school me, rocket vs missile - difference?

[Dr_Fwd]

So what's the difference between rocket and missile? Rocket launcher and missile launcher?

[Flatline]

In the military sense a rocket is projectile that may carry a pay load and has some form of thrust engine but does not have any navigation or ability to change it's path inflight, the difference is that a missile can change it's flight path though some type of navigation equipment (radar, gps, laser guidance...etc).

The terminology changes if you want to talk about engineering.

Typically rocket launchers are going to aim the rocket and trigger the engine. Some missile launchers will have guidance equipment (typically shoulder fired are like this) some have a remote guidance system (more typical of other platforms).

[Dr_Fwd]

In the military sense a rocket is projectile that may carry a pay load and has some form of thrust engine but does not have any navigation or ability to change it's path inflight, the difference is that a missile can change it's flight path though some type of navigation equipment (radar, gps, laser guidance...etc).

The terminology changes if you want to talk about engineering.

Typically rocket launchers are going to aim the rocket and trigger the engine. Some missile launchers will have guidance equipment (typically shoulder fired are like this) some have a remote guidance system (more typical of other platforms).

Thank you, now it makes sense... More or less..

[clublights]

yeah flatline hit it on the nose...


Rockets are generally "free flight"

Missiles are guided.

[nisils14]

Rocket is a type of propulsion, where as a missile is an object being thrown. A bullet out of a firearm would be considered a missile, however if you could strap a booster pack on it then it would be a rocket. Cruise missiles use jet engines but usually ICBMs are rocket engine propelled. All rockets are missiles but not all missiles are rockets.

[Flatline]

Rocket is a type of propulsion, where as a missile is an object being thrown. A bullet out of a firearm would be considered a missile, however if you could strap a booster pack on it then it would be a rocket. Cruise missiles use jet engines but usually ICBMs are rocket engine propelled. All rockets are missiles but not all missiles are rockets.

Just to be clear, that is the physics/engineering definition, which does not happen to be the same as the military definition.

[nisils14]

Tomato, Tamahto. I find the engineering definition to be easier to explain as military terminology can get confusing to understand at times.

[fitz19d]

As an example for military ones.

A RPG/LAW/AT4 would be rockets. They are aimed fired and if lucky actually hit what you aimed at. (With the lack of flight guidance etc, if something throws it off, nothing to get it back on course.)

A Javelin/Stinger are missiles, they can lock and track heat signatures. The Javelin with it's top down attack mode is guided to not just go straight at a target but navigate to come in from the top. Not 100% sure what you would consider a TOW, I'd say Missile, but it's just the funny duck as it's controlled by a remote wire. (Once it breaks free at the end of the cord if it goes long I suppose it then becomes a rocket aha.)

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From the physics side you could think of rockets as being powered flight, so Estes rockets and such. A medieval sling and stone, javelins, throwing axes, whatever would be a "missile".

[RobertB]

A Javelin/Stinger are missiles, they can lock and track heat signatures. The Javelin with it's top down attack mode is guided to not just go straight at a target but navigate to come in from the top. Not 100% sure what you would consider a TOW, I'd say Missile, but it's just the funny duck as it's controlled by a remote wire. (Once it breaks free at the end of the cord if it goes long I suppose it then becomes a rocket aha.)

TOW is a missile. When you break the wire, it becomes a randomly directed artillery round that will eventually impact somewhere, but almost certainly not where you'd hoped. That said, you can break the wire at almost any distance if you jerk the tube, hit any kind of obstructions, water, etc.

Oddly enough, it can happen that you ground the missile several hundred meters out, yet it still impacts the target. Or, it might pop out of the tube and land on your grill, staring at you.

[Holger Danske]

TOW is a missile. When you break the wire, it becomes a randomly directed artillery round that will eventually impact somewhere, but almost certainly not where you'd hoped. That said, you can break the wire at almost any distance if you jerk the tube, hit any kind of obstructions, water, etc.

Oddly enough, it can happen that you ground the missile several hundred meters out, yet it still impacts the target. Or, it might pop out of the tube and land on your grill, staring at you.

TOW stands for Tube launched Optically tracked command link Wire guide missile. I've shot a few in my days. Nothing like launching one of those of a tripod with the missile tube 6 inches from your shoulder. Just a bit of obscure trivia, but my platoon sergeant was the one who named the Javelin.