Russia first launched hypersonic missile from nuclear submarine

Army of Russia confirmed on Monday that it had fired a hypersonic “Tsirkon” cruise missile for the first time from a nuclear submarine and added that it was launched at a target in the Barents Sea.

“Russian Navy conducted first test launch of hypersonic missile ‘Tsirkon’ from nuclear submarine Sverodvinsk”, said the Ministry of Defense, who stressed that the shooting was successful and that the projectile hit the target.

Thus, he stressed that “the test launch of the ‘Tsirkon’ missile from a nuclear submarine was a success,” as reported by the Russian news agency Sputnik.

The Tsirkon (zirconium, in Spanish) It has the ability to fly at a speed of Mach 9 (nine times the speed of sound) and a range of over a thousand kilometers.

On the other hand, Russia has developed the Avangard hypersonic missile, with intercontinental range and capable of carrying both conventional and nuclear weapons. Moscow claims that these missiles equipped with a planing warhead capable of bypassing air defense systems and reach a maximum speed that is more than 20 times that of sound.

As indicated by the military entity in a statement, the missile was launched from the submarine “Severodvinksk” against a naval target in the Barents Sea.

“According to the control data of the target, the flight of the missile corresponded to the required parameters and reached the target”, the Russian Defense Ministry said, calling the test “successful”.

Russia had already tested this type of missile in 2020 from Russian ships.

During surface tests, the launched missiles reached maximum heights of 28 kilometers and destroyed targets located 450 kilometers away.

The Tsirkon had already undergone several tests in recent years, including a launch from the frigate Admiral Gorshkov.

Putin used his State of the Nation Address in 2018 to reveal new hypersonic weapons, including the Tsirkon, and said it could strike targets at sea and on land with a range of 1,000 kilometers.

This missile appears ready to join the Avangard hypersonic, commissioned in 2019, and Kinzhal (Dagger) missiles in the Russian arsenal.

The launch comes a week after North Korea said it had tested a new hypersonic weapon, becoming the latest country to join the arms race with such rockets.

Experts agree that, for now at least, Russia has an advantage in its development.

(With information from EFE, AFP and Europa Press)

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