Photos where the photographer manages to capture the projectile as it leaves the barrel are the best, we love them! As you can see we have a contender in this Photo Of The Day, where a 120 mm mortar round leaves the barrel of the M74 Mortar.

The location is the Besmaya Range Complex in Iraq, during the Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve.

Soldier fires a M74 light mortar for a live-fire exercise at the Besmaya Range Complex, Iraq on March 27, 2019. Coalition training programs include courses in areas as diverse as operational planning, counter-terrorism, logistics and sustainment, equipment maintenance, counter-IED techniques and law enforcement.

Of course, the show is even more spectacular in the darkness.

All photos by Spc. Brandon Best, U.S. Army.