Editing Shahab-3 (section)

{{Short description|Medium range ballistic missile}}
{{Infobox weapon
| is_missile         = yes
| name               = Shahab-3
| image              = Great_Prophet_II_(30).jpg
| image_size         = 
| type               = Strategic [[MRBM]]
| vehicle_range      = {{convert|1000|km|mi|abbr=on}}<ref name="Shahab-3">{{cite web|url=https://missilethreat.csis.org/missile/shahab-3/|title=Shahab-3|website=Missile Threat}}</ref>-{{convert|2000|km|mi|abbr=on}} 
<ref>[https://www.nasic.af.mil/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=F2VLcKSmCTE%3d&portalid=19 Ballistic and cruise missile threat] nasic.af.mil</ref> (Shahab-3 ER)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jcpa.org/brief/brief005-26.htm|title = The Global Range of Iran's Ballistic Missile Program - Uzi Rubin}}</ref>
| filling            = One ({{convert|1200|kg|lb|abbr=on|disp=or}}) at 1,000-2,000 km<ref name="Shahab-3"/>– five [[cluster munition]] warheads in new models ({{convert|280|kg|lb|abbr=on|disp=or}} each), each warhead can target different destinations.
| launch_platform    = Vehicle
| variants           = A,B,C,D
| yield              = 
| engine             = [[Liquid propellant rocket]]<ref>[https://fas.org/nuke/guide/iran/missile/shahab-3.htm Shahab-3/ Zelzal-3] fas.org</ref>
| guidance           = [[inertial navigation system]]
| accuracy           = 2,500 m [[Circular error probable]]<ref name="Shahab-3"/>
| altitude           = 400&nbsp;km<ref>{{cite web|last=Toukan|first=Abdullah|title=GCC – Iran: Operational Analysis of Air, SAM and TBM Forces|url=http://csis.org/files/publication/090819_GCC_Iran_AirPower.pdf|publisher=[[Center for Strategic & International Studies]]|access-date=27 February 2014|author2=Anthony H. Cordesman }}</ref>
| speed              = 2.4&nbsp;km/s at altitude of 10–30&nbsp;km in final stage which is about Mach 7<ref>{{cite journal|last=Wright|first=David C.|author2=Timur Kadyshev |title=An Analysis of the North Korean Nadong Missile|journal=Science & Global Security|date=1994|volume=4|issue=2|pages=129–160|url=http://scienceandglobalsecurity.org/archive/sgs04wright.pdf|access-date=27 February 2014|publisher=Gordon and Breach Science Publishers S.A.|doi=10.1080/08929889408426397|bibcode=1994S&GS....4..129W}}</ref>
| length             = 
| diameter           = {{convert|1.2|m|ftin|0|abbr=on}}
| weight             = 
| payload_capacity   = 
| manufacturer       = {{IRN}}
| unit_cost          = 
| service            = 2003–present
| used_by            = {{IRN}}
}}

The '''Shahab-3''' ({{langx|fa|شهاب ۳|Šahâb 3}}; meaning "Meteor-3") is a family of [[liquid propellant rocket|liquid-fueled]] [[ballistic missile]]s developed by [[Iran]], under the [[Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps|IRGC]], and based upon the [[North Korea]]n [[Nodong-1|Nodong-1/A]] and [[Nodong-2|Nodong-B]] missiles.<ref name="proliferation">{{cite book|author=U.S. Department of Defense |title=Proliferation: Threat and Response |year=2001 |url=https://fas.org/irp/threat/prolif00.pdf|publisher=DIANE Publishing |page=38 |isbn=1-4289-8085-7}}</ref><ref>[http://www.b14643.de/Spacerockets/Specials/Nodong/index.htm The North-Korean/Iranian Nodong-Shahab missile family] b14643.de</ref><ref name=":2" /> The Shahab-3 family has a range of 1,000-{{convert|2,000|km|mi}}. It was tested from 1998 to 2003 and added to the military arsenal on 7 July 2003, with an official unveiling by Ayatollah [[Ali Khamenei|Khamenei]] on July 20. It has an estimated accuracy of about 2,500m [[Circular error probable|CEP]].<ref name=":0" />  According to the [[IAEA]], Iran in the early 2000s may have explored various fuzing, arming and firing systems to make the Shahab-3 more capable of reliably delivering a nuclear warhead.<ref name="Shahab-3"/>

The forerunners to this missile include the [[Shahab-1]] and [[Shahab-2]]. [[Iranian Defense Ministry|Iran's Defense Ministry]] has alternately denied plans to develop a [[Shahab-4]] and admitted that a Shahab-4 program is in development, having claimed it both to be a [[Medium-range ballistic missile|MRBM]] and an [[Launch vehicle|SLV]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-02-03 |title=Federation of American Scientists :: Shahab-3 / Zelzal-3 |url=http://www.fas.org/programs/ssp/man/militarysumfolder/shahab-3.html |access-date=2024-04-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130203051541/http://www.fas.org/programs/ssp/man/militarysumfolder/shahab-3.html |archive-date=2013-02-03 }}</ref> Some [[Ghadr-110|successors to the Shahab]] have longer range and are more maneuverable.<ref>{{cite web|title=Iranian President Defies West At Military Parade |url=http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1078757.html|publisher=[[Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty]]|access-date=27 February 2014|date=22 September 2007}}</ref><ref name=fars>{{cite web|title=Iran Shows Home-Made Warfare Equipment at Military Parade|url=http://english2.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8606310435|publisher=[[Fars News Agency]]|access-date=27 February 2014|date=22 September 2007|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140227200729/http://english2.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8606310435|archive-date=2014-02-27|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite web|title=Ghadr-1|url=http://missilethreat.csis.org/missile/emad/|publisher=Missile Threat|access-date=27 February 2014}}</ref>

Operating under the Sanam Industrial Group (Department 140), which is part of the [[Defense Industries Organization]] of Iran, the Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group (SHIG), led the development of the Shahab missile.<ref>{{cite news|work=The Washington Times |author=Gertz, William |date=1997-05-22 |title=Russia disregards pledge to curb Iranian missile output; Tehran, Moscow sign pacts for additional support}}</ref>

In 2019, the US [[Defense Intelligence Agency]] described the Shahab 3 as "the mainstay of Iran’s MRBM force".<ref name="autogeneratedmil">[https://www.dia.mil/Portals/110/Images/News/Military_Powers_Publications/Iran_Military_Power_LR.pdf Iran Military Power] dia.mil</ref> In June 2017, the [[US Air Force]] [[National Air and Space Intelligence Center]] estimated that fewer than 50 launchers were operationally deployed.<ref name=nasic-20170601>{{cite report |page=25 |url=https://www.nasic.af.mil/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=F2VLcKSmCTE%3d&portalid=19 |title=Ballistic and Cruise Missile Threat |id=NASIC-1031-0985-17 |publisher=Defense Intelligence Ballistic Missile Analysis Committee |date=June 2017 |access-date=16 July 2017}}</ref>

Shahab-3 missiles are considered obsolete and are being progressively changed for their more recent upgrades of Shahab family missiles, such as the [[Ghadr-110|Ghadr-110H]] and [[Emad (missile)|Emad]] missile. The US government says that the Shahab-3 is "generally" less accurate than the [[Fateh-110]].<ref name="autogeneratedmil" />