How does the Iron Dome work? Israel’s multi-layered air defence missile protection system explained

Israel has withstood a barrage of ballistic missiles fired from Iran in the latest phase of the conflict in the Middle East thanks, in large part, if not completely, to its famed Iron Dome defence system.

Explosions could be heard across Israel on Tuesday, local time, as Iran launched its retaliatory strike for Israel’s campaign against its Hezbollah allies in Lebanon.

The Iron Dome has protected Israel from multiple bombardments and thousands of rockets since it began operating in 2011 — development started in 2007, a year after the Lebanon War ended and Hamas took control of Gaza, with the help of US funding and defence intelligence.

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Its success rate is greater than 90 per cent, according to Israeli defence firm Rafael Advanced Defence Systems, which helped design the Dome, and has been credited with saving countless civilian lives.

What is the Iron Dome and how does it work?

The Iron Dome is a multi-tiered missile defence system designed to protect against short-range rockets (at a distance of up to 70km).

Each Dome battery — a truck-towed mobile unit placed strategically around the country — uses radar technology to detect rockets and track their trajectory to estimate where they will land.

Military personnel analyse the path of an incoming rocket and decide whether to launch a counter missile to intercept it. If it is projected to land harmlessly, in an unpopulated area or the sea, it will not be intercepted.

If they do pose a threat to civilians or infrastructure, counter-missiles are then fired at or near the incoming projectile to neutralise it.

Each missile fired costs about $US50,000, Dr Yehoshua Kalisky, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv told Reuters. Because of the numerous low-level threats it neutralises, it is much cheaper than other systems.

The Dome, known as Kippat Barzel in Hebrew, reacts within seconds and is manned 24 hours a day. A naval version was deployed in 2017 to protect ships and other Israeli assets.

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