Insta
US President Donald Trump (DON EMMERT/AFP/Getty Images)
In a major development, the United States (US) announced on Friday (20 March) that it has successfully tested an unarmed prototype of a hypersonic missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads, reports Economic Times.
Pentagon revealed that the test glide vehicle flew at five times the speed of sound, or Mach 5, to hit the designated impact point. It also said that delivering hypersonic weapons is one of the highest technical research and engineering priorities for the Department of Defence.
It should be noted that the US has already made public its goal to have a deploy-able hypersonic missile capability by 2023. In this pursuit, the US' Department of Defence had demanded $2.6 billion in the ongoing fiscal, while also having requested for a higher allocation of $3.2 billion in the next fiscal.
Hypersonic missile can traverse much faster than nuclear-capable ballistic, cruise and other conventional missiles. These can also change the direction whilst in flight, making them tougher to track and interpret.
Support Swarajya's 50 Ground Reports Project & Sponsor A Story
Every general election Swarajya does a 50 ground reports project.
Aimed only at serious readers and those who appreciate the nuances of political undercurrents, the project provides a sense of India's electoral landscape. As you know, these reports are produced after considerable investment of travel, time and effort on the ground.
This time too we've kicked off the project in style and have covered over 30 constituencies already. If you're someone who appreciates such work and have enjoyed our coverage please consider sponsoring a ground report for just Rs 2999 to Rs 19,999 - it goes a long way in helping us produce more quality reportage.
You can also back this project by becoming a subscriber for as little as Rs 999 - so do click on this links and choose a plan that suits you and back us.
Click below to contribute.
Latest