US says it conducted successful air-launched hypersonic missile test
The United States' test comes amid the growing arms race for hypersonic missiles, an easily maneuvered and deadly weapon that has reportedly been obtained by numerous states and entities.
The US Air Force said on Tuesday that it had successfully tested an air-launched hypersonic weapon in the Pacific Ocean.
The test was conducted on Sunday after a B-52 bomber left the island of Guam carrying an Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW), the air force said in a statement.
Though the US Air Force called the test a success, it did not disclose the speed at which the weapon flew. In past tests, the ARRW has flown at least five times the speed of sound.
What are hypersonic missiles, and who is developing them?
The United States is not alone in developing hypersonic weapons, whose speed and maneuverability make them difficult to track and intercept.
Such weapons are difficult to detect by radar as they fly closer to the ground, are much more maneuverable, and much faster, making these weapons a growing challenge and an opening for a new arms race.
Russia has fired hypersonic missiles at targets in Ukraine, and China has tested hypersonic weapons, US military officials have said. Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukrainian cities with these missiles, with Ukraine reporting that the military had downed ten Russian hypersonic missiles in early January.
China's foreign ministry denied in October that it had conducted a weapons test.
Other states and entities have begun testing and arming themselves with these types of weapons. North Korea has been reported to have guided a new solid-fuel engine for hypersonic missiles, North Korean state news reported on Wednesday.
This comes after North Korea conducted a flight test of an immediate-range hypersonic missile and tested the operation of a maneuverable warhead in January.
Additionally, according to Russian state media, Yemen's Houthis have reportedly acquired and tested a hypersonic missile that supposedly utilizes solid fuel. The group has stated its intentions to manufacture the lethal weapon and put it to use to target the Red Sea and possibly Israel.
To combat the rising threats of such weapons, Israel announced last June that it was developing a system that could shoot down hypersonic missiles to ramp up the state's air defense system.
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