INTRODUCTION:

Laser guidance is a technique of guiding a missile or other projectile or vehicle to a target by means of a laser beam. Most of the laser guided systems operate semi-active radar homing (SARH). This technique is sometimes called SALH, for Semi-Active Laser Homing. This is likely to be widely used by advanced military vehicles in order to make it harder to use laser rangefinders against them and harder to hit them with laser- guided missiles.

BACKGROUND:

Missiles differ from rockets by virtue of a guidance system that steers them towards a pre-selected target. Unguided rockets proved to be useful yet frequently inaccurate weapons when fired from aircraft during the World War II. Several warring nations, including the United States, Germany and Great Britain mated existing rocket technology with new radio- or radar-based guidance systems to create the world's first guided missiles. The problems centered on the unreliability of the new radiowave technologies.

Dr. Theodore Maiman built the first laser (Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation) at Hughes Research Laboratories in 1960.
The military realized the potential applications for lasers almost as soon as their first beams cut through the air. The accuracy of these weapons earned them the well-known sobriquet of "smart weapons." the laser guided missile has established itself as a key component in today's high-tech military technology.

SEMI ACTIVE RADAR HOMING:

Semi-active radar homing or SARH, is a common type of missile guidance system for longer range air to air and surface to air missile systems. In the SARH system the missile listens for the reflected signal at the nose, and is still responsible for providing some sort of lead guidance. SARH is largely independent of range and grows more accurate as it approaches the target.

SEMI ACTIVE RADAR HOMING

MISSILE COMPONENTS

Guided missiles are made up of a series of subassemblies. The various subassemblies form a major section of the overall missile to operate a missile system, such as guidance, control, armament (warhead and fuzing), and propulsion.

MISSILE COMPONENTS

GUIDANCE & CONTROL SECTION

Includes the electronic sensing systems that initiate the guidance orders and the control system that carries them out. There are a number of basic guidance systems but Homingtype, air-launched, guided missiles are currently used. Homing systems are classified as active, semi active, and passive.

ACTIVE HOMING SYSTEM

SEMI ACTIVE HOMING SYSTEM

PASSIVE HOMING SYSTEM

ARMAMENT SECTION
1. 2. 3. 4.

5.

The armament system contains: Payload Fuzing Safety & Arming Devices ( S&A ) Target Detecting Devices ( TDD ) Propulsion section

MISSILE CONTROL SYSTEM

The heart of a missile is the body, equivalent to the fuselage of an aircraft. Some missiles may consist of only the body alone, but most have additional surfaces to generate lift and provide maneuverability. Missile designers are more precise in their naming methodology and generally consider these surfaces to fall into three major categories: canards, wings, and tail fins.

MISSILE CONTROL SYSTEM

MANUFACTURING PROCESS

RAW MATERIALS CONSTRUCTING BODY & ATTACHING FINS CASTING THE PROPELLANT ASSEMBLING THE GUIDANCE SYSTEM FINAL ASSEMBLY

BYPRODUCTS OR WASTE

ADVANTAGES OF LASER GUIDED MISSILE

The SAL seeker is relatively low cost, offering high precision operational flexibility, despite its adverse weather limitations.

Only the more sophisticated missiles offer the flexibility and field of regard ('side looking') capability adequate for effective lock-on after launch targeting. The LAHAT laser guided missile is lightweight weapon can be employed by light helicopters.

THE FUTURE LASER GUIDED MISSILE

Future laser guided missile systems will carry their own miniaturized laser on board, doing away with the need for target designator lasers on aircraft. Pilot can fire one of these missiles and forget about it, relying on the missile's internal laser and detecting sensor to guide it towards its target.

CONCLUSION

In World War II it could take 9,000 bombs to hit a target the size of an aircraft shelter. Today we can do it with one laserguided missile. Laser guided missile can be fired at targets ranging 8 to 13 kilometers and some like LAHAT laser guided missile up to 22 kilometers. Though many missiles are developed, they dont find accuracy as in the reaching the target.

SOURCES

Wikipedia.com Howstuffworks.com Missilesthreat.com