Improvements to the BMDS Hit-to-Kill Lethality Predictive Toolset

The Ballistic Missile Defense Shield (BMDS) developed by the United States Government relies on layered defense designed to defeat incoming missiles in boost, mid-course, and terminal phases of flight. To maximize effectiveness of the shield, two types of intercepting missile concepts exist: hit-to-kill and blast fragmenting warheads. The first relies on the incepting missile’s kinetic energy to destroy the target, the second on large number of high-speed fragments to perforate and/or ignite critical missile components. Accurate lethality modeling of endgame events continues to be of high importance to the evolving BMDS system. Decisions makers and war-fighters need real time assessments of lethality. Additionally, elements need system-level tools to conduct effectiveness studies and determine hit-point algorithms as a function of target construct. With respect to the effectiveness of blast-fragment systems, the synergistic effect of multiple fragment impacts and the resulting non-shock to detonation response of multiple fragment impacts into cased high-explosive payloads remain unresolved. With this proposal, the BFA/ITT team seeks to improve modeling techniques for multiple fragment impacts and hopes to develop criterion for resulting shock and non-shock to detonation of cased high-explosives. The resulting algorithms and criterion will be captured in modular-based software package for use within the MDA.