as missile works

A missile is, briefly, a set of explosive embedded in a motor vehicle and controllable.

 The name comes from the verb mittere Latin, meaning "to send".

 The first model in widespread use was the V-1 from Nazi Germany.

 But it was during the Cold War they became popular. Reached the 80s and 90s as the most important weapons, because of the relative precision with which they could hit a specific target thousands of miles. 

Among them was, famous in the first Gulf War (1990-1991) Tomahawk model, widely used today and the base infographic below.

The farther one travels missile, the faster it should be.

 Hence, more powerful engine, more fuel it uses, and - only the full tank accounts for 89% of the total weight of the Tomahawk.

 The jet engine uses liquid fuel, the TH-dimer, but its propulsion system requires solid fuel, as used in the old space shuttle NASA 

electronic driver 

To travel at low altitudes towards the target, the weapon is equipped with a steering system that includes an altimeter and a GPS.

 A terrain analysis software works in real time to cross this information with the three-dimensional map of the path produced in advance time (incidentally, one of the problems of this model is it need previous data) 

The time bum 

The raison d'être of the gun is the warhead. 

The explosive a cruise missile can be chemical, biological, nuclear or arsonists. In Tomahawk, are the last two options.

 They are located at the end, with a titanium layer which prevents explode prematurely. There is also a ceramic cover to evade radars 

checked address 

As you approach the final goal, the targeting system DSMAC (Digital Scene Matching Area Correlation) is triggered.

 He compares the objects soil with extremely detailed images of the site in your memory bank.

 Thus, performs fine-tune the route, ensuring incredible precision: a missile of this model can hit a fixed target the size of a house 

Turn, turn, turn ... turned! 

To give support and precision to the path, the Tomahawk has two wings that open after launch.

 Unlike a common plane, the system uses all its flight surfaces to make adjustments in the route: it can for example rotate about its own axis. Corrections may be required by a technician on land or even by autopilot 

Besides the ballistic missiles, which draw a parabola toward the target, there are cruise, flying parallel to the ground