Post by hardlec on Jan 1, 2018 15:52:50 GMT
The basic premise of gunpowder is simple. When ignited an amount of powder the size of a pinkie joint becomes a cloud of gas the size of a moose. This happens with explosive speed.
The first weaponization of black powder was probably as a grenade. Fill a clay ball with black powder. Add a fuse and plug the end. Light the fuse and throw. After some 750 years of development, there really isn't a fundamental change of the hand grenade. Different casing, different fuse, it's still a fistful of explosive thrown at the enemy. The explosive has changed over time.
Take a tube sealed at one end. Put in a measured amount of powder and then seal the powder in the tube with a projectile. Ignite the powder. The sudden increase in pressure as the powder becomes smoke pushes the projectile down the tube with predictable results. After some 400m years of development, the gun has become perhaps the most significant weapon in the human arsenal. The gun usually does damage by the high kinetic energy of the projectile. Solid balls of stone, iron or lead struck the target at high speed and broke things. Beginning in the 19th century, it became practical to send projectiles with explosive filler downrange. This greatly increased the damage that could be done by guns.
Rockets were used long before guns. A simple tube, such as a joint in a piece of bamboo, filled with powder. When ignited the gas would rapidly escape propelling the tube a long distance. Rockets attached to arrows were excellent weapons. Rockets were better suited to launch explosives against the enemy. The sudden shock of being shot from a gun detonated many explosives, so only more stable explosives could be used. Stable and explosive are offsetting abilities. On the other hand, the longer, more gentle acceleration of the rocket meant they could be used to propel more powerful explosives.
The Rocket had two disadvantages that made the gun, much more expensive to produce, more attractive. The first was accuracy. The science behind the nozzle of the propellant was discovered by trial and error. Lots and lots of error. It was not until the late 19th century that humans could make rockets with enough consistency to be predictable. Rockets are also relatively slow. They transfer less destructive kinetic energy to the target than guns do. The dramatic failure of the gyro-jet pistol, which fired small rockets, is a case in point. Rocket artillery, saturating an area with explosive death, has been feared since the days of "the rockets' red glare."
When the Monroe effect was understood, it became possible to make a rocket that could destroy hard point targets. The Bazooka and the RPG came about because soldiers needed a way to deal with tanks. Had the need come sooner, such as in the alternative history of AQMF, the rocket/shaped charge combination could have come much earlier. Likewise, because the need came earlier, it would be quite likely to have rockets mounted on aircraft.
Recoilless Rifles are a combination of the rocket and the gun. Extra propellant is used to counteract the recoil of the gun. The result is a lightweight gun that can be shoulder fired or mounted on a light vehicle, which includes a small boat. Recoilless rifles are great ambush weapons because they can be transported to unlikely places. The back-blast is a major issue. Recoilless rifles are relatively inexpensive. Combined with their light weight, they are popular with guerilla fighters and airborne troops. Unlike cannon, it would be possible to create a Recoilless Rifle Revolver. Such a weapon would be heavy and expensive, but it could send 4-6 projectiles down-range is a big hurry. A revolver cannon would be too heavy to be a practical weapon.
In AQMF terms, there should be some agreement on the abilities of rockets and recoilless rifles. Specifically the range, power, barrage and rate of fire stats. I am calling for readers to put their statistics for various weapons "in one place." (Let's make Madmorgan Proud.)
The first weaponization of black powder was probably as a grenade. Fill a clay ball with black powder. Add a fuse and plug the end. Light the fuse and throw. After some 750 years of development, there really isn't a fundamental change of the hand grenade. Different casing, different fuse, it's still a fistful of explosive thrown at the enemy. The explosive has changed over time.
Take a tube sealed at one end. Put in a measured amount of powder and then seal the powder in the tube with a projectile. Ignite the powder. The sudden increase in pressure as the powder becomes smoke pushes the projectile down the tube with predictable results. After some 400m years of development, the gun has become perhaps the most significant weapon in the human arsenal. The gun usually does damage by the high kinetic energy of the projectile. Solid balls of stone, iron or lead struck the target at high speed and broke things. Beginning in the 19th century, it became practical to send projectiles with explosive filler downrange. This greatly increased the damage that could be done by guns.
Rockets were used long before guns. A simple tube, such as a joint in a piece of bamboo, filled with powder. When ignited the gas would rapidly escape propelling the tube a long distance. Rockets attached to arrows were excellent weapons. Rockets were better suited to launch explosives against the enemy. The sudden shock of being shot from a gun detonated many explosives, so only more stable explosives could be used. Stable and explosive are offsetting abilities. On the other hand, the longer, more gentle acceleration of the rocket meant they could be used to propel more powerful explosives.
The Rocket had two disadvantages that made the gun, much more expensive to produce, more attractive. The first was accuracy. The science behind the nozzle of the propellant was discovered by trial and error. Lots and lots of error. It was not until the late 19th century that humans could make rockets with enough consistency to be predictable. Rockets are also relatively slow. They transfer less destructive kinetic energy to the target than guns do. The dramatic failure of the gyro-jet pistol, which fired small rockets, is a case in point. Rocket artillery, saturating an area with explosive death, has been feared since the days of "the rockets' red glare."
When the Monroe effect was understood, it became possible to make a rocket that could destroy hard point targets. The Bazooka and the RPG came about because soldiers needed a way to deal with tanks. Had the need come sooner, such as in the alternative history of AQMF, the rocket/shaped charge combination could have come much earlier. Likewise, because the need came earlier, it would be quite likely to have rockets mounted on aircraft.
Recoilless Rifles are a combination of the rocket and the gun. Extra propellant is used to counteract the recoil of the gun. The result is a lightweight gun that can be shoulder fired or mounted on a light vehicle, which includes a small boat. Recoilless rifles are great ambush weapons because they can be transported to unlikely places. The back-blast is a major issue. Recoilless rifles are relatively inexpensive. Combined with their light weight, they are popular with guerilla fighters and airborne troops. Unlike cannon, it would be possible to create a Recoilless Rifle Revolver. Such a weapon would be heavy and expensive, but it could send 4-6 projectiles down-range is a big hurry. A revolver cannon would be too heavy to be a practical weapon.
In AQMF terms, there should be some agreement on the abilities of rockets and recoilless rifles. Specifically the range, power, barrage and rate of fire stats. I am calling for readers to put their statistics for various weapons "in one place." (Let's make Madmorgan Proud.)
