The Defence Research and Development (DRDO) has started work to produce a hypersonic weapon – missiles that travel at five times speed of sound, or a little over a mile every second. A wind tunnel to test and fine tune the technology will be operational soon, senior government officials who did not want to be named said.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is expected to inaugurate the facility soon, they added.
“A hypersonic weapon system is one of the many niche technologies we are exploring seriously,” one of the officials said, asking not to be named.
Billed as a “next-gen” weapon system, the race to acquire hypersonic weapons technology is heating up. China, Russia, and the United States are testing hypersonic weapons of various types to enhance strategic nuclear deterrence and strengthen front-line combat units.
Existing intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) re-entry vehicles also travel at those superfast speeds, but the hypersonic glide vehicles now in development are far more manoeuvrable, making their tracking and interception nearly impossible.
Hypersonic weapons are specifically designed for increased survivability against modern ballistic missile defence systems. These missiles are capable of delivering conventional or nuclear payloads at speeds not imagined hitertoo over long ranges.
Read more of this in a report by Sudhi Ranjan Sen published in Hindustan Times... (Link given below)
