Imagine a missile traveling at 21,000 km/h, capable of hitting any point on the globe in less than 30 minutes after being released from... space! This is not the scenario of a science fiction film, but rather what Chinese military researchers claim to have developed, according to their recently published work.
Not yet perfect, fortunately
The team of Professor Guo Yang, of the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force, revealed last month in a Chinese academic journal that these gliding-reentry missiles would reach Mach 20—twenty times the speed of sound. At this speed, you could travel from Paris to New York in less than 15 minutes!
These "gliding reentry vehicles" (called RGVs by experts) don't just go straight. They can zigzag through the upper atmosphere with forces up to five times Earth's gravity. "These vehicles can approach global targets in 30 minutes, drastically reducing adversary reaction time," the researchers explain, adding that they can be "deployed from satellites, ground-based launchers, or other platforms." The main advantage of these vehicles? Unlike conventional ballistic missiles, which follow a predictable trajectory, these hypersonic gliders constantly maneuver, making their interception much more complicated. But not everything is perfect for the Chinese engineers. Their study acknowledges several technical problems: these missiles emit a lot of heat, which makes them easily detected by infrared detection systems. Furthermore, they still lack flexibility in their maneuvers and suffer from limitations in their communications during the final approach phase.
Meanwhile, the West is not standing still. Last month, a US-British team conducted 233 hypersonic propulsion tests to power their own ultra-fast cruise missile. This program aims to develop a hypersonic weapon demonstrator by 2030.
The engine tested by the Anglo-Saxons has the advantage of being "aerobic." It uses oxygen from the air instead of carrying its own fuel, which gives it a greater range than traditional rockets.
This race for hypersonic technologies is somewhat reminiscent of the space competition of the 1960s, but with very real military stakes. The first to fully master these technologies could have a considerable strategic advantage... even if we all hope that these ultra-sophisticated toys will remain wisely in their hangars.
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