20 March 2013
Angles of Attack for Israel’s Iron Dome Missile System
By William J. Broad
The New York Times

Israel last fall hailed the Iron Dome system as destroying hundreds of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip. When an interceptor’s sensor detects the incoming rocket, it detonates its own warhead, sending out metal fragments. If the timing is right, fragments will hit the rocket’s warhead, detonating it. Skeptics say the Israelis exaggerated the success rate and that the odds of destruction depend critically on how the interceptor approaches the rocket.