The U.S. Army and Navy successfully tested three hypersonic weapon component prototypes on Wednesday, the Navy announced a day later.
The Sandia National Laboratories conducted the tests at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.
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The results of the three precision sounding rocket launches will be used to “inform the development of the Navy’s Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) and the Army’s Long Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW) offensive hypersonic strike,” according to the Navy’s statement.
This is a step in the process of the development of a Navy-designed hypersonic missile that consists of a Common-Hypersonic Glide Body and booster, which will be tailored to be launched from sea or land.
In the Navy’s statement, they describe delivering hypersonic weapons as “one of the [Department of Defense’s] highest priorities.”
The test took place the same day President Joe Biden confirmed he’s concerned about China’s hypersonic weapons capabilities.
Chinese officials recently denied that their military had tested a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile, earlier this year.
The Financial Times reported last weekend that China had “tested a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile” that “circled the globe before speeding towards its target, demonstrating an advanced space capability that caught U.S. intelligence by surprise,” though Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Zhao Lijan rejected the claim, saying it was “a spacecraft, not a missile.”
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The United States, China, and Russia are all trying to perfect hypersonic weapons that travel at five times the speed of sound. Ballistic missiles would still travel faster, but the hypersonic missiles have the maneuverability that would help them dodge and become harder for enemies to track.
