Indigenous technology cruise missile
20.04.2024
Indigenous technology cruise missile
|
For Prelims: About Indigenous technology cruise missile, What is a Cruise missile?, Key Facts about DRDO |
Why in the news?
Recently, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted a successful flight test of a “long range subsonic indigenously developed cruise missile” from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur off the coast of Odisha.
About Indigenous technology cruise missile:
- It is equipped with advanced avionics and software to ensure better and reliable performance.
- It is developed by Bengaluru-based DRDO laboratory Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) along with contributions from other laboratories and Indian industries.
- It was monitored by several range sensors like radar, Electro Optical Tracking System (EOTS) and telemetry deployed by ITR at different locations to ensure complete coverage of the flight path.
What is a Cruise missile?
- It is a guided missile used against terrestrial or naval targets, that remains in the atmosphere (unlike ballistic missiles) and flies the major portion of its flight path at an approximately constant speed, before hitting the target.
- Precision: High, up to a few meters fit for small, moving targets.
- Trajectory: Low altitude, level trajectory hard to detect
- Subsonic Cruise missiles: These cruise missiles travel at less than Mach 1.
- Supersonic Cruise missiles: Cruise missiles travelling at supersonic speeds are called supersonic cruise missiles.
- Hypersonic Cruise missiles: Cruise missiles powered using scramjet engines to realize speeds greater than Mach 5 are designated as hypersonic cruise missiles.
Key Facts about DRDO:
- It works under the administrative control of the Ministry of Defence, Government of India.
- It is working to establish a world class science and technology base for India and provides our Defence Services decisive edge by equipping them with internationally competitive systems and solutions.
- It is India's largest research organization.
- Formation: The organization was formed in 1958 from the amalgamation of the then-existing Technical Development Establishment (TDEs) of the Indian Army and the Directorate of Technical Development and Production (DTDP) with the Defence Science Organisation (DSO).
- Headquarters: New Delhi.
- It has a network of laboratories engaged in developing defense technologies covering various fields, like aeronautics, armaments, electronics, land combat engineering, life sciences, materials, missiles, and naval systems.
Source: The Hindu