The first ICBM Hwangsong-14 launch is the most successful so far. Location is estimated by photos below:
6,8 km South-East from Panghyon military airbase Coordinates: 39.872153, 125.269192
Update: U.S. now believes North Korea tested a two-stage intercontinental ballistic missile. It is also believed by experts the ICBM was launched by a Chinese truck converted from previously being a timber hauler. The missile reached 1741 miles in altitude. Russia has agreed to work with China to resolve the crisis with North Korea. There remains a dispute over the range and altitude of the missile causing discussions on being either an intermediate or long range launch.
CAMP H.M. SMITH, Hawaii, July 4, 2017 — U.S. Pacific Command detected and tracked what they assessed was a North Korean missile launch at 2:40 p.m. Hawaii Standard Time yesterday, Pacom officials said in a statement.
The single launch of a land-based, intermediate-range ballistic missile occurred near Panghyon Airfield, North Korea, the statement said.
The missile was tracked for 37 minutes and landed in the Sea of Japan, the statement said.
“We are working with our interagency partners on a more detailed assessment. We continue to monitor North Korea’s actions closely. U.S. Pacific Command stands behind our ironclad commitment to the security of our allies in the Republic of Korea and Japan,” the officials said.
The North American Aerospace Defense Command assessed that the missile launch from North Korea did not pose a threat to North America, the statement said.
A submarine-launched ballistic missile is displayed during a military parade in central Pyongyang, North Korea, April 15, 2017.
ZHU LONGCHUAN/XINHUA/ZUMA PRESS/TNS
Technology for ballistic and cruise missiles is advancing in countries from North Korea and Iran to Russia and China, increasing potential threats to the U.S. even if they don’t carry nuclear warheads, according to a new Pentagon report.
Among the new technologies are hypersonic glide vehicles being developed by Russia and China.
“HGVS are maneuverable vehicles that travel at hypersonic (greater than Mach 5) speed and spend most of their flight at much lower altitudes than a typical ballistic missile,” according to the report. “The combination of high speed, maneuverability, and relatively low altitude makes them challenging targets for missile defense systems.”
Other findings in the report by the National Air and Space Intelligence Center and the Defense Intelligence Ballistic Missile Analysis Committee:
- “Tehran’s desire to have a strategic counter to the United States could drive it to field an ICBM. Progress in Iran’s space program could shorten a pathway to an ICBM because space launch vehicles (SLV) use inherently similar technologies.” Iran has modified its medium-range Shahab 3 ballistic missile, which is based on a North Korean model, to extend its range and effectiveness. The longest-range variant reportedly is able to reach targets at a distance of about 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles.) The U.S. agencies assess that Iran currently has fewer than 50 Shahab 3s.
- “China continues to have the most active and diverse ballistic missile development program in the world. It is developing and testing offensive missiles, forming additional missile units, qualitatively upgrading missile systems, and developing methods to counter ballistic missile defenses.”China is expected to increase the number of warheads on its ICBMs capable of threatening the United States to substantially more than 100 by 2022 from the “relatively small number of nuclear armed, liquid-propellant” CSS-3 and CSS-4 ICBMs capable of reaching the U.S. today.
- Russia, which surpassed the U.S. in 2014 in deployed nuclear warheads, “is expected to retain the largest force of strategic ballistic missiles outside the United States.”
