LIM-49 Spartan

The LIM-49A Spartan was a United States Army anti-ballistic missile, whose warheads were developed at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. It was a three-stage, solid-fuel surface-to-air missile that carried a W71 thermonuclear warhead with a lethal radius of up to 30 miles (50 kilometers) to intercept incoming warheads at high altitude above the atmosphere. The missile was launched from an underground silo, and radio command guided. The warhead was designed to destroy incoming nuclear weapons by x-ray flux rather than by blast. This very kill mechanism was, however, a major cause contributing to the phase-out of nuclear-warheads in antiaircraft and anti-ballistic missile rockets - a high-altitude nuclear explosion produced a strong electromagnetic pulse (EMP) that would destroy unshielded electronic devices, especially those working on the solid state component base, like transistors, integrated circuits etc. The higher the integration and smaller the parts, the more damage EMP-induced currents would cause to circuitry, causing damage to computers, data and communication networks, power-generating plants and grids, air traffic control systems, etc.

The Spartan missile was in operational service for only a few months, from October 1975 to early 1976. A combination of high costs and the SALT I treaties made the missiles unpopular politically.

Survivors

 * A Spartan missile is on display at the Air Defense Artillery Museum in Fort Sill, Oklahoma.