What is artillery shrapnel?

Shrapnel projectiles contained small shot or spherical bullets, usually of lead, along with an explosive charge to scatter the shot as well as fragments of the shell casing. The resulting hail of high-velocity debris was often lethal; shrapnel caused the majority of artillery-inflicted wounds in World War I.

What are shell fragments called?

shrapnel. 1. Fragments from an exploded artillery shell, mine, or bomb.

What are artillery shells called?

Originally it was called a bombshell, but “shell” has come to be unambiguous in a military context. Modern usage sometimes includes large solid kinetic projectiles that is properly termed shot. Solid shot may contain a pyrotechnic compound if a tracer or spotting charge is used.

Why are artillery rounds called shells?

shell, variously, an artillery projectile, a cartridge case, or a shotgun cartridge. The artillery shell was in use by the 15th century, at first as a simple container for metal or stone shot, which was dispersed by the bursting of the container after leaving the gun.

Are shrapnel shells still used?

The munition has been obsolete since the end of World War I for anti-personnel use; high-explosive shells superseded it for that role. The functioning and principles behind Shrapnel shells are fundamentally different from high-explosive shell fragmentation.

What is a piece of shrapnel?

Definition of shrapnel 1 : a projectile that consists of a case provided with a powder charge and a large number of usually lead balls and that is exploded in flight. 2 : bomb, mine, or shell fragments.

Why is shrapnel called shrapnel?

Shrapnel is named after Lieutenant-General Henry Shrapnel (1761–1842), a British artillery officer, whose experiments, initially conducted on his own time and at his own expense, culminated in the design and development of a new type of artillery shell.

Is shrapnel a metal?

Generally speaking, shrapnel refers to sharp, dangerous shards of metal. In the context of VA, shrapnel typically include bomb, mine, or gun shell fragments. As such, shrapnel wounds are injuries due to these metal fragments, originating from some sort of explosive device.

Why is shrapnel called Shrapnel?

What is artillery piece?

Definition of artillery pieces : large guns that shoot over long distances.

What is the difference between a bullet and a shell?

A bullet is a projectile. A shell is a casing. The two together, combined with propellant and a primer make a cartridge, which is one complete round of ammunition. A round for a shotgun is also frequently called a shell.

Why were shrapnel shells so effective in trench warfare?

Shrapnel shells were anti-personnel artillery munitions which carried many individual bullets close to a target area and then ejected them to allow them to continue along the shell’s trajectory and strike targets individually. They relied almost entirely on the shell’s velocity for their lethality.

What is the difference between fragmentation and shrapnel?

The key difference between shrapnel and fragmentation is that shrapnel relies on the kinteic energy of the shell for its destructive capability – whereas a fragmentation shell would be essentially as destructive if detonated when stationary. ↑ 1.0 1.1 U.S. War Department Technical Manual 9-1900 ‘’Ammunition, General’’. 18 June 1945. p. 106.

What is the difference between shrapnel shells and high explosive shells?

The casing of a shrapnel shell does not fragment like a high explosive shell, thus, technically, the balls shot from the shrapnel shell are “shrapnel” whereas the pieces of shattered shell casing of a high explosive shell are “fragments” or “splinters.” Another artillery round similar to shrapnel is canister, sometimes called case shot.

What made shrapnel shells feasible for howitzers?

The modern thin-walled forged-steel design made feasible shrapnel shells for howitzers, which had a much lower velocity than field guns, by using a larger gunpowder charge to accelerate the bullets forward on bursting.

What kind of shrapnel was used in the Vietnam War?

Vietnam War era. Although not strictly shrapnel, a 1960s weapons project produced splintex shells for 90 and 106 mm recoilless rifles and 105 mm howitzers where it was called a “beehive” round. Unlike the shrapnel shells’ balls, the splintex shells contained flechettes.