The Effects Of Temperature On Rifle Shooting
If you’ve read up on sniper ballistics or fired one yourself from our shooting range Los Angeles, you’ve probably heard that for every temperature change of 20 degrees, adjust 1 MOA to make up for ballistic change. And because you can find that idea in just about any sniper manual, it’s pretty much accepted as fact. However, we tend to think this might be a specious claim.
Actually, technically it may be true, however, only at distances further than any police sniper shot in recorded history. This erroneous information can be dangerous for police because it informs snipers to start changing sights when actually it is not necessary. In fact, it actually makes snipers create an incorrect firing solution. But because it is so widely accepted, it is taken as truth.
This rule has actually been proven wrong by several field tests under a variety of temperatures. As snipers, the most it is important to test under a variety of circumstances so when it really matters, you are prepared. It is important to go out into the field and make sure you know what your rifle can do.
The question remains, “how is projectile velocity affected by the temperature of the propellant?” In fact, there are two factors that temperature may affect: external ballistics and internal ballistics. Internally, higher temperature causes powder to burn quicker, which creates more pressure and velocity. Externally, cold air is denser than hot air, thus, cold air creates more drag on the bullet, which slows the velocity. As a bullet slows, its drop rate increases.
The difficulty lies in that while the 1 MOA per 20-degree change is correct for long distances, most law enforcement snipers new shoot past 200 yards, and even military shots are within 500 yards.
The New Rule
We have a very concise suggestion that simplifies this whole dilemma. The new rule is this: Any sniping under 500 yards, you should ignore temperature. Any sniping beyond 500 yards refer to the original rules set forth in sniper school.
About LAX Range, a shooting range Los Angeles:
LAX Range, shooting range Los Angeles, was established in 1995 and has been dedicated to serving their community. LAX Range carries a wide stock of ammunition as well as caliber, rifles, and shot guns with which customers are free to practice with. LAX Range offers a variety of gun-related accessories for customers to choose from.