China successfully tested a hypersonic aircraft on Friday (Aug. 3), one that could one day be capable of firing nuclear missiles around the planet at up to six times the speed of sound, according to China's state-run news site China Daily.
Chinese researchers successfully tested the XingKong-2 hypersonic aircraft on 3 August 2018, at 06:41 local time (Credit: SciNews/YouTube)
China has successfully tested a new hypersonic weapon that could one day fire nuclear payloads at six times the speed of sound around the globe. According to the state-run news site China Daily, the country has developed an aircraft called ‘Starry Sky-2’ that can hit speeds of 4,563mph (7,344kph) which takes it right past current missile defence systems. The most recent test involved launching the Starry Sky-2 into low-Earth orbit on a multi-stage rocket. Once separated, the aircraft was able to fly on its own at a recorded speed of Mach 5.5 for 400 seconds. China Xingkong-2 launches nukes 6x faster than sound Play Video Loaded: 0% 0:00Progress: 0% PlayMute Current Time 0:00 / Duration Time 0:58 Fullscreen Not only can it hit nearly six times the speed of sound, the aircraft can also rapidly switch direction mid-flight. It was brought down to land at a designated target zone and hailed as a ‘huge success’ by the South China Morning Post. Chinese researchers successfully tested the XingKong-2 hypersonic aircraft on 3 August 2018, at 06:41 local time (Credit: SciNews/YouTube) ‘The test … has laid a solid technological foundation for engineering applications of the waverider design,’ said a statement from the China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics in Bejing, which is developing the weapon. At the moment, it is configured to carry conventional warheads but in the future it would potentially be able to carry nuclear missiles. ‘I think there are still three to five years before this technology can be weaponised,’ said Bejing-based military analyst Zhou Chenming. ‘As well as being fitted to missiles, it may also have other military applications, which are still being explored.’ The Starry Sky-2 could be used to fire nuclear weapons (Credit: SciNews/YouTube) Starry Sky-2 makes use of new ‘waverider’ technology: a flat, wedge-shaped fuselage that minimizes drag and improves maneuverability. It also makes it harder to spot or intercept with conventional missile warning systems. The Chinese aren’t the only ones looking into hypersonic military technology. Both the United States and Russia are developing their own versions.
The aircraft, known as Starry Sky-2, is reportedly capable of screaming across the sky at speeds of up to 4,563 mph (7,344 km/h) and rapidly switching direction mid-flight, China Daily reported, potentially allowing the rocket to blast right past existing missile defense systems.
Video of the Starry Sky-2 test launch (which was conducted in an undisclosed location in northwestern China) showed the aircraft being launched into space on a multistage rocket. The aircraft then separated from its launcher and continued flying on its own power, soaring at about Mach-5.5 (five and a half times the speed of sound) for 400 seconds, China Daily reported. The aircraft then performed several maneuvers at an altitude of about 18 miles (29 km) before landing in a designated target zone — a demonstration that witnesses heralded as a "huge success," according to a statement quoted in the South China Morning Post.
Starry Sky-2, which is being developed by the China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics in Beijing, is an example of a "waverider" vehicle. As the name suggests, waveriders are sleek, arrow-shaped planes built to glide along the pressure waves created by their own supersonic lift — essentially allowing the aircraft to surf on shockwaves. Waveriders are thus able to maintain impressive hypersonic speeds (speeds of Mach 5 or above) while making rapid, midair changes in trajectory — making them particularly difficult for current missile defense systems to thwart.
While the technology is still likely years away from being ready for use in a combat setting, Chinese military expert Song Zhongping told China's Global Times that the successful test puts China "shoulder to shoulder" with the U.S. and Russia in the development of hypersonic striking systems.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced in March that his country's military was hard at work on a hypersonic weapon code-named Avangard, which he claimed was capable of reaching speeds of Mach 20 and could be ready for deployment as soon as 2020.
The U.S., meanwhile, is also eagerly developing its own hypersonic weaponry, including a hypersonic missile capable of being launched from a warplane. The American defense company Lockheed Martin revealed in June that they had been granted a nearly $100 million contract to develop the missile for the U.S. Air Force.
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