- Throw-weight
Throw-weight is a measure of the effective weight of
ballistic missile payloads. It is measured inkilograms ormetric ton s. Throw-weight equals the total weight of a missile'swarhead s,reentry vehicle s, self-contained dispensing mechanisms,penetration aids , andguidance system s — generally all components except for the launch rocket booster and launch fuel. [ [http://www.answers.com/topic/throw-weight throw-weight: Definition and Much More from Answers.com ] ]Throw-weight is used as a criterion in classifying different types of missiles. It was first defined during the
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks of 1979 (SALT II ) between theSoviet Union and theUnited States as a way to set limits for each country's allowed supply of each missile class. [ [http://www.airpower.maxwell.af.mil/airchronicles/aureview/1982/nov-dec/tritten.html Throw-Weight and Arms Control ] ] For example, during the SALT talks, the Sovietheavy ICBM s, which had a throw-weight of over 5 metric tons, were disallowed altogether.References
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