Compact Hypersonic Missile/Effector Reactive Material (CHyMERA) Warhead Prototype & Demonstration

Castelion’s Compact Hypersonic Missile/Effector Reactive Material (CHyMERA) Warhead Prototype & Demonstration, developed in close cooperation with MATSYS, will prototype and test a new type of warhead – showcasing the effectiveness of reactive material warheads for hypersonic weapons. The use of a reactive material warhead provides dual benefits to the platform. These multifunctional warheads allow for its advanced structural case material to provide (a) kinetic defeat mechanisms upon fragmentation and engagement with the target, and (b) highly energetic incendiary and blast events upon breakup of each frag within target due to the extremely rapid combustion of the reactive material alloy. These combined effects provide unmatched target defeat at a smaller payload than traditional warheads. This makes it ideal for the new class of “affordable mass” weapons that are being sought by the Government.  CHyMERA is being developed for Castelion’s Blackbeard family of hypersonic weapons which requires a compact, but high performing, warhead that can be accommodated in the common 7-in diameter kill vehicle. This Direct-to-Phase 2 (DP2) effort will prototype the CHyMERA warhead and demonstrate its effectiveness in an arena test against a Castelion-built solid rocket motor (SRM). With novel threats emerging, such as hypersonic vehicles, there is an urgent need for payloads offering multiple defeat mechanisms, such as those offered by high density reactive materials (HDRM) warheads. The proposed effort will demonstrate CHyMERA’s effectiveness against specific components of “live” target surrogates.  This research is critically needed to support MDA’s missile defense mandate. The proposed demonstration provides MDA with valuable insights into the expected damage created by a reactive materials warhead against an incoming hypersonic missile threat. It also advances Castelion’s Blackbeard missile line – which can be used as an offensive or defensive weapon – by not only maturing the warhead subsystem, but by beginning insensitive munitions testing of our SRM design.