Monday, June 27, 2022
  • About us
    • Write for us
    • Disclaimer
    • Terms of use
    • Privacy Policy
  • RSS Feeds
  • Advertise with us
  • Contact us
DefenceTalk
  • Home
  • Defense News
    • Defense & Geopolitics News
    • War Conflicts News
    • Army News
    • Air Force News
    • Navy News
    • Missiles Systems News
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • Defense Technology
    • Cybersecurity News
  • Military Photos
  • Defense Forum
  • Military Videos
  • Military Weapon Systems
    • Weapon Systems
    • Reports
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Defense News
    • Defense & Geopolitics News
    • War Conflicts News
    • Army News
    • Air Force News
    • Navy News
    • Missiles Systems News
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • Defense Technology
    • Cybersecurity News
  • Military Photos
  • Defense Forum
  • Military Videos
  • Military Weapon Systems
    • Weapon Systems
    • Reports
No Result
View All Result
DefenceTalk
No Result
View All Result

Pentagon successfully tests hypersonic missile

by Agence France-Presse
March 23, 2020
in Missile News
2 min read
0
Pentagon successfully tests hypersonic missile
14
VIEWS

The United States announced Friday it has successfully tested an unarmed prototype of a hypersonic missile, a nuclear-capable weapon that could accelerate the arms race between superpowers.

The Pentagon said a test glide vehicle flew at hypersonic speeds — more than five times the speed of sound, or Mach 5 — to a designated impact point.

The test followed the first joint US Army and Navy flight experiment in October 2017, when the prototype missile demonstrated it could glide in the direction of a target at hypersonic speed.

“Today we validated our design and are now ready to move to the next phase towards fielding a hypersonic strike capability,” Vice Admiral Johnny Wolfe said in a statement.

Hypersonic weapons can take missile warfare, particularly nuclear warfare, to a new — and, for many, frightening — level.

They can travel much faster than current nuclear-capable ballistic and cruise missiles at low altitudes, can switch direction in flight and do not follow a predictable arc like conventional missiles, making them much harder to track and intercept.

Even as conventionally armed, non-nuclear weapons, they are viewed by analysts as raising the danger of conflict, because an adversary might not know how they are armed when launched.

The Pentagon is pressing to catch up with rivals Moscow and Beijing in the race to develop hypersonics, even as it recognizes they could dangerously raise the risks of a nuclear conflict, as countries struggle to build defenses against them.

In its fiscal 2021 budget the US Defense Department requested $3.2 billion for hypersonic programs, up from $2.6 billion in the current year. The goal is a deployable hypersonic capability by 2023, though that could be difficult.

“Delivering hypersonic weapons is one of the department’s highest technical research and engineering priorities,” the Pentagon said.

Russia leading the race
The joint Army-Navy test was carried out on March 19 from the Pacific Missile Range facility in Kauai, Hawaii. The test was for the military’s common-hypersonic glide body, or C-HGB weapon, designed to be launched from a rocket that could be land-, air- or sea-based.

“The glide body tested today is now ready for transition to Army and Navy weapon system development efforts,” said Mike White, the assistant director of the hypersonics program.

In December, Russia declared it had placed into service its first Avangard hypersonic missile, making it the first country to claim an operable hypersonic weapon.

Russian officials claimed that in tests it had reached speeds of up to Mach 27, roughly 20,500 miles (33,000 kilometers) per hour.

China is also investing significantly in their development. Last October it displayed its DF-17 hypersonic glide vehicle in its national day military parade.

The US military is meanwhile pouring money into advanced missile defense research to find ways to protect against hypersonics.

A senior NATO official warned that in a hypersonic missile strike, it may not even be clear what the target is “until there’s a boom on the ground.”

New arms race
In January the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists advanced its “Doomsday Clock,” its assessment of the risk of nuclear holocaust, in part due to the rising threat of hypersonic weapons.

“There is increasing investment in and deployment of hypersonic weapons that will severely limit response times available to targeted nations and create a dangerous degree of ambiguity and uncertainty,” it said.

“This uncertainty could lead to rapid escalation of military conflicts. At a minimum, these weapons are highly destabilizing and presage a new arms race.”

Tags: arms raceHypersonic missileHypersonic weaponsrussia
Previous Post

US Dept of Defense tests hypersonic glide body

Next Post

North Korea fires two ‘ballistic missiles’ into sea

Related Posts

Artillery tested for rapid deployment

Ukraine forces need deliberate training on new rocket system: US

June 9, 2022

Ukraine wants new Himars artillery from the United States on the battlefield now, but the Pentagon is stressing the need...

Chinese hypersonic test included pathbreaking 2nd missile launch: reports

North Korea launches unidentified ballistic missile: Seoul

June 5, 2022

North Korea launched at least one ballistic missile into waters off its east coast on Sunday, South Korea's military said,...

Next Post
North Korea fires two ‘ballistic missiles’ into sea

North Korea fires two 'ballistic missiles' into sea

Latest Defense News

Former NATO chief Javier Solana has coronavirus

Finland, Sweden leaders to discuss NATO bid with Erdogan

June 27, 2022
Canada sends 2 warships to Baltic Sea to bolster security

Canada sends 2 warships to Baltic Sea to bolster security

June 27, 2022
Russia says first hypersonic missiles enter service

Russia hit a missile factory in Kyiv: defence ministry

June 27, 2022
US moves closer to retaliation over hacking as cyber woes grow

Spain warns of possible cyberattack at NATO summit

June 27, 2022
Kyiv says US precision artillery systems arrived in Ukraine

Kyiv says US precision artillery systems arrived in Ukraine

June 24, 2022
US Navy Kicks Off ICEX 2020

Russia and China eye NATO’s ‘Arctic Achilles heel’

June 24, 2022

Defense Forum Discussions

  • Russia and the West
  • Australian Army Discussions and Updates
  • Royal New Zealand Navy Discussions and Updates
  • NZDF General discussion thread
  • Royal New Zealand Air Force
  • Philippine Navy Discussion and Updates
  • Ukrainian - Russian War Memes.
  • The Russian-Ukrainian War Thread
  • Indonesian Aero News
  • Royal Netherlands Navy
DefenceTalk

© 2003-2020 DefenceTalk.com

Navigate Site

  • Defence Forum
  • Military Photos
  • RSS Feeds
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Contact us

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Defense News
    • Defense & Geopolitics News
    • War Conflicts News
    • Army News
    • Air Force News
    • Navy News
    • Missiles Systems News
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • Defense Technology
    • Cybersecurity News
  • Military Photos
  • Defense Forum
  • Military Videos
  • Military Weapon Systems
    • Weapon Systems
    • Reports

© 2003-2020 DefenceTalk.com