Discussion Forum (Archived)
Guest
I failed to express myself clearly when I asked the question. Actually I meant that 'there are some bullets used to illuminate the battlefield' (There were some in the war between my country and Iraq). Reading 'A Farewell to Arms' I noticed that star shells worked similarly. Now I wanted to know whether the star shells are a kind of those 'illuminating' bullets or they are the bullets themselves.( But as I see here, they are just related to the WWI.) So, I would thank anyone who tells me the name.
Yes, but tracers aren't used to illuminate the battlefield, just to help guide your fire. Star shells, I gather, are essentially flares on a parachute; they're fired into the air and then hang there giving lots of light.
(Actually, I'm just assuming about the parachute; how else would they hang in the air?)
I don't know how bullets would be used to illuminate the battlefield. If tracers are what's meant, maybe they just "illuminate" the shooter's understanding of where the bullets are going.
...i know something about this... with in the past 5 years... the answer depends upon in which branch of the service you are serving in...(shocker there hahaha)... a "star shell" is a common term used in the US Navy...
in the Army it is called an "illumination round"... i worked with an E8 (First SGT) who was an expert mortar-man, if a target was in range, his company could drop a round in the target's back pocket... His unit used 81mm mortars and some larger caliber mortars... the hot burning gas from the chemical reaction makes 'light' and hot gas fills the parachute (hot gas rises/lighter than air) above the burning round as to keep the round falling slower, hence "a longer lasting light"
My thanks to the First Sergeant. I'll just add a couple of "nuances":
Star Shell/Star Cluster is exactly what it sounds like a "star". Just imagine the big exploding firework at the fair. Its normally used to give the signal to start an attack: Green for Go and Red for Stop. It rises in the air and goes off just like the firework.
Illumination flares and rounds are used for illumination of a battleflied. The are on a small parachute and come in a variety of colors. While there are illumination artillery/mortar rounds, these also come in small alluminum cylinders so individuals can fire them. The duration of the illumination varies but from artillery/mortars its a few minutes for the small ones probably less than a minute or two.
Now for a bit of Murphy's laws for Military:
1. If that flare is illuminating the enemy, its also illuminating YOU.
2. Tracers (Illuminated bullets) point both ways.
Martha Barnette
Grant Barrett
Grant Barrett
2 Guest(s)