Building on significant advances in high supersonic and hypersonic weapon propulsion, investments in high-speed weapon technology seeks to develop and demonstrate component technologies enabling increased weapon range and terminal guidance.
Propulsion related investments include: solid rockets, ramjet/scramjet, advanced turbine engines, pulse detonation combustions, and other novel systems to enable high-speed, long-range flight.
Material challenges include withstanding sustained 2000 and greater degree soak for tens of minutes for high-speed, long-range cruise missiles. Approaches of interest include cooled carbon structures and high thermal capacity insulations. Another material challenge of interest is the development of low erosion nose materials capable of withstanding Mach 7+ sea level electromagnetic railgun launch environment. Approaches of interest include advanced materials, materials with embedded heat pipes, and high-capacity heat sinks.
The sensor and guidance electronics challenges are driven by the need to operate in a 600- to 800-degree environment. Approaches of interest include high temperature capable components and high capacity heat sinks.
Another area of interest includes highly efficient mixing methods to enable reduced length engine combustors which will enable significant reduction in weapon size without reducing effective range.