A rocket (from Italian: rocchetto, lit. ''bobbin/spool'', and so named for its shape) is an elongated flying vehicle that uses a rocket engine to accelerate without using any surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Unlike jet engines, rockets are fuelled entirely by propellant which they carry, without the need for oxygen from air; consequently a rocket can fly in the vacuum of space, indeed rocket engines operate more efficiently outside the atmosphere.
Multistage rockets are capable of attaining escape velocity from Earth and therefore can achieve unlimited maximum altitude. Compared with airbreathing engines, rockets are lightweight and powerful and capable of generating large accelerations. To control their flight, rockets may use momentum, airfoils, auxiliary reaction engines, gimballed thrust, momentum wheels, deflection of the exhaust stream, propellant flow, and spin, or may simply fly in a ballistic trajectory under the influence of gravity.
Rockets for military and recreational uses date back to at least 13th-century China. Significant scientific, interplanetary and industrial use did not occur until the 20th century, when rocketry was the enabling technology for the Space Age, including setting foot on the Moon. Rockets are now used for fireworks, missiles and other weaponry, ejection seats, launch vehicles for artificial satellites, human spaceflight, and space exploration.
Chemical rockets are the most common type of high-power rocket, typically creating a high-speed exhaust by the combustion of fuel with an oxidizer. The stored propellant can be a simple pressurized gas or a single liquid fuel that disassociates in the presence of a catalyst (monopropellant), two liquids that spontaneously react on contact (hypergolic propellants), two liquids that must be ignited to react (like kerosene (RP1) and liquid oxygen, used in most liquid-propellant rockets), a solid combination of fuel with oxidizer (solid fuel), or solid fuel with liquid or gaseous oxidizer (hybrid propellant system). Chemical rockets store a large amount of energy in an easily released form, and the consequences of accidents can be severe.
The term "rocket" is also used for small fireworks, which are the subject of article rocket (firework). (Full article...)
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A sounding rocket or rocketsonde, sometimes called a research rocket or a suborbital rocket, is an instrument-carrying rocket designed to take measurements and perform scientific experiments during its sub-orbital flight. The rockets are often used to launch instruments from 50 to 150 km (30 to 90 mi) above the surface of the Earth, the altitude generally between weather balloons and satellites; the maximum altitude for balloons is about 40 km (25 mi), and the minimum for satellites is approximately 120 km (75 mi).
Due to their suborbital flight profile, sounding rockets are often much simpler than their counterparts built for orbital flight. Certain sounding rockets have an apogee between 1,000 and 1,500 km (600 and 900 mi), such as the Black Brant X and XII. Sounding rockets may be flown to altitudes as high as 3,000 km (2,000 mi) to allow observing times of around 40 minutes to provide geophysical observations of the magnetosphere, ionosphere, thermosphere, and mesosphere. (Full article...)
In the news
- 26 March 2026 – Middle Eastern crisis
- One person is killed and 11 are injured by Hezbollah rocket fire in Nahariya, Israel. (The Jerusalem Post)
- 24 March 2026 – Middle Eastern crisis
- Hezbollah rocket fire kills a woman and injures two others in northern Israel. (The Jerusalem Post)
- 22 March 2026 – Middle Eastern crisis
- One person is killed after a rocket fired from Lebanon struck a vehicle near Israel's northern border, marking the first reported Israeli fatality from cross-border fire since hostilities with Hezbollah resumed earlier in March. (AFP via The Daily Star)
- 20 March 2026 – Middle Eastern crisis
- Ceasefire mediators in Cairo, Egypt, give Hamas and all armed groups in the Gaza Strip 90 days to hand over their weapons in the coming months, including their missiles and rocket launchers along with their tunnel network. (Times of Israel)
- 16 March 2026 – Middle Eastern crisis
- At least seven people, including four children, are injured by Hezbollah rocket and drone attacks on northern Israel. (The Times of Israel) (The Jerusalem Post)
- 12 March 2026 – Middle Eastern crisis
- Hezbollah launches over 200 rockets and 20 UAVs at northern Israel, injuring two people. (The Times of Israel)
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👁 Image 1An illustration of fire arrow launchers as depicted in the Wubei Zhi (17th century). The launcher is constructed using basketry. (from History of rockets)An illustration of fire arrow launchers as depicted in the Wubei Zhi (17th century). The launcher is constructed using basketry. (from History of rockets)
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👁 Image 2Rocket thrust is caused by pressures acting in the combustion chamber and nozzle. From Newton's third law, equal and opposite pressures act on the exhaust, and this accelerates it to high speeds. (from Rocket engine)Rocket thrust is caused by pressures acting in the combustion chamber and nozzle. From Newton's third law, equal and opposite pressures act on the exhaust, and this accelerates it to high speeds. (from Rocket engine)
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Robert Goddard and the first liquid-fueled rocket. (from History of rockets)
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👁 Image 4French Diamant rocket, the second French rocket program, developed from 1961 (from History of rockets)French Diamant rocket, the second French rocket program, developed from 1961 (from History of rockets)
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A German V-2 rocket on a Meillerwagen. (from History of rockets)
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👁 Image 6The four expansion regimes of a de Laval nozzle:• under-expanded• perfectly expanded• over-expanded• grossly over-expanded (from Rocket engine)The four expansion regimes of a de Laval nozzle:• under-expanded• perfectly expanded• over-expanded• grossly over-expanded (from Rocket engine)
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👁 Image 7Simplified diagram of a liquid-fuel rocket: Liquid-fuel tank Liquid-oxidiser tank Pumps feed fuel and oxidiser under high pressure. Combustion chamber mixes and burns the propellants. Exhaust nozzle expands and accelerates the gas jet to produce thrust. Exhaust exits nozzle. (from Rocket engine)Simplified diagram of a liquid-fuel rocket:(from Rocket engine)
- Liquid-fuel tank
- Liquid-oxidiser tank
- Pumps feed fuel and oxidiser under high pressure.
- Combustion chamber mixes and burns the propellants.
- Exhaust nozzle expands and accelerates the gas jet to produce thrust.
- Exhaust exits nozzle.
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A V-1 flying bomb, amongst the first guided missiles (from Missile)
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The Congreve rocket (from History of rockets)
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👁 Image 11A simplified diagram of a solid-fuel rocket. A propellant is packed with a hole in the middle An igniter combusts the propellant The hole acts as a combustion chamber The hot exhaust is choked at the throat Exhaust exits the rocket (from Missile)A simplified diagram of a solid-fuel rocket.(from Missile)
- A propellant is packed with a hole in the middle
- An igniter combusts the propellant
- The hole acts as a combustion chamber
- The hot exhaust is choked at the throat
- Exhaust exits the rocket
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👁 Image 12A battery of Katyusha launchers fires at German forces during the Battle of Stalingrad, 6 October 1942 (from History of rockets)A battery of Katyusha launchers fires at German forces during the Battle of Stalingrad, 6 October 1942 (from History of rockets)
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👁 Image 13A "long serpent enemy breaking" fire arrow launcher as depicted in the Wubei Zhi (17th century). It carries 32 medium small poisoned rockets and comes with a sling to carry on the back. (from History of rockets)A "long serpent enemy breaking" fire arrow launcher as depicted in the Wubei Zhi (17th century). It carries 32 medium small poisoned rockets and comes with a sling to carry on the back. (from History of rockets)
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👁 Image 15Opel RAK.1 - World's first public manned flight of a rocket plane on September 30, 1929. (from History of rockets)Opel RAK.1 - World's first public manned flight of a rocket plane on September 30, 1929. (from History of rockets)
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Rocket carts from the Wubei Zhi (17th century) (from History of rockets)
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Robert Goddard (from History of rockets)
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👁 Image 18Signatories of the International Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation. (from Missile)Signatories of the International Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation. (from Missile)
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👁 Image 19Rocket vehicle mechanical efficiency as a function of vehicle instantaneous speed divided by effective exhaust speed. These percentages need to be multiplied by internal engine efficiency to get overall efficiency. (from Rocket engine)Rocket vehicle mechanical efficiency as a function of vehicle instantaneous speed divided by effective exhaust speed. These percentages need to be multiplied by internal engine efficiency to get overall efficiency. (from Rocket engine)
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Robert Esnault-Pelterie (1909). (from History of rockets)
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Robert Anderson suggests using metal for rocket casing (from History of rockets)
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👁 Image 22Rockets carrying the Space Shuttle Discovery into Earth orbit in 2007 (from History of rockets)Rockets carrying the Space Shuttle Discovery into Earth orbit in 2007 (from History of rockets)
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👁 Image 24Typical ballistic missile sequence: 1. Launches by firing motor1(A) 2. Stage1 drops, motor2(B) ignites & shroud(E) ejects 3. Motor3(C) ignites and separates 4. Stage3 terminates and post-boost vehicle(D) separates 5. Vehicle maneuvers itself and prepares re-entry vehicle (RV) 6. RV with decoys and chaffs deploys 7. RV re-enters the atmosphere 8. Warhead(s) detonate on target (from Missile)Typical ballistic missile sequence:(from Missile)
- 1. Launches by firing motor1(A)
- 2. Stage1 drops, motor2(B) ignites & shroud(E) ejects
- 3. Motor3(C) ignites and separates
- 4. Stage3 terminates and post-boost vehicle(D) separates
- 5. Vehicle maneuvers itself and prepares re-entry vehicle (RV)
- 6. RV with decoys and chaffs deploys
- 7. RV re-enters the atmosphere
- 8. Warhead(s) detonate on target
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Layout of a V-2 rocket. (from History of rockets)
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👁 Image 26Armadillo Aerospace's quad vehicle showing visible banding (shock diamonds) in the exhaust jet (from Rocket engine)Armadillo Aerospace's quad vehicle showing visible banding (shock diamonds) in the exhaust jet (from Rocket engine)
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A Tomahawk cruise missile in flight (from Missile)
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👁 Image 28Simplified diagram of a solid-fuel rocket: Solid fuel–oxidiser mixture (propellant) packed into casing Igniter initiates propellant combustion. Central hole in propellant acts as the combustion chamber. Exhaust nozzle expands and accelerates the gas jet to produce thrust. Exhaust exits nozzle. (from Rocket engine)Simplified diagram of a solid-fuel rocket:(from Rocket engine)
- Solid fuel–oxidiser mixture (propellant) packed into casing
- Igniter initiates propellant combustion.
- Central hole in propellant acts as the combustion chamber.
- Exhaust nozzle expands and accelerates the gas jet to produce thrust.
- Exhaust exits nozzle.
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Von Braun's rocket team in 1961 (from History of rockets)
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