What the new Pantgon missile looks like: it reaches five times the speed of light and has passed its test | the Chronicle

The Agency for Advanced Research Projects for the Defense of United States developed a missile that can change history, as it reaches five times the speed of light.

The projectile which brought Raytheon Technologies into reality was launched from an airplane seconds before its “scramjet” jet engine ignited and accelerated the projectile to more than hypersonic speeds, something never seen before.

This new weapon belongs to the HAWC program, which requires air intake for combustion and performs best in oxygen saturated atmosphere.

The technology is ultra avant-garde since Thanks to their maneuverability and speed, it is difficult to intercept these types of weapons in time.

As specialists report, it hits targets even faster than supersonic missiles and it has impressive kinetic energy without even having a large explosive charge.

“The flight test was a successful demonstration of the capabilities that will make hypersonic cruise missiles a very effective tool for our fighters.”, insured Andrew Knoedler, HAWC Program Manager at DARPA Tactical Technology Office.

On March 4, it was reported that the Defense Ministry planned to spend billions of dollars over the next few years for large-scale production hypersonic weapons. These systems have been a priority for the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Mike griffin.

“We’re really getting to the point where we’re starting to believe that, at least for hypersonic rocket powered vehicles, we have the technology almost ready,” Grifiin said at McAleese & Associates’ annual conference in Washington.

To compete with the big competitors of China and Russia, the US military will have to produce a large quantity of them, he added.