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If nuclear war breaks out how many ICBMs can US missile defense shoot down as of today?
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
Cannot be determined.
The 1972 ABM treaty between the US and USSR limited each side to two ABM installations: one to protect its capital city and one to protect ICBM silos. The 1974 ABM treaty reduced this to one installation only. With the complications created by MIRVed missiles the US never formally developed its allowed single installation under these treaties.
Later treaties banned MIRVed missiles and with Star Wars development under Reagan and Bush there was much talk of abrogating the ABM treaties and implementing a blanket countrywide ABM defense system. But no such system resulted at the time.
This is about where I quit following the issue. However I have been informed that modern Patriot missiles could be used as they have performed well in Iraq against conventionally armed IRBMs. However their performance against nuclear armed ICBMs and SLBMs has yet to be determined. Also their use in that role to defend more than one location would be an abrogation of the ABM treaties, which I believe to still be in force.
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
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What is the difference between a Surface to Air Missile and a Theater Ballistic Missile?
SAMs (Surface to Air Missiles) which gained notoriety during the Vietnam War (shooting down B-52 bombers/and fighter bombers) are for air defense and are part of the air defense system; as were deployed by North Vietnam during the war. ICBMs (Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles=Nuclear Warheads/Atomic Weapons) were to supplement or replace manned bombers which were offensive weapons (aircraft=bombers) to strike enemy cities and other targets (missile sites, sea ports, air fields, repair facilities, ammuntion depots, factories, etc.).
What type of missile were in cuba during the Cuban missile crisis?
There were no missiles fired from anywhere during the Cuban Missile Crisis. There was at minimum one missile shot shot during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The Deputy of the Soviet Union Commander Gen. Issa Pliyev ordered a U-2 spy plane be shot at. The Deputy was Gen. Stepan Grechko. The missile was fired and the U-2 spy plane was shot down.
What was a result of H-bomb test in the 1950s?
Both the US and USSR had deliverable nuclear weapons in the 10+ megaton range by 1955.
Have ICBMs ever been used in wars?
No. The only nuclear weapon used in a war was when America dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and then shortly after on Nagasaki, there have been many tests since however.
Do you have to prepare for the nuclear war?
One should not use a definite article when describing a nuclear war. There could be many nuclear wars or none at all. You do not have to do anything because you can simply allow the nuclear bombs to fall and kill a large amount of people. However, to help prevent large amounts of casualties, a country may wish to have a large amount of patriot missiles to shoot down ICBMs and many bomb shelters for people to hide in.
What is Star Wars missile defense?
Star Wars Missile defense was proposed in the 1980's. It was a satellite network that utilized lasers and missiles to intercept and destroy ICBMs (intercontinental ballistic missile) while in low orbit before reentry into the atmosphere over the U. S.
How far is a long range missile?
ICBMs can cross continents!
Are all ICBMs nuclear?
They do not have to be, but launching an ICBM that could only destroy a single city block with a conventional warhead would generally be considered a waste of the expensive missile that launched it.
What is the range of pac3 missile?
20km against ICBMS. 160k against aircraft.
What is the difference between a Surface to Air Missile and a Theater Ballistic Missile?
SAMs (Surface to Air Missiles) which gained notoriety during the Vietnam War (shooting down B-52 bombers/and fighter bombers) are for air defense and are part of the air defense system; as were deployed by North Vietnam during the war. ICBMs (Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles=Nuclear Warheads/Atomic Weapons) were to supplement or replace manned bombers which were offensive weapons (aircraft=bombers) to strike enemy cities and other targets (missile sites, sea ports, air fields, repair facilities, ammuntion depots, factories, etc.).
Which missile is surface-to-surface ballistic missile?
Lots and lots. ICBMs and IRBMs are both types, as well as a wide range of anti-ship missiles, land attack cruise missiles, and other more eccentric varieties.
Who has the strongest nuclear weapons in the world?
If by strongest you mean highest yield, I believe this would be Russia. Current treaties allow them higher yield weapons because their ICBMs are somewhat less accurate than US ICBMs.
Does Russia still have nuclear weapons today?
Actually Russia now has 500 to 1000 more nuclear weapons than the USA due to limits set in the START treaty and they are higher yield, based on the fact that their ICBMs are less accurate than US ICBMs.
What is SALT 1 treaty and what did it do?
It was a five-year agreement that froze the number of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) at 1972 levels. The treaty also included an agreement restricting the development and deployment of antiballistic missile defense systems (ABMs), which were designed to shoot down attacking missiles.
Was America overreacting when they began nuclear attack awareness?
I do not believe we can know this until the USSR's archives are fully opened to historians, that will probably not happen for some time. However that said it is known that the US nuclear stockpile was significantly larger than the USSR nuclear stockpile until the late 1970s (this was not known by the US at the time) and the US ICBMs have been and still are more accurate than the USSR ICBMs.
How many countries have tested nuclear missiles?
Rarely are missiles tested with actual nuclear warheads. It would be utter foolishness and very dangerous to do so before the missile was tested and proven reliable first. The warhead(s) are usually replaced with radio telemetry devices or a satellite, during development testing of the missile, to verify its performance and reliability. This makes it very easy to codevelop a peaceful rocket for launching spacecraft and a military ICBM in the same project, if you already have or are developing nuclear explosives. Just think of the warheads the US could have put on Apollo Project type Saturn-IB boosters had we so chosen to use them as ICBMs!
What type of missile were in cuba during the Cuban missile crisis?
There were no missiles fired from anywhere during the Cuban Missile Crisis. There was at minimum one missile shot shot during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The Deputy of the Soviet Union Commander Gen. Issa Pliyev ordered a U-2 spy plane be shot at. The Deputy was Gen. Stepan Grechko. The missile was fired and the U-2 spy plane was shot down.
