A maroon is a type of

rocket A rocket (from it, rocchetto, , bobbin/spool) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using the surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely fr ...

which generates a loud bang and a bright flash. It is used as an alarm or warning. The

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) used these rockets in the past to call the crew when the

lifeboat Lifeboat may refer to: Rescue vessels * Lifeboat (shipboard), a small craft aboard a ship to allow for emergency escape * Lifeboat (rescue), a boat designed for sea rescues * Airborne lifeboat, an air-dropped boat used to save downed airmen ...

needs to be launched. Another example was as a signal on a railway, to alert oncoming trains that they must stop due to unexpected accident or track work ahead. Used by British spotters in World War I located around the cities, they would fire when German bombers were approaching. Maroons were also intended to be used by the British Civil Defense or

Royal Observer Corps The Royal Observer Corps (ROC) was a civil defence organisation intended for the visual detection, identification, tracking and reporting of aircraft over Great Britain. It operated in the United Kingdom between 29 October 1925 and 31 December ...

in the event of a nuclear attack - the Protect and Survive series of informational civil nuclear defence videos shows the intended usage of maroons to signal impending fallout. Maroons would be used in groups of three to sound an alarm.

References

Rockets and missiles {{Rocket-stub