 "Trident" submarine (SSBN) 'HMS Vanguard' Trident, in popular British usage, refers to the the United Kingdom's ballistic missile submarine-based nuclear deterrent. Strictly speaking, "Trident" is just the missile component of the system (detailed below), however this term is often used to refer to the missiles and Vanguard class submarines. Similarly "Polaris" was the name used for the previous generation of missile and Resolution class submarines. Vanguard Class Submarine Source: apparently from [1]. The same image (left-right mirrored and larger) also exists at [2]. File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...
Vanguard Class Submarine Source: apparently from [1]. The same image (left-right mirrored and larger) also exists at [2]. File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...
The tenth HMS Vanguard (S28) of the British Royal Navy is the lead boat of her class of Trident ballistic missile-capable submarines and is based at HMNB Clyde, Faslane, Vanguard was built at Barrow-in-Furness by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Ltd (now BAE Systems Marine), was launched on...
The Redoutable, a French SNLE (now a museum) A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles (SLBMs), such as the Russian SS-N-18 or the American Trident. ...
Mutual assured destruction (MAD) is the doctrine of military strategy in which a full scale use of nuclear weapons by one of two opposing sides would result in the destruction of both the attacker and the defender. ...
The Vanguard class are the Royal Navys current nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBN), each armed with 16 Trident II SLBMs. ...
The Resolution class submarines were the first British strategic ballistic missile submarines, carrying the Polaris missile. ...
The Royal Navy has 4 Vanguard class ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), each carrying 16 Trident II D-5 submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs), with each missile capable of carrying up to 12 warheads (MIRV). This replaced the previous system of 4 Resolution class SSBNs each carrying 16 Polaris A3 missiles (known as A3T) with 3 ET.317 warheads (not MIRV'ed), latter upgraded by the Chevaline programme to A3TK with a limited MIRV capability. The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore the Senior Service). ...
The Redoutable, a French SNLE (now a museum) A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles (SLBMs), such as the Russian SS-N-18 or the American Trident. ...
The Trident missile, named after the trident, is an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which is armed with nuclear warheads and is launched from submarines (SSBNs), making it a SLBM. The Trident was built in two variants: the I (C4) UGM-96A and II (D5) UGM-133A. The C4 and D5...
French M45 SLBM and M51 SLBM Submarine-launched ballistic missiles or SLBMs are ballistic missiles delivering nuclear weapons that are launched from submarines. ...
The MIRVed U.S. Peacekeeper missile, with the re-entry vehicles highlighted in red. ...
The Resolution class submarines were the first British strategic ballistic missile submarines, carrying the Polaris missile. ...
Polaris A-3 on launch pad in Cape Canaveral The Polaris missile was a submarine-launched, two-stage solid-fuel nuclear-armed ballistic missile (SLBM) built during the Cold War by Lockheed for the United States Navy. ...
Chevaline Penetration Aid Carrier (warhead platform) on display at RAF Kemble. ...
This system is very similar to the US Navy's 14 Ohio class SSBNs carrying 24 Trident D5's with up to 8 W88 or W76 warheads. The United States Navy (also known as USN or the U.S. Navy) is a branch of the United States armed forces responsible for conducting naval operations. ...
The United States has 18 Ohio class submarines: 14 nuclear-powered SSBNs, each armed with 24 Trident II SLBMs; they are also known as Trident submarines, and provide the sea-based leg of the nuclear triad of the United States strategic deterrent forces 4 nuclear-powered SSGNs, each armed with...
In 1999, information came out implying that in some U.S. designs, the primary (top) is prolate, while the secondary (bottom) is spherical. ...
The W76 warhead and Mk-4 reentry vehicle (cutaway diagram) - Los Alamos National Labs image The W76 is a United States thermonuclear warhead. ...
The Trident missile agreement was reached in 1982 as a modification of the Polaris Sales Agreement. At the time it was envisaged the entire project; four submarines, the missiles, new facilities at Coulport and Faslane and a 5% contribution to Trident research and development, would cost £5 billion. The option for a fifth submarine was discussed at the time. The Polaris Missile was a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) carrying a nuclear warhead developed during the Cold War for the United States Navy. ...
Faslane Naval Base, HMNB Clyde Her Majestys Naval Base Clyde is the headquarters of the Royal Navy in Scotland, best known as the home of the United Kingdoms strategic deterrent submarine force. ...
Faslane Naval Base, officially HMS Neptune, is a Royal Navy base situated on Gare Loch, which connects to the River Clyde in Scotland. ...
"Trident" entered service in 1994. Since the 1998 Strategic Defence Review, when the WE.177 tactical nuclear weapon was retired, it has been the UK's sole nuclear deterrent. The Strategic Defence Review (or SDR) was a policy document produced by the Labour Government that came to power in 1997. ...
An inert bomb originally used for training, shown here on its trolley in a museum WE.177 was the last British air-launched nuclear bomb. ...
UK nuclear policy
The principle of operation is based on maintaining deterrent effect by always having at least one submarine at sea, and was designed for the Cold War period. One submarine is normally undergoing maintenance and the remaining two are in port or on training exercises. The missiles were "detargeted" in 1994 in time for the maiden voyage of the first Vanguard class SSBN[1]. For other uses, see Cold War (disambiguation). ...
Each submarine carries 16 Trident II D-5 missiles, which can each carry up to twelve warheads (i.e. a potential of 192 warheads). However, the British government announced in 1998 that each submarine would carry only 48 warheads[1] (halving the limit specified by the previous government), which is an average of three per missile, an increase of 50% over Trident's predecessor, Polaris A3TK Chevaline. However one or two missiles per submarine may be armed with fewer warheads for "sub-strategic" use causing others to be armed with more,[citation needed] but there is no hard evidence to support this speculation. The Trident missile is an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which is armed with nuclear warheads and is launched from submarines (SSBNs), making it an SLBM. There are 14 active US Ohio class submarines and 4 UK Vanguard class submarines equipped with the two variants of Trident: the initial Trident-I...
The British-manufactured warheads are thought to be selectable between 0.3 kt, 5-10 kt and 100 kt; the yields obtained using either the unboosted primary, the boosted primary, or the entire thermonuclear warhead[citation needed] but there is no hard evidence from official sources to support this speculation. There is some tenuous evidence that the warhead design is similar, or even based on the US W76 warhead fitted in some US Navy Trident missiles, with design data being supplied by the United States through the 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement. The United Kingdom has purchased the rights to 58 missiles under the Polaris Sales Agreement (modified for Trident) from a jointly maintained "pool". These missiles are fitted with UK-built warheads and are exchanged when requiring maintenance. Under the terms of the agreement the United States does not have any veto on the use of British nuclear weapons. [2][citation needed] At the end of the 20th century, Thermonuclear has came to imply anything which has to do with fusion nuclear reactions which are triggered by particles of thermal energy. ...
The 1958 US-UK Mutual Defence Agreement is a bilateral treaty between the US and the UK on nuclear weapons cooperation. ...
The Polaris Missile was a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) carrying a nuclear warhead developed during the Cold War for the United States Navy. ...
Cost The total acquisition costs of the Trident programme are £12.57 billion (at 1996-97 prices), which is over £3.6 billion lower in real terms than the original 1982 estimate. Government estimates put the cost of the entire Trident program at approximately £200 million per year over a 30 year in-service life. This estimate includes manpower, stores, refits, transport, shore facilities, decommissioning and disposal costs plus some of the expense of the Atomic Weapons Establishment. Using this figure of £200 million, and the figure for the UK's total defence spending for the year 2005-2006 of $51.1 billion, or £29.6 billion[2] the annual current cost of the Trident force with all the shore-based facilities referred to above amounts to a mere 0.7% of total annual defence spending. This does not however take into account the acquisition costs of Trident, which would increase the proportion to around 2% of defence spending over the lifetime. AWE plc logo The Atomic Weapons Establishment, Aldermaston (formerly the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, Aldermaston) is situated in the UK, just 7 miles north of Basingstoke and approximately 14 miles south-west of Reading, Berkshire, near a village called Aldermaston, bordering with Tadley. ...
Numbers While the theoretical capacity of the 4 vanguard class boats is 64 missiles and 512 warheads, only 58 missiles were purchased and some have been expended in test firings. The UK purchased the missiles but they are pooled with the Atlantic squadron of the USN Ohio SSBN's at King's Bay, Georgia (previously the UK maintained it Polaris missiles). Image File history File links Trident_II_missile_image. ...
Image File history File links Trident_II_missile_image. ...
The Trident missile, named after the trident, is an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) which is armed with nuclear warheads and is launched from submarines (SSBNs), making it a SLBM. The Trident was built in two variants: the I (C4) UGM-96A and II (D5) UGM-133A. The C4 and D5...
French M45 SLBM and M51 SLBM Submarine-launched ballistic missiles or SLBMs are ballistic missiles delivering nuclear weapons that are launched from submarines. ...
Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay is a base of the United States Navy in Camden County, in southeast Georgia. ...
The number of warheads is significantly less than originally intended due to changing strategic situation (ie demise of the USSR). Currently there are less than 200 warheads, and the number is anticipated to drop close to 160 in near future.
This is also in part due to the service pattern. 1 boat is always on patrol, 1 to 2 boats are in port or on training exercises and 1 boat is undergoing maintenance.
In the Strategic Defence Review published in July 1998, the British Government stated that once the Vanguard submarines became fully operational (the fourth and final one, Vengeance, entered service on 27 November 1999), it would "maintain a stockpile of fewer than 200 operationally available warheads" [3]. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute has estimated the figure as about 165, consisting of 144 deployed weapons plus an extra 15% as spares[3] Spares are usually needed within the supply chain, including the maintenance workshops. The Strategic Defence Review (or SDR) was a policy document produced by the Labour Government that came to power in 1997. ...
Eight vessels of the British Royal Navy have been named HMS Vengeance. ...
November 27 is the 331st day (332nd on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ...
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) was founded in 1966 to commemorate 150 years of unbroken peace in Sweden. ...
At the same time, the British Government indicated that warheads "required to provide a necessary processing margin and for technical surveillance purposes" were not included in the "fewer than 200" figure [4]. However, as recently declassified archived documents on Chevaline make clear, the 15% excess (referred to by SIPRI as for spares) is normally intended to 'provide the necessary processing margin' and 'surveillance rounds do not contain any nuclear material' being completely inert. These surveillance rounds are used to monitor deterioration in the many non-nuclear components of the warhead, and are best compared with inert training rounds. The SIPRI figures correspond accurately with the official announcements and are likely to be the most accurate. The Natural Resources Defense Council speculates that a figure of 200 is accurate to within a few tens,[4] and the World Almanac speculates that the number is between 200 and 300, but fails to produce any hard evidence. Experience with earlier weapons has demonstrated that it is dangerous to speculate in this area, and the speculation has invariably been proved wrong. The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) [1] is a leftist, New York City-based, non-profit, non-partisan environmental advocacy group, with offices in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and Los Angeles. ...
The World Almanac and Book of Facts is a book considered to be a top reference work. ...
Basing -
"Trident" is based at HMNB Clyde, in western Scotland. This comprises of two facilities, a submarine berth at Faslane and ordinance depot at RNAD Coulport. Location of Faslane and RNAD Coulport Faslane Naval Base, HMNB Clyde Her Majestys Naval Base Clyde is the headquarters of the Royal Navy in Scotland and is best known as the home of the United Kingdoms strategic deterrent submarine force. ...
Location of Faslane and RNAD Coulport Faslane Naval Base, HMNB Clyde Her Majestys Naval Base Clyde is the headquarters of the Royal Navy in Scotland and is best known as the home of the United Kingdoms strategic deterrent submarine force. ...
Motto: (Latin) No one provokes me with impunity1 Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow Official language(s) English, Gaelic, Scots2 Government - Queen Queen Elizabeth II - UK Prime Minister Tony Blair MP - First Minister Jack McConnell MSP Unification - by Kenneth I 843 Area - Total 78,772 km...
Politics According to the British House of Commons' Defence Select Committee, the original purpose of Trident was to discourage aggression against the UK, its allies and its interests from the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact. The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. ...
The Defence Select Committee is one of the Committees of the House of Commons established 1979. ...
Unofficial Seal of the Warsaw Pact Distinguish from the Warsaw Convention, which is an agreement about airlines financial liability and the Treaty of Warsaw (1970) between West Germany and the Peoples Republic of Poland. ...
Opposition The Trident system has received significant opposition during its development. The most visible opposition has stemmed from the more general use of nuclear weapons, and also from Trident's status under international law. Trident is also seen by some, such as the Scottish Nationalist Party, as a sticking point in relations between the Scottish Parliament and Westminster, since the submarines which carry the missiles are based at HMNB Clyde in Scotland, but controlled by the Ministry of Defence, in London. In Scotland, the Scottish National Party (SNP) is a centre-left political party which favours Scottish independence. ...
Location of Faslane and RNAD Coulport Faslane Naval Base, HMNB Clyde Her Majestys Naval Base Clyde is the headquarters of the Royal Navy in Scotland and is best known as the home of the United Kingdoms strategic deterrent submarine force. ...
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and the headquarters of the British Armed Forces. ...
Activism Several groups have taken action against Trident, including the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and Trident Ploughshares, a group set up specifically to oppose the Trident system. In 2006 a year-long protest at Trident's base at Faslane, named Faslane 365, was initiated with the aim of blockading the base every day for one year. As of 26 January, 50 groups had taken part in blockades, leading to 474 arrests. Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament logo In British politics, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament has been at the forefront of the peace movement in the United Kingdom and claims to be Europes largest single-issue peace campaign. ...
Trident Ploughshares is an internationally recognised anti-nuclear-weapons group, with the aim of beating swords into ploughshares, specifically by actively trying to disarm the UK Trident nuclear weapons system, in a non-violent, open, peaceful and fully accountable manner. ...
The Camps Side Entrance Faslane Peace Camp is a permanent peace camp sited alongside Faslane Naval base in Argyll and Bute, Scotland (Google Maps link). ...
Trident Ploughshares describes their opposition as follows:
- We believe that the use or threatened use of nuclear weapons is totally immoral and irresponsible and that the Trident system is illegal under international law. Our disarmament action is necessary since the UK government has to date shown no signs of any intention to dismantle the system. As citizens we have both a right and a duty to uphold international humanitarian law. The UK’s Trident nuclear weapons system is based on 4 submarines which carry between 12 and 16 missiles, each of which can deliver a number of 100 kiloton warheads to individual targets - mass destruction on an unimaginable level.[5]
Scottish politics A number of Scottish Parliamentary parties, such as the Scottish Socialist Party and the Scottish Nationalist Party, have policies opposing the use of Trident missiles at Faslane in Scotland. Some members and ex-members of those parties, such as Tommy Sheridan, have taken part in blockades of the base there. The Scottish Socialist Party (SSP) is a radical left-wing Scottish political party which campaigns on a socialist economic platform and for Scottish independence. ...
In Scotland, the Scottish National Party (SNP) is a centre-left political party which favours Scottish independence. ...
Tommy Sheridan Tommy Sheridan is a Scottish socialist politician. ...
In addition to more general anti-nuclear feeling, some see the base as symbolic of conflict between the national and Scottish parliaments. [citation needed]
Legality - Further information: International Court of Justice advisory opinion on the Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons and Governance and Control of Nuclear Weapons
On 8 July 1996 the International Court of Justice, the highest court of the United Nations, handed down an advisory opinion that stated that the threat or use of nuclear weapons would in most cases violate various articles of international law, including the Geneva Conventions, the Hague Conventions, the UN Charter, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Legality of the Threat or Use of Nuclear Weapons[1] was an advisory opinion handed down by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 8 July 1996. ...
The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, 1945, rose some 18 kilometers (11 mi) above the hypocenter. ...
July 8 is the 189th day of the year (190th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 176 days remaining. ...
The International Court of Justice (known colloquially as the World Court or ICJ; French: ) is the primary judicial organ of the United Nations. ...
The foundation of the U.N. The United Nations (UN) is an international organization whose stated aims are to facilitate co-operation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress and human rights issues. ...
An advisory opinion, in civil procedure, is an opinion issued by a court that does not have the effect of resolving a specific legal case, but merely advises on the constitutionality or interpretation of a law. ...
This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...
Development of the Geneva Conventions from 1864 to 1949. ...
The longtime status of Netherlands as a largely neutral nation in international conflicts and the corresponding ascendance of The Hague as a primary location for diplomatic and international conferences has led to several negotiated conventions over the years being termed the Hague Convention: The Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907...
The United Nations Charter is the constitution of the United Nations. ...
Eleanor Roosevelt with the Spanish version of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. ...
On 19 December 2005 Rabinder Singh QC and Professor Christine Chinkin, a colleague of Cherie Blair at Matrix Chambers, handed down a legal opinion at the request of Peacerights[6] which specifically addressed December 19 is the 353rd day of the year (354th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
QC can stand for: Quezon City, a highly urbanized city in the Republic of the Philippines. ...
A professor giving a lecture The meaning of the word professor (Latin: one who claims publicly to be an expert) varies. ...
Cherie Blair Cherie Blair (born 23 September 1954 in Bury, England), known professionally as Cherie Booth QC, is a prominent barrister. ...
The common law forms a major part of the law of those countries of the world with a history as British territories or colonies. ...
"whether Trident or a likely replacement to Trident breaches customary international law"[7] A Trident missile launches from a submerged submarine The British replacement of Trident is a proposal to replace the existing Trident weapons system based on four Vanguard class submarines each armed with 16 Trident II submarine-launched ballistic missiles. ...
Customary international law Unwritten law applied to the behaviour of nations. ...
Drawing on the ICJ opinion, Singh and Chinkin found that: "The use of the Trident system would breach customary international law, in particular because it would infringe the "intransgressible" [principles of international customary law] requirement that a distinction must be drawn between combatants and non-combatants."[7] In addition, Singh and Chinkin found that: "The replacement of Trident is likely to constitute a breach of article VI of the NPT...[and that] [s]uch a breach would be a material breach of that treaty."[7] Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Opened for signature July 1, 1968 in New York Entered into force March 5, 1970 Conditions for entry into force Ratification by the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union, the United States, and 40 other signatory states. ...
Breach of contract is a legal concept in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other partys performance. ...
Response On 25 January 2007, Des Browne, UK Defence Minister, defended the use of Trident: The Right Honourable Desmond Henry Browne MP (born March 22, 1952) British politician and barrister. ...
The Secretary of State for Defence is the senior United Kingdom government minister in charge of the Ministry of Defence. ...
"I do not believe it makes sense to say that nuclear weapons are inherently evil. In certain circumstances, they can play a positive role - as they have in the past. But clearly they have a power to do great harm," he said.
"Are we prepared to tolerate a world in which countries which care about morality lay down their nuclear weapons, leaving others to threaten the rest of the world or hold it to ransom?"[8]
Replacement -
At present, the British government is considering a possible replacement for the Trident program. A Trident missile launches from a submerged submarine The British replacement of Trident is a proposal to replace the existing Trident weapons system based on four Vanguard class submarines each armed with 16 Trident II submarine-launched ballistic missiles. ...
See also The United Kingdom was the third country to test an independently developed nuclear weapon in October 1952. ...
References - ^ http://www.mod.uk/rdonlyres/65F3D7AC-4340-4119-93A2-20825848E/0/sdr_complete.pdf
- ^ http://www.armedforces.co.uk/mod/listings/l0012.html
- ^ http://www.sipri.org/contents/expcon/uk.pdf.
- ^ http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/nudb/datab19.asp
- ^ Introducing Trident Ploughshares. Trident Ploughshares (January 1st, 2004).
- ^ About Peacerights
- ^ a b c http://www.peacerights.org/reports/195 (paragraph 1 and 2)
- ^ "UK must retain nuclear deterrent, says Browne", The Guardian, January 25th, 2007.
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