THAAD Development

NMaude said:
According to the wikipedia article ERIS was a precursor for both the THAAD and GBI interceptors.
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It was certainly before THAAD but ERIS was an exoatmospheric KKV (it's in the name; Exoatmospheric Reentry-vehicle Interceptor Subsystem, or ERIS). It had no endoatmospheric capability. KITE and AIT fed into THAAD.

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"Funded concurrently with the ERIS, the HEDI program looked to develop technology for a ground launched endoatmospheric component of a layered defense architecture.55 HEDI interceptors were to defeat missiles at the end of their midcourse and into the terminal phase of flight. While no intercepts were attempted, HEDI technology contributed to what is now known as the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system."
 
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sferrin said:
It was certainly before THAAD but ERIS was an exoatmospheric KKV (it's in the name; Exoatmospheric Reentry-vehicle Interceptor Subsystem, or ERIS). It had no endoatmospheric capability. KITE and AIT fed into THAAD.
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I suspect that any contribution ERIS made to THAAD was its IIR sensor technology.
 
NMaude said:
Isn't that the case with the THAAD's seeker too?
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So they can have a layer of "cool" gas between the seeker window and the airstream. I read somewhere that it becomes a balancing act between going too fast and melting the window, and going too slow, running out of gas, and melting the window. On top of that you have to eject the shroud early enough so your seeker has time to acquire the target and the KKV can get in position but not so early that you run out of coolant.


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Defense Updates has a video about the THAAD's recent evaluation at Guam:


The US Army has announced that Task Force Talon’s E-3 ADA THAAD Battery recently carried out a Table VIII evaluation for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system stationed in Guam from March 11 to 15, 2024.
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With its state-of-the-art components, the E-3 THAAD Battery serves as a formidable shield against potential ballistic missile threats targeting Guam and its vicinity. The recent completion of the Table VIII evaluation reaffirms the unit's preparedness to effectively deter and counter emerging security challenges, particularly those originating from China, amidst the evolving regional security dynamics.
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In this video, Defense Updates analyzes why THAAD's intense evaluation in Guam is crucial ?
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#defenseupdates #THAAD #usvschina
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Chapters:
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00:11 INTRODUCTION
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01:53 DISCLOSURE
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03:19 CHINESE THREAT ON GUAM
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05:25 THAAD
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07:51 ANALYSIS
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I think we're going to end up seeing a lot more hypersonic-capable SAM TELs getting deployed out and away from their main radar units.

Simply because intercepting a hypersonic whatever means the interceptor needs to be very close to the target to be able to make the intercept at all.
 
If the radar is 80 km/ 50 miles away from the THAAD with its remote launcher kit the radar horizon will be approx 40,000 ft so assume it will not see the "low" level hypersonic attacking missile coming unless radar near the line of attack?
 
Cordy said:
If the radar is 80 km/ 50 miles away from the THAAD with its remote launcher kit the radar horizon will be approx 40,000 ft so assume it will not see the "low" level hypersonic attacking missile coming unless radar near the line of attack?
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I strongly doubt anything will be hypersonic at much under 80,000ft for any length of time. Too much air friction, too much heat. They'll climb to 80+k then cruise or glide that high till it reaches the terminal dive point. ASALM burned itself up at roughly Mach 6 and ~20kft, though it wasn't super exotic materials, just stainless steel.

In the case ofASALM, at low altitudes the Mach numberis rather low: around 2.5 to 3. The higher cruise Mach number of 4 takesplace only in the thinner, colder air uparound 80,000 feet. On a "standardday", at 20,000 feet Mach 2.5 theworst case is soakout to the recovery temperature, which is very near the stagnation temperatureof 547 F (286 C). At 80,000 feet Mach4, it is around 1211 F (655 C). These are temperatures that a Martensiticstainless steel can handle without too much loss of strength. However, at Mach 6 and 20,000 feet for the throttle runaway incident in flighttest 1, these temperatures were quiteunsurvivable for steady-state exposure, at3209 F (1765 C), which neatly explainsthe telemetry about the skin beginning to melt during this brief transientevent.
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Not even Titanium would survive that, since Ti melts at 1941K/1668degC. You'd have to use (very fragile) reinforced carbon-carbon to survive that kind of heat. RCC can happily take over 2000degC. RCC is also expensive with a complex and time-consuming manufacturing process.
 
Given that the proposed THAAD-ER used a 21" diameter first-stage instead of a totally new LV stack (The THAAD-ER would've used the same KKV as the standard THAAD) just mount the KKV (With a suitable adapter) on top of the SM-3 Block-IIA missile in place of the Raytheon EKV.
 
NMaude said:
Given that the proposed THAAD-ER used a 21" diameter first-stage instead of a totally new LV stack (The THAAD-ER would've used the same KKV as the standard THAAD) just mount the KKV (With a suitable adapter) on top of the SM-3 Block-IIA missile in place of the Raytheon EKV.
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For land-based use only. The Navy is not putting a hydrazine-powered kill vehicle on its ships.
 
TomS said:
For land-based use only. The Navy is not putting a hydrazine-powered kill vehicle on its ships.
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Well, yes, of course and I wonder if that missile combination would fit into a Mk-41 VLS cell (Is it too long?). As for the hydrazine DACS it shouldn't be too hard to develop a version for the THAAD KKV based on the SM-3's SDACS.
 
NMaude said:
Well, yes, of course and I wonder if that missile combination would fit into a Mk-41 VLS cell (Is it too long?). As for the hydrazine DACS it shouldn't be too hard to develop a version for the THAAD KKV based on the SM-3's SDACS.
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What is the end goal then? Is this just to enable SM-3 endo atmospheric engagements?
 
Josh_TN said:
Is this just to enable SM-3 endo atmospheric engagements?
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Basically, yes. The problem with the SM-3's EKV is that it can only perform exo-atmospheric intercepts (IIRC it has a minimum operating height of 195,000Ft) also using the SM-3 Block-IIA booster stack with the minimum needed modifications to fit the THAAD KKV on top avoids the need of having to develop a completely new booster stack for a THAAD-ER.

Edited to add: The shelved THAAD-ER was a two-stage design, what I'm suggesting would be a three-stage design with much higher performance.
 
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NMaude said:
Basically, yes. The problem with the SM-3's EKV is that it can only perform exo-atmospheric intercepts (IIRC it has a minimum operating height of 195,000Ft) also using the SM-3 Block-IIA booster stack with the minimum needed modifications to fit the THAAD KKV on top avoids the need of having to develop a completely new booster stack for a THAAD-ER.

Edited to add: The shelved THAAD-ER was a two-stage design, what I'm suggesting would be a three-stage design with much higher performance.
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So a phat SM-6 with a THAAD KKV?

No idea.jpg
 
sferrin said:
So a phat SM-6 with a THAAD KKV?

View attachment 728731
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You could go either with a two-stage layout - Mk-72 launch booster and 21" DTRM with the THAAD KKV mounted on top with a conical adapter (Perhaps contain the booster's autopilot) or a three-stage booster stack - Mk-72, 21" DTRM and 21" TSRM with the THAAD KKV mounted atop the TSRM via a conical adapter.
 
NMaude said:
You could go either with a two-stage layout - Mk-72 launch booster and 21" DTRM with the THAAD KKV mounted on top with a conical adapter (Perhaps contain the booster's autopilot) or a three-stage booster stack - Mk-72, 21" DTRM and 21" TSRM with the THAAD KKV mounted atop the TSRM via a conical adapter.
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DTRM? TSRM?
 

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