Firepower
Royal Artillery Museum
Firepower is a museum that displays the artillery and equipment that have been used throughout the years, from the first explosively propelled arrow, to modern missiles with computer guidance and intricate engineering.
The Museum
The Firepower display is located at the Royal Artillery Museum. A video shows what it feels like to be a gunner during wartime. Following the video, there??s the History Gallery where there??s a display of the artillery of the past from bows and arrows to the latest technological weapons at the beginning of the 20th century.
Science at war
The gallery shows the chemistry of gun powder and how practical solutions were developed to create the different types of weapons. Next comes the Real Weapon Galley which explains the science of ammunition with hands-on equipment to experience scientific theory in action. Then there??s the Gunnery Hall which displays equipment that was used by the British Army during the 20th century.
The Abbot FV533
Once in the Gunnery Gallery, there??s a display of the ??Abbot?? FV533. This is a 105mm self-propelled gun that was used in 1976 during the Cold War. The gun is mounted in a fully rotating turret with powered traverse through 360 degrees. The inside of the turret had positions for 3 crew members, a gunner seated at the right front, a commander immediately seated behind and a loader behind the main gun.
Submitted by: Josevan Vallejo, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 21 January 2007
