North Korea has been testing hypersonic missiles since September last year, but yesterday, January 12, the portal military.com He reported that South Korea and Japan confirmed for the first time that a North Korean munition had developed hypersonic speed.
The launch carried out on January 11 was the second this year and the first in history when other countries confirmed that the rocket had reached a speed of over Mach 5. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the North Korean missile flew 700 km at a maximum speed of about Mach 10 before falling into the sea off the east coast of North Korea.
Launch of a hypersonic missile
Image source: Korean Central News Agency
In North Korea, it is indicated that a hypersonic missile hit a target at a distance of 1000 km. At the same time, it is reported that the hypersonic missile made several maneuvers, which potentially makes it difficult to intercept it.
In addition to confirming the characteristics of the new missile, the DPRK's neighbors announced that if North Korea plans to equip such a munition with a nuclear warhead, the only way to protect it will be a preemptive strike.