronze cannon of China inscribed with the date, "2nd year of the Dade era, Yuan dynasty" (1298). The oldest confirmed extant cannon
5760-460: The first launch in 1928, which flew for approximately 1,300 metres. These rockets were used in 1931 for the world's first successful use of rockets for jet-assisted takeoff of aircraft and became the prototypes for the Katyusha rocket launcher , which were used during World War II . In 1929, Fritz Lang 's German science fiction film Woman in the Moon was released. It showcased the use of
5850-410: The force (pressure times area) on the combustion chamber wall is unbalanced by the nozzle opening; this is not the case in any other direction. The shape of the nozzle also generates force by directing the exhaust gas along the axis of the rocket. Rocket propellant is mass that is stored, usually in some form of propellant tank or casing, prior to being used as the propulsive mass that is ejected from
5940-489: The fuse, there is a great explosion. In the later Tiangong Kaiwu (The Exploitation of the Works of Nature) treatise, written by Song Yingxing in 1637, the ox bladder described by Jiao Yu is replaced with a lacquer bag and a cord pulled from a hidden ambusher located on the nearby shore, which would release a flint steel–wheel firing mechanism to ignite the fuse of the naval mine. Gunpowder warfare occurred in earnest during
6030-402: The handling of gun carriages. The first recorded use of land mines occurred in 1277 when officer Lou Qianxia of the late Song dynasty , who is credited with their invention, used them to kill Mongol soldiers. Jiao Yu wrote that land mines were spherical, made of cast iron, and their fuses were ignited by the enemy movement disturbing a trigger mechanism. Although his book did not elaborate on
6120-413: The late Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279). From the section of the oldest passages in the Huolongjing , the text reads: One uses a bamboo stick 4 ft 2 in long, with an iron (or steel) arrow–head 4.5 in long...behind the feathering there is an iron weight 0.4 in long. At the front end there is a carton tube bound on to the stick, where the 'rising gunpowder' is lit. When you want to fire it off, you use
6210-401: The lump of gunpowder–filled paper wrapped around the arrow below the metal arrowhead resembled the shape of a pomegranate . He advised that a piece of hemp cloth should be used to strengthen the wad of paper and sealed with molten pine resin . Although he described the fire arrow in great detail, it was mentioned by the much earlier Xia Shaozeng, when 20,000 fire arrows were handed over to
6300-463: The mines are connected by fuses through the gunpowder fire-ducts, and all originate from a steel wheel (gang lun). This must be well concealed from the enemy. On triggering the firing device the mines will explode, sending pieces of iron flying in all directions and shooting up flames towards the sky. For the use of naval mines, he wrote of slowly burning joss sticks that were disguised and timed to explode against enemy ships nearby: The sea–mine called
6390-401: The mines' fuses underground. The explosive mine is made of cast iron about the size of a rice-bowl, hollow inside with (black) powder rammed into it. A small bamboo tube is inserted and through this passes the fuse, while outside (the mine) a long fuse is led through fire-ducts. Pick a place where the enemy will have to pass through, dig pits and bury several dozen such mines in the ground. All
6480-482: The most common type of high power rocket, typically creating a high speed exhaust by the combustion of fuel with an oxidizer . The stored propellant can be a simple pressurized gas or a single liquid fuel that disassociates in the presence of a catalyst ( monopropellant ), two liquids that spontaneously react on contact ( hypergolic propellants ), two liquids that must be ignited to react (like kerosene (RP1) and liquid oxygen, used in most liquid-propellant rockets ),
6570-454: The oldest known multistage rocket ; this was the "fire-dragon issuing from the water" (huo long chu shui), which was known to be used by the Chinese navy. It was a two-stage rocket that had carrier or booster rockets that would automatically ignite a number of smaller rocket arrows that were shot out of the front end of the missile, which was shaped like a dragon's head with an open mouth, before eventually burning out. This multistage rocket
6660-479: The only way to launch spacecraft into orbit and beyond. They are also used to rapidly accelerate spacecraft when they change orbits or de-orbit for landing . Also, a rocket may be used to soften a hard parachute landing immediately before touchdown (see retrorocket ). Rockets were used to propel a line to a stricken ship so that a Breeches buoy can be used to rescue those on board. Rockets are also used to launch emergency flares . Some crewed rockets, notably
6750-470: The propellant is not burned but still undergoes a chemical reaction, and can be a 'monopropellant' such as hydrazine , nitrous oxide or hydrogen peroxide that can be catalytically decomposed to hot gas. Alternatively, an inert propellant can be used that can be externally heated, such as in steam rocket , solar thermal rocket or nuclear thermal rockets . For smaller, low performance rockets such as attitude control thrusters where high performance
6840-647: The rocket was invented in China the fire arrow was never entirely phased out: it saw use in the Second Opium War when Chinese used fire arrows against the French in 1860. By the time of Jiao Yu, the term "fire arrow" had taken on a new meaning and also referred to the earliest rockets found in China. The simple transition of this was to use a hollow tube instead of a bow or ballista firing gunpowder-impregnated fire arrows. The historian Joseph Needham wrote that this discovery came sometime before Jiao Yu during
6930-455: The standard potassium nitrate (saltpetre), sulphur, and charcoal. Described are the military applications of "divine gunpowder", "poison gunpowder", and "blinding and burning gunpowder." Poisonous gunpowder for hand-thrown or trebuchet launched bombs was created using a mixture of tung oil , urine, sal ammoniac , feces, and scallion juice heated and coated upon tiny iron pellets and broken porcelain. According to Jiao Yu, "even birds flying in
7020-549: The technical director. The V-2 became the first artificial object to travel into space by crossing the Kármán line with the vertical launch of MW 18014 on 20 June 1944. Doug Millard, space historian and curator of space technology at the Science Museum, London , where a V-2 is exhibited in the main exhibition hall, states: "The V-2 was a quantum leap of technological change. We got to the Moon using V-2 technology but this
7110-535: The time Jiao Yu edited the Huolongjing . The earliest depiction of a fire lance is dated c. 950, a Chinese painting on a silk banner found at the Buddhist site of Dunhuang . These early fire lances were made of bamboo tubes, but metal barrels had appeared during the 13th century, and shot gunpowder flames along with "coviative" projectiles such as small porcelain shards or metal scraps. The first metal barrels were not designed to withstand high-nitrate gunpowder and
7200-464: The trigger mechanism, it does mention the use of steel wheels as the trigger mechanism. The earliest illustration and description of the "steel wheel" mechanism was the Binglu of 1606. According to it, the steel wheel trigger mechanism utilized a pin release, dropping weights, cords and axles that worked to rotate a spinning "steel wheel" that rotated against a piece of flint to provide sparks that ignited
7290-586: The vehicle; therefore a rocket can fly in the vacuum of space. Rockets work more efficiently in a vacuum and incur a loss of thrust due to the opposing pressure of the atmosphere. Multistage rockets are capable of attaining escape velocity from Earth and therefore can achieve unlimited maximum altitude. Compared with airbreathing engines , rockets are lightweight and powerful and capable of generating large accelerations . To control their flight, rockets rely on momentum , airfoils , auxiliary reaction engines , gimballed thrust , momentum wheels , deflection of
7380-519: The world in the Opus Majus of 1267. Between 1280 and 1300, the Liber Ignium gave instructions for constructing devices that are similar to firecrackers based on second hand accounts. Konrad Kyeser described rockets in his military treatise Bellifortis around 1405. Giovanni Fontana , a Paduan engineer in 1420, created rocket-propelled animal figures. The name "rocket" comes from
7470-535: Was fielded in the Napoleonic Wars . It was Congreve rockets to which Francis Scott Key was referring, when he wrote of the "rockets' red glare" while held captive on a British ship that was laying siege to Fort McHenry in 1814. Together, the Mysorean and British innovations increased the effective range of military rockets from 100 to 2,000 yards (91 to 1,829 m). The first mathematical treatment of
7560-480: Was fired. An illustration of this appears in the Huolongjing , and a description of its effectiveness in obfuscating the location of the rockets from the enemy is provided. The Huolongjing also describes and illustrates two kinds of mounted rocket launchers that fired multiple rockets. There was a cylindrical, basket-work rocket launcher called the "Mr. Facing-both-ways rocket arrow firing basket", as well as an oblong-section, rectangular, box rocket launcher known as
7650-531: Was first printed in Amsterdam in 1650. The Mysorean rockets were the first successful iron-cased rockets, developed in the late 18th century in the Kingdom of Mysore (part of present-day India) under the rule of Hyder Ali . The Congreve rocket was a British weapon designed and developed by Sir William Congreve in 1804. This rocket was based directly on the Mysorean rockets, used compressed powder and
7740-498: Was launched to surveil enemy targets, however, recon rockets have never come into wide use in the military. Sounding rockets are commonly used to carry instruments that take readings from 50 kilometers (31 mi) to 1,500 kilometers (930 mi) above the surface of the Earth. The first images of Earth from space were obtained from a V-2 rocket in 1946 ( flight #13 ). Rocket engines are also used to propel rocket sleds along
7830-423: Was made more potent by applying the enrichment of sulphur from pyrite extracts. Chinese gunpowder solutions reached maximum explosive potential in the 14th century and at least six formulas are considered to have been optimal for creating explosive gunpowder, with levels of nitrate ranging from 12% to 91%. Evidence of large scale explosive gunpowder weapons manufacturing began to appear. While engaged in war with
7920-449: Was made of bamboo, which was recorded in use by a Chinese garrison commander at Anlu , Hubei province, in the year 1132. One of the earliest references to the destructive force of a cannon in China was made by Zhang Xian in 1341, with his verse known as The Iron Cannon Affair . Zhang wrote that its cannonball could "pierce the heart or belly when it strikes a man or horse, and can even transfix several persons at once". Jiao Yu describes
8010-615: Was not provided until the Nanyang publication of 1412. The 1412 edition, known as Huolongjing Quanji ( Complete Collection of the Fire Dragon Manual ), remains largely unchanged from its predecessor with the exception of its preface, which provides an account of Jiao Yu's time in the Hongwu Emperor 's army. In the preface Jiao Yu claims to describe gunpowder weapons that had seen use since 1355 during his involvement in
8100-645: Was technology that was developed with massive resources, including some particularly grim ones. The V-2 programme was hugely expensive in terms of lives, with the Nazis using slave labour to manufacture these rockets". In parallel with the German guided-missile programme, rockets were also used on aircraft , either for assisting horizontal take-off ( RATO ), vertical take-off ( Bachem Ba 349 "Natter") or for powering them ( Me 163 , see list of World War II guided missiles of Germany ). The Allies' rocket programs were less technological, relying mostly on unguided missiles like
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