US intercepts ICBM in first ever test

[F-22Raptor]

The US military has successfully carried out its first-ever missile defense test involving a simulated attack by an intercontinental ballistic missile, in a major milestone for a program meant to defend against a mounting North Korean threat.

The US military fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)-type weapon from the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. It then fired a missile to intercept it from Vandenberg air force base in California.

The Missile Defense Agency said it was the first live-fire test against a simulated ICBM for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) and hailed it as an “incredible accomplishment”.

“This system is vitally important to the defense of our homeland, and this test demonstrates that we have a capable, credible deterrent against a very real threat,” Vice-Admiral Jim Syring, director of the agency, said in a statement.

A successful test was by no means guaranteed and the Pentagon had sought to manage expectations earlier in the day, noting that the United States had multiple ways to try to shoot down a missile from North Korea.

“This is one element of a broader missile defense strategy that we can use to employ against potential threats,” the Pentagon spokesman Capt Jeff Davis told reporters.

Prior to Tuesday’s launch, the GMD system had successfully hit its target in only nine of 17 tests since 1999. The last test was in 2014.

North Korea has dramatically ramped up the pace of its missile tests over the past year, with a goal of developing an ICBM that can strike the US mainland.

The continental United States is about 5,500 miles (9,000km) from North Korea. ICBMs have a minimum range of about 3,400 miles (5,500km), but some are designed to travel 6,200 miles (10,000km) or farther.

Riki Ellison, founder of the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, described the test as “vital” prior to launch.

“We are replicating our ability to defend the United States of America from North Korea, today,” Ellison said.

Failure could have deepened concern about a program that according to one estimate has so far cost more than $40bn.

In the fiscal year 2018 budget proposal sent to Congress last week, the Pentagon requested $7.9bn for the Missile Defense Agency, including about $1.5 billion for the GMD program.

A 2016 assessment released by the Pentagon’s weapons testing office in January said that US ground-based interceptors meant to knock out any incoming ICBM still had low reliability, giving the system a limited capability of shielding the United States.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/may/30/us-missile-defense-north-korea-icbm

Excellent news! It's great seeing US missile defense capabilities advance.

So much for GMD being "dead."

 

[MIR RAZA HUSSAIN]

correct me if i am wrong but doesn't this system need to be sure that the fired missile will targeting their its land how can it be confirmed where the missile is going to hit. for example if North Korea targeted Canada or any neighboring country how GMD will able to confirm it and kill it.

 

[jetray]

Simulation ?
Let it take out a north korean missile , then we will agree the system really works. If not its just a case of hit or miss.

 

[Cookie Monster]

correct me if i am wrong but doesn't this system need to be sure that the fired missile will targeting their its land how can it be confirmed where the missile is going to hit. for example if North Korea targeted Canada or any neighboring country how GMD will able to confirm it and kill it.

A primitive ballistic missile follows a parabolic trajectory...kind of like throwing a ball up in the air...u can throw it and then catch it bcuz u can predict where it's going to be. The same applies to ICBMs...upon reentry, based on the trajectory and it's speed, the rest of the path it's going to follow can be calculated, which allows for interception.

However modern ballistic missiles can perform certain maneuvers mid air to throw off BMD systems and make it harder to intercept.

Simulation ?
Let it take out a north korean missile , then we will agree the system really works. If not its just a case of hit or miss.

Why provoke such an unstable man that is Kim Jong Un?

Even if it doesn't work, US will still be safe. North Korea doesn't yet have the capability to hit mainland US nor would it have a reliable capability to do such a thing in the near future.

If a war starts the majority of the damage done by North Korea would be sustained by South Korea and then maybe Japan. Granted North Korea would most likely be decimated(if China doesn't intervene militarily, which it probably will not) but it would throw South Korea back decades and cause a huge life loss. Is all of that worth it just to test a system?

 

[KAL-EL]

Granted North Korea would most likely be decimated (if China doesn't intervene militarily, which it probably will not)

The number one goal of Kim and his regime is to stay in power (and alive) at all costs.

Launching a nuclear first strike against the United States would be the quickest way his regime would be obliterated. And he knows this.

This is not specifically directed at you, but only a completely delusional person would think The United States would call China and ask permission to retaliate against Kim for nuking Los Angeles.

Like the United States would call and beg China and say something like "oh please please China, let us retaliate against Kim for nuking Los Angeles and potentially killing millions of people"

That would be as delusional as someone assuming China would call the United States and ask permission to retaliate against Japan or South Korea if Beijing got nuked by either of those countries.

Obviously Japan and South Korea do not have nuclear weapons, just making a point is all.

Now NK is attacked first? Well that's an entirely different scenario. To which Kim would most likely launch everything he had to take everyone down with him.

 

[LeGenD]

correct me if i am wrong but doesn't this system need to be sure that the fired missile will targeting their its land how can it be confirmed where the missile is going to hit. for example if North Korea targeted Canada or any neighboring country how GMD will able to confirm it and kill it.

Americans have fielded a comprehensive/global surveillance (land, sea and space) capability to track and monitor ballistic missile flights in real-time. They will know where a ballistic missile is heading and direct the relevant ABM system to counter it.

Explanation in this link: http://tutorials.nti.org/intercepting-a-ballistic-missile/

Simulation ?
Let it take out a north korean missile , then we will agree the system really works. If not its just a case of hit or miss.

They don't need that.

North Korea doesn't have a credible ICBM capability at present. Conversely, Americans can easily develop an ICBM and use it for testing.

Common sense, my friend.

A primitive ballistic missile follows a parabolic trajectory...kind of like throwing a ball up in the air...u can throw it and then catch it bcuz u can predict where it's going to be. The same applies to ICBMs...upon reentry, based on the trajectory and it's speed, the rest of the path it's going to follow can be calculated, which allows for interception.

However modern ballistic missiles can perform certain maneuvers mid air to throw off BMD systems and make it harder to intercept.

I don't think those maneuvers can throw off a modern EKV with electro-optical infrared seeker. Even decoys cannot fool it.

 

[F-22Raptor]

 

[Naara-e-Mastana]

Gotta luv this, every country think it's enemy is unjust, and god is with them

And worse part is few d**khead thinks they are the choosen one ..

 

[takeitwithyou]

correct me if i am wrong but doesn't this system need to be sure that the fired missile will targeting their its land how can it be confirmed where the missile is going to hit. for example if North Korea targeted Canada or any neighboring country how GMD will able to confirm it and kill it.

Neighboring countries are NATO allies or strategic partners. Him firing the weapon is of vital concern, whether it is directed at us or anyone else. Frankly speaking, we do not want to see any country hit with a nuclear weapon.

 

[Hrk19]

The US military has successfully carried out its first-ever missile defense test involving a simulated attack by an intercontinental ballistic missile, in a major milestone for a program meant to defend against a mounting North Korean threat.

The US military fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)-type weapon from the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. It then fired a missile to intercept it from Vandenberg air force base in California.

The Missile Defense Agency said it was the first live-fire test against a simulated ICBM for the Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) and hailed it as an “incredible accomplishment”.

“This system is vitally important to the defense of our homeland, and this test demonstrates that we have a capable, credible deterrent against a very real threat,” Vice-Admiral Jim Syring, director of the agency, said in a statement.

A successful test was by no means guaranteed and the Pentagon had sought to manage expectations earlier in the day, noting that the United States had multiple ways to try to shoot down a missile from North Korea.

“This is one element of a broader missile defense strategy that we can use to employ against potential threats,” the Pentagon spokesman Capt Jeff Davis told reporters.

Prior to Tuesday’s launch, the GMD system had successfully hit its target in only nine of 17 tests since 1999. The last test was in 2014.

North Korea has dramatically ramped up the pace of its missile tests over the past year, with a goal of developing an ICBM that can strike the US mainland.

The continental United States is about 5,500 miles (9,000km) from North Korea. ICBMs have a minimum range of about 3,400 miles (5,500km), but some are designed to travel 6,200 miles (10,000km) or farther.

Riki Ellison, founder of the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, described the test as “vital” prior to launch.

“We are replicating our ability to defend the United States of America from North Korea, today,” Ellison said.

Failure could have deepened concern about a program that according to one estimate has so far cost more than $40bn.

In the fiscal year 2018 budget proposal sent to Congress last week, the Pentagon requested $7.9bn for the Missile Defense Agency, including about $1.5 billion for the GMD program.

A 2016 assessment released by the Pentagon’s weapons testing office in January said that US ground-based interceptors meant to knock out any incoming ICBM still had low reliability, giving the system a limited capability of shielding the United States.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/may/30/us-missile-defense-north-korea-icbm

Excellent news! It's great seeing US missile defense capabilities advance.

So much for GMD being "dead."

i assume that doesn't include the capability to intercept hypersonic missles?

 

[The SC]

North Korea is just an alibi, this is an anti-ballistic missile test..everyone who has ICBMs should take note, Russia and China are the main targets of this message..

 

[Mrc]

The video release shows a slower moving interceptor coming in path of faster moving missile... there is an explosion but faster object seems to b continuing on same path

 

[-------]

The video release shows a slower moving interceptor coming in path of faster moving missile... there is an explosion but faster object seems to b continuing on same path

TBH this is just some show of ability. There's no way any current interceptor can stop an ICBM especially with multiple warheads.. many will slip past..

 

[LeGenD]

Very impressive to be honest.

This is the first time that an ICBM was intercepted in a live test.

A similar test took place in 2014 in which a missile of 4500 KM range was intercepted successfully; the most ambitious test of its kind up to that point in time. It indicated that GMD is getting ready for live ICBM intercepts and here it is.

It is now safe to assume that American ABM/ACM capabilities are the best in the world and have progressed much further than similar programs of other states.

The video release shows a slower moving interceptor coming in path of faster moving missile... there is an explosion but faster object seems to b continuing on same path

That is because two different views of the same intercept are shown.

GMD interceptors close-in on the target at the speed of 24000 KM/per hour; this is faster than any ICBM during mid-course phase of its flight. After it closes-in, it releases an EKV that hits the target.

TBH this is just some show of ability. There's no way any current interceptor can stop an ICBM especially with multiple warheads.. many will slip past..

The whole point of mid-course intercept is to kill the target before it releases multiple warheads.

The other poster confused two different views as one. The target was eliminated with a single hit.

A solution for MiRV is also in the works. It is called MKV or MOKV.

 

[Majid Awan]

And worse part is few d**khead thinks they are the choosen one ..

you nailed it