PHOTOS: WWII Mortar at military museum

The WWll Japanese 81mm mortar at the State Military Museum was almost an exact copy of a U.S. mortar used in WWII. A mortar is a metal tube where rounds are placed and fired toward a target. Mortar rounds are used to support ground troops. At the Hawthorne Army Depot, marine were practicing with 60mm mortar rounds when the shell exploded in its firing tube.