It's not easy to research a weapon that's still under a lot of secrecy. I had hoped that Russian-language articles would be closer to the source, as they usually are, but all are clearly the work of analysts not involved in the missile's development. This is the best I've managed to find. It confirms again that the missile uses a synthetic hydrocarbon fuel (JP-10 equivalent) and "a special ramjet engine, which is characterized by supersonic combustion".
That would be the definition of a scramjet.
Another article digs into listing every test, including launch footage, and attempting to estimate the missile's exact shape and dimensions from OSINT.
Mass-wise, it's is not advertised, but considering it'sthat the Zircon is a bit smaller than the missile it replaces, it can't be more than 3,000 kg fulltotal. That leaves a best-casemaximum weight of 900 kg after accelerationfor the second stage. With 35% for fuel and 30% for airframe+engine, whichits weight budget falls 20-25% short of 315 kg fuel,that required to fit a 300 kg warhead, 300 kg airframe and engine,at least 100 kg guidance ~= 1,000 kg best-case estimatein avionics.
So, it's possible to achieve the specifications achieved in350-450 km range from early tests without using a scramjet engine. A combination of rockets or air-augmented rockets could reach this velocity and range. For the later long-range tests, the warhead would have to be removed or greatly reduced.
HoweverOverall, thisa rocket engine is very unlikely. This missile is a successor of a long line of ramjet missiles. Its shape clearly indicates an airbreathing engine inside. The manufacturer doesn't explicitly state they're using a scramjet, but a ramjet would be ineffectiveregular ramjets or other engines can't run at this speed. Its shape clearly indicates an airbreathing engine insideMach 7. Scramjet engines have been studied and tested extensively, in various forms, and could realistically be used there.
Changing the equations to reflectuse a rocket to get to half speed, then a scramjet for the rest brings different math:
Of particular interest is the joint program between MBDA (French missile manufacturer) and MAI (Russian aviation research center) to develop a "wide range ramjet" and a "dual mode ramjet", covering the range from Mach 2 to Mach 12. The program was extensive on both sides, with a lot of prototypes. TestingAccording to the article, testing at MAI's hypersonic wind tunnel has validated Mach 2-7.5 (sc)ramjetwide-range ramjet engines. It appears that this program has culminated in the Meteor missile withusing a wide-range ramjet and the Zircon missile withusing a dual-mode ramjet engine.