This vengeful Russian rocket "Satan"
Since the very moment when the maingeopolitical players - the USSR and the USA - unmanned delivery vehicles for nuclear munitions appeared, and a special phase of the arms race began. Each of the countries aspired to possess such technical means, which would allow to inflict an unpunished blow.
This competition had the downside: if a nuclear conflict does begin, the enemy, regardless of the success of his actions, must be punished. And this means that even in the event of the destruction of all the command structures of the troops, the death of the general staff and the government, deadly carriers can fly from the underground mines, pass through all the boundaries of anti-missile defense, and bring down a barrage of retribution on the aggressor's head.
The "Satan" rocket, created in the USSR and standing from 1975 to this day on combat duty, is able to perform such a task.
Actually, it's called differently -R-36M, and its complex includes, in addition to the rocket itself, many devices, including a protective container and various means of protection, which allow to maintain combat capability even in the event of a repeated nuclear strike in the area of deployment of the launch system. There is also a classification adopted in NATO, according to which all Soviet strategic means of delivery are designated by SS letters and a two-digit number. According to her, the rocket "Satan" carries the code SS-18.
It is not easy to deserve this name. The personification of universal evil inspires unlimited horror. On the question "why did the Americans call the R-36M complex?" You can find the answer if you become acquainted with the characteristics of this weapon. At the same time, more attention should be paid not to the lethal charges in the head part of the rocket (this is not surprising to anyone), but those qualities that make it practically invulnerable, both on the ground (or rather under it) and at all stages of the flight.
If the world reigns on the planet, but no one in Russiathreatens a nuclear strike, the intercontinental rocket "Satan" (our name - "Voevoda") may be in a special storage or stand on alert. In the latter case, it must be fueled, which theoretically reduces its service life. In order for the duration of the action to be as long as possible, the fuel used in the stages is ampulized. Activation of the tank contents occurs only after the command to start the engine.
The strategic missile "Satan" belongs to the classheavy, its mass exceeds two hundred tons. Accordingly, the weight that it can deliver to the target is also considerable - 7.3 tons. Modern nuclear munitions are relatively light, and even eight charges (and this possibility is provided for by the design) will easily lift a less powerful carrier.
The rocket "Satan" is made big because in itsIn addition to the main cargo, there are diverting targets designed to mislead the missile defense forces of the likely enemy. The total impact of the elements of the equipment is able to informationly saturate the computing power of any missile defense system, not only modern, but also promising.
To maintain the combat capability of weapons is very importantthe robustness of its control system to electromagnetic pulses. The rocket "Satan" will keep the combat course regardless of the intensity of the created jamming, and will create its own.
At the talks on START II, the US delegationinsistently proposed to exclude R-36M from the Russian arsenal, which suggests that this complex gives them concern. Nevertheless, at present more than one hundred and fifty launcher launchers of 308 Soviet are left on alert. While the rocket "Satan" is not obsolete (and this will happen, apparently, not soon), Russians can be sure that any aggressor will be careful to attack. However, there is reason to hope that the next generation of strategic weapons will be able to guarantee the reliable protection that is so necessary in today's complex world.
