YARS Nuclear Missile

Context:

Russia tests Yars missiles in drills near Moscow, signaling nuclear deterrence amid Ukraine conflict and raising concerns of nuclear escalation.

YARS MISSILE

About the Yarsmissiles

• Only a few confirmed tactical and technical characteristics of the Yars system are available.
• It wasdeveloped by the Moscow Institute of Thermal Engineering.
• The Yars missile iscalled SS-29 by NATO.
• The missile weighs around 49,000 kg and is 20.9 metres long.
• The missile relies on a guidance upgraded system of the inertial and Glonass system used in the Topol-M missile.
• Itsaccuracy is around 250 m Circular Error of Probability (CEP).
• The Yars missile has anoperational range of 12,000 km.
• Yars cancarry a payload of up to a dozen times more than the bomb the Americans dropped on Hiroshima.
• It can be prepared for launch within seven minutes.

History

• An upgraded version of the Topol-M ballistic missile, the RS-24 was first tested in 2007.
• The Yars was inducted by the Russian Strategic Missile Forces in 2010 and production of the missiles began that same year.
• By 2016, the Russian Strategic Missile Forces had 63 mobile and 10 silo-based Yars ICBMs in position alongside the Topol-M systems.
• Unlike the Topol-M, the Yars missile is equipped with Multiple Independently-targetable Reentry Vehicles (MIRVs).

About Ballistic Missiles

• Ballistic missiles arepowered initially by a rocket or series of rockets in stages, but then follow an unpowered trajectory that arches upwards before descending to reach its intended target.
• Ballistic missiles can carry either nuclear or conventional warheads.

Classification

• There are four general classifications of ballistic missiles based on their range, or the maximum distance the missile can travel:

Short-range:less than 1,000 kilometers, also known as “tactical” ballistic missiles.

Medium-range:between 1,000 and 3,000 kilometers, also known as “theater” ballistic missiles.

Intermediate-range:between 3,000 and 5,500 kilometers

Long-range:more than 5,500 kilometers, also known as intercontinental or strategic ballistic missiles. Intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) can fly much further than the minimum range; for example, Russia could hit Chicago with an ICBM launched from the Krasnoyarsk ICBM base, which is located 9,156 kilometers away.