German V2 Rockets

Peenemünde Museum replica of V-2

A V-2 launched from a fixed site in summer 1943

23 June 1943 RAF reconnaissance photo of V-2s at Test Stand VII

Aftermath of a V-2 bombing at Battersea, London, 27 January 1945.

The V-2 rocket (German: Vergeltungswaffe 2, vengeance weapon 2), technical name A4, was a long-range ballistic missile that was developed at the beginning of the Second World War in Germany, specifically targeted at Belgium and sites in southeastern England. The rocket was the world's first long-range combat-ballistic missileand first known human artifact to achieve sub-orbital spaceflight. It was the progenitor of all modern rockets,including those used by the United States and Soviet Union space programs, which gained access to the scientists and designs through Operation Paperclip and Operation Osoaviakhim.

Over 3,000 V-2s were launched as military rockets by the German Wehrmacht against Allied targets during the war, mostly London and laterAntwerp, resulting in the death of an estimated 7,250 military personnel and civilians.^[ The weapon was presented by Nazi propaganda as a retaliation for the bombers that succeeded in attacking ever more German cities from 1942 until the end of the war.

Type	single stage ballistic missile
Place of origin	Germany
Service history
In service	8 September 1944–19 September 1952
Used by	Germany  United States (post-war)  Soviet Union (post-war)
Production history
Manufacturer	Mittelwerk GmbH (development byArmy Research Center Peenemünde)
Unit cost	100,000 RM January 1944, 50,000 RM March 1945[1]
Produced	16 March 1942
Specifications
Weight	12,500 kg (28,000 lb)
Length	14 m (45 ft 11 in)
Diameter	1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)
Warhead	980 kg (2,200 lb) Amatol
Wingspan	3.56 m (11 ft 8 in)
Propellant	3,810 kg (8,400 lb) of 75% ethanoland 25% water + 4,910 kg (10,800 lb) of liquid oxygen
Operational range	320 km (200 mi)
Flight altitude	88 km (55 mi) maximum altitude on long range trajectory, 206 km (128 mi) maximum altitude if launched vertically.
Speed	maximum: 1,600 m/s (5,200 ft/s) 5,760 km/h (3,580 mph) at impact: 800 m/s (2,600 ft/s) 2,880 km/h (1,790 mph)
Guidance system	Gyroscopes for attitude control Müller-type pendulous gyroscopic accelerometer for engine cutoff on most production rockets (10% of theMittelwerk rockets used a guide beam for cutoff.)[2]:225
Launch platform	Mobile (Meillerwagen)