smart bomb

smart bomb
Mil. Slang.
a steerable air-to-surface bomb that is guided to its target by television or a laser beam.
[1970-75]

* * *

Bomb with a guidance system that directs its path toward a target.

It is steered by fins or wings on the bomb that move in response to guidance commands. Guidance systems may be electro-optical, laser, infrared, or inertial. Electro-optical systems send pictures of the area so that the bomb can be guided onto the target. Laser-guided bombs follow the reflections of a laser beam trained onto the target by an aircraft or a spotter on the ground. Infrared guidance responds to radiation generated by warm areas of the target. Inertial navigation is based on inputting coordinates derived from radar systems or from Global Positioning System satellites into the bomb's gyroscopes. Smart bombs, initially used in the Vietnam War, offer far greater accuracy than traditional gravity, or "dumb," bombs.

* * *

also called  smart missile 

      type of precision-guided munition. Like a regular bomb, a smart bomb falls to the target solely by the force of gravity, but its fins or wings have control surfaces that move in response to guidance commands, enabling adjustments to be made to the angle of the bomb's descent or the direction of its fall. The bomb glides, rather than falls, to the target.

      Guidance systems can be electro-optical, laser, or infrared, and are typically mounted in the nose of the bomb. The guidance system consists of sensors to detect the target and some means of adjusting the bomb's fins or wings in order to control its descent. In an electro-optical system, a television camera in the nose of the bomb sends real-time pictures of the target area to the aircrew, who then lock the weapon onto the target or actively guide it all the way to impact. In bombs with the laser-guidance system, commonly called laser-guided bombs, the target is illuminated by a laser beam from the releasing aircraft, another target-control aircraft, or a ground force unit. Sensors in the bomb's nose lock onto the reflections of the laser beam and follow them down to the target. Bombs equipped with infrared guidance systems respond to the heat generated by the target. More sophisticated versions of these weapons are called smart missiles.

      Smart bombs and missiles allow smaller planes and smaller numbers of planes to make successful attacks on stationary targets such as buildings, fortifications, or bridges. These targets can be destroyed using fewer and larger explosive warheads than would be the case in the “scatter” or “carpet” bombing techniques of World War II. Also, launching aircraft are less vulnerable to anti-aircraft fire than they would be in low-altitude or dive-bombing runs, which would otherwise be necessary for sufficient accuracy. Typical U.S. smart bombs have included the three Walleye models equipped with television-guidance systems and the Paveway series of bombs equipped with laser-guidance systems. Smart bombs or missiles were used in the latter stages of the Vietnam War to give pinpoint bombing accuracy and were used with dramatic effect by Allied forces in the Persian Gulf War. See also missile.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • smart bomb — n a bomb that is fired from an aircraft and uses a computer to hit a particular place …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • smart bomb — smart ,bomb noun count a missile that is controlled by a computer or a LASER so that its direction can be changed …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • smart bomb — smart′ bomb′ n. mil an air to surface missile guided to its target visually by television or a laser beam • Etymology: 1970–75 …   From formal English to slang

  • smart bomb — ☆ smart bomb n. Mil. Slang an extremely accurate guided missile directed to its target by any of various electronic means, as by a reflected laser beam …   English World dictionary

  • smart bomb — noun a bomb that can be guided (by a laser beam or radio) to its target smart bombs have revolutionized aerial bombardment • Ant: ↑dumb bomb • Hypernyms: ↑bomb • Hyponyms: ↑laser guided bomb, ↑LGB * * …   Useful english dictionary

  • Smart Bomb — BOLT 117 Laser gelenkte Bombe Als Präzisionsgelenkte Munition (engl. Smart Munition oder Smart Bombs) werden selbststeuernde Raketen, Flugkörper, Bomben und Artilleriegranaten bezeichnet, die nach dem Verlassen des Trägersystems beziehungsweise… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Smart Bomb (EP) — Infobox Album | Name = Smart Bomb Type = EP Artist = Thrush Hermit Released = 1994 Recorded = Genre = Indie rock Length = Label = Murderecords Reviews = Last album = This album = Smart Bomb (1994) Next album = The Great Pacific Ocean (1995) |… …   Wikipedia

  • Smart bomb — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Le terme anglais smart bomb désigne une « bombe intelligente », c est à dire une bombe capable de se diriger avec précision vers sa cible. Les… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • smart bomb — UK / US noun [countable] Word forms smart bomb : singular smart bomb plural smart bombs a missile that is controlled by a computer or a laser so that its direction can be changed …   English dictionary

  • Smart bomb (disambiguation) — Smart bomb has several meanings:* In weapons, a smart bomb is a precision guided munition. * Smart Bomb Interactive is a video game development studio based in Salt Lake City, Utah. * In video games, particularly scrolling shoot em ups, a smart… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”