What is "throw-weight"

n. the weight of the payload of a missile (not including the weight of the rocket)

Throw-weight is a measure of the effective weight of ballistic missile payloads. It is measured in kilogram or tonnes. Throw-weight equals the total weight of a missile's warheads, reentry vehicles, self-contained dispensing mechanisms, penetration aids, and missile guidance systems--generally all components except for the launch rocket booster and launch fuel. While throw-weight may refer to any type of warhead, in normal usage it almost exclusively refers to nuclear or thermonuclear payloads.

Throw-weight was used as a criterion in classifying different types of missiles during Strategic Arms Limitation Talks between the Soviet Union and the United States. The term became politically controversial during debates over the arms-control accord, as critics of the treaty alleged that Soviet missiles were able to carry larger payloads and therefore enabled the Soviets to maintain higher throw-weight than an American force with a roughly comparable number of lower-payload missiles.

Culturally, being able to discuss throw-weight was often used as shorthand to suggest that a politician was capable of understanding a serious and high-profile but arcane and supposedly mathematically complex public policy issue.