The US And China Are In A Race To Develop Next-Generation Hypersonic Missiles
China and the U.S. have both conducted tests of new
hypersonic weapons systems over the past month. Although both tests were
unsuccessful, they signal continuing military competition between the
two countries, which are each attempting to develop high-accuracy
projectiles that can travel several times faster than the speed of
sound.
On August 7, China performed an unsuccessful second test of its WU-14 hypersonic glide vehicle. The U.S. in turn tested its Advanced Hypersonic Weapon (AHW) from the Kodiak Launch Complex in Alaska on August 25.
The U.S. test also failed.
"Hypersonic weapons are not that new," James Acton, a senior associate with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told Arms Control Wonk. " Ballistic missiles are hypersonic weapons."
However, the weapons that the U.S. and China are now testing belong to a different class of hypersonic weaponry called "boost-glide weapons."
Boost-glide weapons "are launched by big rockets just like a ballistic missile is," Acton said, "but then rather than arcing higher than the atmosphere, they are put on a trajectory to reenter the atmosphere as quickly as possible. Then they just glide to the target."
Boost-glide weapons are capable of traveling on a trajectory that makes them difficult for missile-defense systems to intercept. These systems are designed to work against the high arc of traditional ballistic missiles. Boost-glide projectiles travel quickly and at a flat angle, working at speeds and trajectories that flummox existing missile defense technologies.
Prior to the most recent failed launches by China and the U.S., both nations had successfully carried out test-runs of their boost-glide systems. In January, China tested its WU-14, a sucess which served "as a sign of China moving towards longer range, stronger retaliatory and potentially preemptive capability,” Lora Saalman, a specialist on China with the Carnegie Endowment, told The Washington Free Beacon.
The U.S.'s concern , according to Saalman, is that China may eventually use its boost-glide weapons as nuclear delivery system. This could give China hypothetical nuclear first-strike capability across large portions of the globe, assuming that the U.S. doesn't develop this capability as well.
In 2011, American successfully test-fired the Advanced Hypersonic Weapon. During that test, the AHW flew 2,300 miles in less than half an hour.
The cause for the most recent failure of the AHW in Alaska is uncertain, and the damage at the launch facility was apparently extensive.
On August 7, China performed an unsuccessful second test of its WU-14 hypersonic glide vehicle. The U.S. in turn tested its Advanced Hypersonic Weapon (AHW) from the Kodiak Launch Complex in Alaska on August 25.
The U.S. test also failed.
Chinese Social Media/www.epochtimes.com
An explosion after the Chinese Wu-14 crashed in the Gobi Desert
Hypersonic weapons can hit their targets extremely quickly and
effectively. If ever made operable, these weapons would be able to to
travel five times faster than the speed of sound and cover a range of
several thousand miles.
Chinese Social Media/www.epochtimes.com
The site of the crater from the Wu-14
Although this phase of the hypersonic arms race between China and
the U.S. is fairly recent, the weapons themselves have existed in some
form for decades."Hypersonic weapons are not that new," James Acton, a senior associate with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told Arms Control Wonk. " Ballistic missiles are hypersonic weapons."
However, the weapons that the U.S. and China are now testing belong to a different class of hypersonic weaponry called "boost-glide weapons."
Boost-glide weapons "are launched by big rockets just like a ballistic missile is," Acton said, "but then rather than arcing higher than the atmosphere, they are put on a trajectory to reenter the atmosphere as quickly as possible. Then they just glide to the target."
Boost-glide weapons are capable of traveling on a trajectory that makes them difficult for missile-defense systems to intercept. These systems are designed to work against the high arc of traditional ballistic missiles. Boost-glide projectiles travel quickly and at a flat angle, working at speeds and trajectories that flummox existing missile defense technologies.
Prior to the most recent failed launches by China and the U.S., both nations had successfully carried out test-runs of their boost-glide systems. In January, China tested its WU-14, a sucess which served "as a sign of China moving towards longer range, stronger retaliatory and potentially preemptive capability,” Lora Saalman, a specialist on China with the Carnegie Endowment, told The Washington Free Beacon.
The U.S.'s concern , according to Saalman, is that China may eventually use its boost-glide weapons as nuclear delivery system. This could give China hypothetical nuclear first-strike capability across large portions of the globe, assuming that the U.S. doesn't develop this capability as well.
In 2011, American successfully test-fired the Advanced Hypersonic Weapon. During that test, the AHW flew 2,300 miles in less than half an hour.
The cause for the most recent failure of the AHW in Alaska is uncertain, and the damage at the launch facility was apparently extensive.
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