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Fire arrow

Aerospace Engineering

A fire arrow was an early Chinese gunpowder weapon made by binding a bag of incendiary gunpowder to an arrow shaft, first recorded in use by the Southern Wu during a siege in the year 904. The earliest versions were simply lit and shot from a bow or crossbow, but the design spread to Korea, Japan and eventually the Middle East, and later versions let the gunpowder itself provide the thrust rather than the bow, turning the fire arrow into a true rocket that could fly roughly a thousand feet under its own power.

Facts
Year
969 1
Purpose
Weapons 1
Connections

In Field

Source Fire arrow (Wikipedia)
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Originated In

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject originated.

Source Fire arrow (Wikipedia)Lead
Quote, Lead
In China, a 'fire arrow' referred to a gunpowder projectile consisting of a bag of incendiary gunpowder attached to the shaft of an arrow.
Sources
1. Fire arrow (Wikipedia)
  • Article text
    In 969, gunpowder propelled rocket arrows were invented by Yue Yifang and Feng Jisheng.
  • Introduction
    Fire arrows were one of the earliest forms of weaponized gunpowder, being used from the 9th century onward.
  • In Group: Rocket Artillery and Early Gunpowder Rocketry, lead sentence
  • In Field: Aerospace Engineering, Categories
    Early rocketry
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