Munitions

M930 Visible Light Illuminating Cartridge

Also known as
  • M930
  • 120 mm M930
  • M930 120 mm illuminating cartridge
  • M930 visible-light illumination cartridge
  • 120 mm M930 illuminating mortar round

The M930 Visible Light Illuminating Cartridge is a U.S. 120 mm mortar round produced for the M120A1 towed and M121 carrier-mounted mortar systems. Army sources describe it as a parachute-retarded visible-light round with 1,000,000 candlepower and about 50 seconds of burn time, while official OIR and Ukraine budget documents place M930 rounds in partner-force and Ukrainian transfer contexts.

M930 Visible Light Illuminating Cartridge, 120 mm illuminating mortar cartridge, Munitions
Image source: M930 illumination round at Capu Midia

Role in Conflicts

Profile / Specs

Profile

Origin
United States
Type
120 mm illuminating mortar cartridge
Service note
2003-present
Unit cost
FY 2005 U.S. Army budget materials listed the M930 visible-light illuminating cartridge at $2,140 per round.
Produced
March 2003-present

Specifications

Caliber
120 mm
Cartridge type
Visible-light illuminating mortar cartridge
Compatible systems
M120A1 towed mortar and M121 carrier-mounted mortar systems
Illumination
1,000,000 candlepower
Burn time
50 seconds
Range
400 to 6,900 meters
Fuze
M776 mechanical time superquick fuze
Weight
31.4 pounds
Variants

U.S. Army sources separate the visible-light M930 from the infrared M983 cartridge, while Elbit catalogs M996/M930E1 as a related 120 mm illuminating mortar-bomb designation.

VariantConfigurationDesignation notes
M983 120 mm infrared illuminating cartridge, 120 mm infrared illuminating mortar cartridge, MunitionsM983 120 mm infrared illuminating cartridgeInfrared 120 mm illumination cartridge

Army ammunition references list M983 alongside M930 as the infrared 120 mm illumination cartridge for M120A1 and M121 mortar systems.

Sources: Mortar Ammunition, PEO Ammunition 2017 Portfolio Book

M996 mortar projectile, 120 mm visible-light illuminating mortar bomb, ArtilleryM996 mortar projectileM930E1-related 120 mm illuminating mortar bomb

Elbit's mortar-ammunition portfolio catalogs M996/M930E1 as a 120 mm illuminating bomb with a time fuze, more than 50 seconds of light, and 1 million candela output.

Sources: Elbit Mortar Ammunition Portfolio

Fired by 120 mm Mortars

The Army lists the M930 as a visible-light illumination cartridge for the M120A1 and M121 mortar systems.

Firing weaponWeapon typeFiring evidence
120 mm mortar, Heavy mortar, Artillery120 mm mortar120 mm mortar system

The Army mortar ammunition page lists the M930 under 120 mm visible-light illumination ammunition, and the Army portfolio book says it is fired from the M120A1 towed and M121 carrier-mounted mortar systems.

Sources: Mortar Ammunition, PEO Ammunition 2017 Portfolio Book

MO-120 RT, 120 mm rifled towed heavy mortar, ArtilleryMO-120 RTM327 120 mm rifled mortar

The Marine Corps image used for the primary M930 illustration shows a Marine inserting an M930 illumination round into an M327 120 mm mortar tube during Exercise Platinum Eagle 17.2.

Sources: M930 illumination round at Capu Midia

Illumination Role And Family Context

M930 is the visible-light member of a 120 mm mortar illumination family. Its value is not blast effect; it gives mortar units a timed, parachute-retarded light source for observation, signaling, and fire adjustment at night.

TopicDocumented detailReader context
Visible-light roleArmy ammunition references list M930 as the visible-light 120 mm illumination cartridge.Supports unaided observation and signaling where visible illumination is acceptable.
Infrared counterpartThe same Army references list M983 as the infrared 120 mm illumination cartridge.Shows the designation split between visible light and night-vision-oriented illumination.
Firing systemsThe Army portfolio identifies M120A1 and M121 mortar systems; Marine imagery documents an M930 round being loaded into an M327 mortar.Connects the cartridge to both Army smoothbore systems and the Marine Corps rifled-mortar context shown in the gallery.
Related designationElbit catalogs M996/M930E1 as a 120 mm illuminating mortar bomb.Places the M930E1 label in the wider 120 mm illumination ammunition family without treating it as the same U.S. production item.

Sources: Mortar Ammunition; PEO Ammunition 2017 Portfolio Book; M930 illumination round at Capu Midia; Elbit Mortar Ammunition Portfolio.

Timeline

M930 Visible Light Illuminating Cartridge Key Events

  1. M930 production baseline

    The Army ammunition portfolio places M930 production from March 2003 and identifies Pine Bluff Arsenal for load, assemble, and pack work.

  2. OIR partner-force equipment listing

    A Lead Inspector General report for 2014 Operation Inherent Resolve listed 3,480 120 mm M930 illuminating mortar rounds in the Kurdish Security Forces train-and-equip context.

  3. Ukraine replacement procurement request

    A U.S. reprogramming enclosure requested replacement procurement for 120 mm M930 mortar rounds transferred to Ukraine.

Media

M930 Visible Light Illuminating Cartridge Images

M930 Visible Light Illuminating Cartridge, 120 mm illuminating mortar cartridge, Munitions - view 1
Source: Mortar night fire 140318-A-TW035-307.jpg
M930 Visible Light Illuminating Cartridge, 120 mm illuminating mortar cartridge, Munitions - view 2
Source: Illumination rounds shot from mortar ignite the midnight sky 150607-A-YY327-038.jpg
Related Weapon Systems
120 mm illumination ammunition, 120 mm illuminating ammunition, MunitionsMunitions120 mm illumination ammunition120 mm illuminating ammunition120 mm illumination ammunition is a heavy mortar munition class that ejects a parachute-retarded candle to light target areas for night observation, signaling, and fire adjustment. Nammo publishes a representative 120 mm illuminating round with time-fuze deployment at 500-700 meters, while U.S. Army sources identify visible-light M930 and infrared M983 cartridges for the M120A1 and M121 mortar systems. In the 2001 War in Afghanistan, U.S. Marines with Task Force Southwest fired 120 mm mortar illumination rounds from Bost Airfield to support Afghan government forces during combat operations in Helmand Province.
M721 60 mm visible light illumination cartridge, 60 mm visible-light illuminating mortar cartridge, MunitionsMunitionsM721 60 mm visible light illumination cartridge60 mm visible-light illuminating mortar cartridgeThe M721 is a U.S. 60 mm visible-light illuminating mortar cartridge for the M224/M224A1 lightweight company mortar system. Army ammunition materials describe a parachute-and-candle payload, an M776 mechanical time fuze, and roughly 300,000 candlepower for observation, fire adjustment, and signaling, while transfer and budget records place the round in Afghan and Iraqi partner-force ammunition channels.
Cartridge, 105 mm, Illuminating, M314, 105 mm howitzer-fired illuminating cartridge with parachute-retarded canister, MunitionsMunitionsCartridge, 105 mm, Illuminating, M314105 mm howitzer-fired illuminating cartridge with parachute-retarded canisterThe M314 is a U.S. 105 mm howitzer illumination cartridge family that ejects a flare canister under parachute for battlefield lighting. Army ammunition manuals list earlier M314-series rounds for M101/M102-era howitzers, while Army portfolio material identifies the M314A3 visible-light round as a 105 mm M119-series illumination cartridge with a semi-fixed case, time fuze, expelling charge, illuminant canister, and parachute assembly.
M824 60 mm illumination mortar projectile, 60 mm illumination mortar projectile, ArtilleryArtilleryM824 60 mm illumination mortar projectile60 mm illumination mortar projectileThe M824 is a 60 mm illumination mortar projectile in the Israeli mortar-ammunition lineage now carried in Elbit Systems Land's portfolio. Elbit says the round carries a parachute-retarded flare, burns for 35 seconds, reaches 2,200 m, uses a time fuze, and fires from smoothbore 60 mm mortar barrels. A 2010 Forecast International report listed IMI's M824 as an extended-range illumination round, and OSMP documented a tentative M824 in Gaza in July 2024 as a delivered and functioned munition.

Sources

Mortar AmmunitionPublisher: U.S. Army Capability Program Executive Ammunition & Energetics | Note: Supports the Army listing of the M930 under 120 mm visible-light illumination ammunition and its M120A1/M121 mortar-system context. | Accessed: 2026-06-29PEO Ammunition 2017 Portfolio BookPublisher: U.S. Army Capability Program Executive Ammunition & Energetics | Note: Supports the M930 system description, performance figures, March 2003 production date, and Pine Bluff Arsenal load, assemble, and pack context. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Arsenal delivered M930 mortars ahead of schedulePublisher: The United States Army | Note: Supports Pine Bluff Arsenal production context for M930 mortars and Crane Army Ammunition Activity production of the illumination and infrared candles used in the M930 and M983 lines. | Accessed: 2026-06-29M930 FY2005 unit costPublisher: U.S. Army | Note: Supports the FY 2005 budget-table price reference for the M930 visible-light illuminating cartridge. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Ukraine Replacement Transfer Fund Tranche 13Publisher: U.S. Department of Defense Comptroller | Note: Supports 2014 Russia-Ukraine War direct transfer context by identifying replacement procurement for training 120 mm M930 mortar rounds transferred to Ukraine. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Basic Identification of Ammunition in Ukraine v9Publisher: Bomb Techs Without Borders | Note: Supports 2014 Russia-Ukraine War direct identification context by listing 120 mm M930 in a Ukraine ammunition-identification guide. | Accessed: 2026-06-29OIR Quarterly Report September 2015Publisher: Lead Inspector General for 2014 Operation Inherent Resolve | Note: Supports 2014 War Against the Islamic State direct equipping context by listing 3,480 120 mm M930 illuminating mortar rounds among train-and-equip items tied to Kurdish Security Forces support. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Elbit Mortar Ammunition PortfolioPublisher: Elbit Systems Land | Note: Supports M996/M930E1 family context, 120 mm illuminating mortar-bomb designation, time-fuze configuration, more than 50 seconds of light, and 1 million candela output. | Accessed: 2026-06-29M930 illumination round at Capu MidiaPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for the M930 illumination round photo showing the cartridge loaded into a mortar tube at Capu Midia. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Mortar night fire 140318-A-TW035-307.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a public-domain 120 mm mortar night-fire image that shows illumination round employment. | Accessed: 2026-06-29Illumination rounds shot from mortar ignite the midnight sky 150607-A-YY327-038.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Supports image provenance for a public-domain mortar illumination photo used in the gallery. | Accessed: 2026-06-29