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A smoke-screen is a release of smoke in order to mask the movement or location of military units such as infantry, tanks or ships.
It is most commonly deployed in a canister, usually as a grenade. The grenade releases a very dense cloud of smoke designed to fill the surrounding area even in light wind. They have also been used by ships.
Whereas smokecreens would originally have been used to hide movement from enemies' line of sight, modern technology means that they are now also available in new forms; they can screen in the infrared as well as visible spectrum of light to prevent detection by infrared sensors or viewers, and also available for vehicles is a superdense form used to prevent laser beams of enemy target designators or range finders on vehicles.
These are canister-type grenades used as a ground-to-ground or ground-to-air signaling device. The body consists of a sheet steel cylinder with a few emission holes on top and at the bottom to allow smoke release when the grenade is ignited. The filler consists of 250 to 350 grams of colored (red, green, yellow or violet) smoke mixture (mostly potassium chlorate, lactose and a dye). Another type of smoke grenades, are the bursting kind. These are filled with white phosphorus (WP), which are spread by explosive action. The phosphorus catches fire in the presence of air, and burns with a brilliant yellow flame, while producing copious amounts of white smoke (phosphorus pentoxide). These doubles as incendiary grenades
Smoke-screens are usually used by infantry to cover movement in areas of exposure to enemy fire, they can also be used by armoured fighting vehicleAn armoured fighting vehicle (AFV is a military vehicle, equipped with protection against hostile attacks and often mounted weapons. Most AFVs are equipped for driving in rugged terrain. Types of AFVs Tank Armoured personnel carrier (APC) Infantry fightins, such as tanks, to cover a withdrawal.
Smoke-screens were used during the Battle of JutlandThe Battle of Jutland known in Germany as the Battle of the Skagerrak Skagerrakschlacht , was the largest naval battle of World War I, and the only full-scale clash of battleships in that war. It was fought on May 31 June 1, 1916, in the North Sea near Ju in World War IWorld War I (also known as the First World War , the Great War the War of the Nations and the "War to End All Wars") was a world conflict occurring from 1914 to 1918. No previous conflict had mobilized so many soldiers, or involved so many in the field of.
In the Battle of the River PlateThe Battle of the River Plate ( December 13 1939) was the first major naval battle of World War II, which resulted in the eventual sinking of the German pocket battleship ( heavy cruiser) Admiral Graf Spee by scuttling, ending her successful three-month c in World War IIWorld War II was the most extensive and costly armed conflict in the history of the world, involving the great majority of the world's nations, being fought simultaneously in several major theatres, and costing tens of millions of lives. The war was fough, the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee used a smoke-screen to escape from the British cruisers.
In the Second Battle of the Atlantic in World War II, smoke screens were used by Allied destroyer escorts to mask the presence of the merchant ships from German U-boats.