It would be hard to tell what range a ballistic missile could achieve. At a guess, judging the fact that a ballistic missile must always arc to it's height then arc back down, it stands to reason that it will have to achieve half of its target on the up arc and then the other half on the down, obviously still powered.
Taking into account that rockets (genuine rockets) use their fuel up extremely quickly and basing on size of rocket - structure of rocket, I'd estimate that you could maybe hit a target from ground to ground of maybe 40 or 50 miles. This is a guess and simply only that. This does not mean it can't go further than that.
My opinion is that rockets are basic and always will be. They are little more than a firework. You light the fuse, ignite the fuel and the fuel carries the weight into a ballistic trajectory until it quickly extinguishes.
Let's go even more basic and equate it to throwing a ball.
If you throw a ball almost horizontally - maybe gaining a small arc, you will throw it a short distance before it hits the ground, fairly quickly. It requires less power to do so but loses flight due to it not having anything to hold it up after release.
Throw that ball up into the air with all your force in a much steeper arc and your ball will travel much further before hitting the ground.
Yeah I know it's a simple context but that's the thing. You see, a rocket is also a simple thing. It doesn't require these supposed engines they tell us they have on the supposed big saturn V rockets. It stands to reason that they wouldn't work if they were engines.
You have little pumps, pumping fuel and oxygen. They simply couldn't mix it at the rates they tell us these super rockets blast out.
It would literally have to be an open cannister, like a water bottle rocket and air to move something like that - but if that were the case, you could guarantee the rocket would go to lift off and simply collapse into a fire ball.
To get a rocket that size into the air, it would literally have to be made out of super light material, almost as light (to scale) as a firework rocket.
Naturally in a liquid fuel rocket, this can't happen on that scale due to weight of fuel and also the pressure it's under. Realistically the rocket would have to be made of thick metal, like a compressed air cylinder but of mammoth size, which wouldn't get off the ground anyway.
As I explained before on the other site. You would never see any rocket lift off in slow motion like we see in space rocket launches on TV. It just wouldn't happen.
For a rocket to launch straight up - true - like we see on TV, it would have to be ridiculously balanced on take off, meaning all burning fuel somehow pushing it evenly off that launch pad and at super speed. In fact, springboard speed, like a person dropped onto a trampoline then sprung off it. Something like that or you would not have balance.
If you do not take off at speed, you are at the mercy of changing pressures under the rocket and one uneven push against any part of the underside of the rocket fuel means your rocket is going to simply tip over.
Taking off at speed gives balance. The nose of the rocket pushes through the air and transfers that air faster around it, balancing the rocket - as long as that rocket holds a vertical motion - whether it's true vertical or arcing.
If it goes horizonal, it's an unbalanced dead stick unless it sprouts huge wings and a tail section.
So where do space ships go when they're supposedly in space?
The answer, as has been said, is - there is no such thing as space ships. Any rocket that's launched in real time, goes into the drink. It simply arcs into the sea.
What you see on TV on the launchpad, is exactly what the film makers want you to see.
What you see launch in real time from the distance anyone does see it, will be a scale model of what you see on TV. Basically a ballistic missile on a trajectory to the sea.
The clever part of this is that it fits a good purpose because it gives off the supposed reality that it isn't a rocket heading out to sea - but a staging of it, or a solid rocket booster, etc, whilst the ever amazed public believe the rest of it is into space.
Just remember that your little garden firework, or even your larger public firework display rocket, is made of a sort of cardboard. It's fine for the purpose because it's purpose is to take off at super speed and very quickly releases it's energy.
If anyone is interested, go and take a look at any missile launch from army vehicles in the deserts and such.
You will notice that they basically spring into action. They accelerate instantly and are spent in short order.
After that, take a look at model rockets in all sizes. There's some of the shuttle and the saturn V - large models. Watch how they take off.
Now go and take a look at any supposed space launches and notice the almost human running speed that they take off with. It's nonsensical and physically impossible for this to happen unless they all go to take off and then blow up, because there's no way they are going into the sky under walking take off speed.
That's my wholehearted opinion on it.