China claims successful development of 'dream' artillery shell

China claims to be developing hypersonic electromagnetic artillery shells that can change their trajectory, a "dream" projectile that the US has failed to develop.

This artillery shell model was developed by scientists at the Chinese Naval Engineering University and can reach Mach 7 when fired from an electromagnetic cannon, equivalent to more than 8,600 km/h.

Feng Junhong, head of the research team, said that during flight, the artillery shell will receive signals from the Beidou satellite system to continuously adjust its flight direction, maintaining an error of less than 15 meters until it hits the target.

This accuracy may not be high enough to hit small moving targets such as tanks and armored vehicles, but is suitable for targeting larger objects such as warships or seaports.

According to the development team, the idea for this weapon originated from the concept of "dream shell" that the US Navy first proposed in 2012. The "dream shell" that the US wants to develop has a flight speed of Mach 5 (about 6,000 km/h) and is guided by GPS signals.

The US Navy planned to develop and test this artillery shell within five years, but failed to achieve its goal and the research was canceled in 2021. The US later developed a number of other smart artillery shells, such as the 155mm M928 Excalibur, but they were fired from conventional guns, not electromagnetic weapons, so they had a much lower flight speed.

Chinese frigate docks at Cape Town, South Africa in 2019. Photo: Xinhua — Chinese frigate docks at Cape Town, South Africa in 2019. Photo: *Xinhua*

Although the US was the first to come up with the idea, the Chinese development team confirmed that they did not receive any foreign support to carry out the project to manufacture "smart artillery shells".

To overcome this, the development team said they have created a new type of antenna that is resistant to electromagnetic radiation, but can still receive signals from satellite navigation systems. The shell is made from aerogel, a material with high insulation and durability, thereby limiting the risk of cracking and breaking due to the heat generated by friction with the air.

The development team also designed a special algorithm to ensure that the satellite signal is not interrupted throughout the missile's flight path, thereby increasing the accuracy of the strike.

It is not yet clear whether China has successfully tested this type of artillery shell or not. The development team has not released any images of this "dream" artillery shell model.

The Chinese Navy has recently announced several breakthroughs in the field of electromagnetic weapons, including advanced energy storage systems, high-strength alloy coatings, and sophisticated control and monitoring systems. Last September, Beijing announced that it had developed a new electromagnetic railgun called the “Gauss,” which can accelerate a 124-kilogram projectile from zero to 700 kilometers per hour in 0.05 seconds.

Pham Giang (According to RT, Eurasian Times, IE )

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