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07-06-2023
TEHRAN: Iran has unveiled Fattah, a hypersonic ballistic missile it says is capable of breaching defence systems, which could cause further concerns for the West and Israel.
So, what are hypersonic missiles, who has them, what is the Iranian version capable of, and what’s the context of their unveiling?
Hypersonic missiles are projectiles that can move at a speed of at least Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound. That is 1.7km (1.05 miles) per second or 6,174km (3,836 miles) per hour.
Some ballistic missiles already reach these speeds, but this new class of weapon separates itself from the pack as it can take a more random path to its intended target after plunging back into the earth’s atmosphere.
This makes it far more difficult to be detected by radar systems and to be destroyed by defence shields.
More countries are pursuing hypersonic weaponry in hopes they will provide them with a military edge, but the challenges remain formidable.
For one, friction from the upper atmosphere produces extremely high temperatures, while the intense speed of the missile produces superheated particles surrounding it that make it harder for radio communications to get through.
So far, Russia and China have displayed an array of hypersonic weapons, with Moscow being the only one thought to have tested them in combat. The United States has also tested hypersonic missiles but lags slightly behind its two rivals.
Several months after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) first announced in November that it had a hypersonic missile, the Fattah was displayed on Tuesday.
Iran says the projectile has a range of 1,400km (870 miles) and can move at a massive speed of up to Mach 15 (5.1 km or 3.2 miles per second) before hitting its target.
It is also said to feature a moveable secondary nozzle and employ solid propellants that allow for high maneuverability within and outside the atmosphere, which top IRGC commanders have claimed means no missile defence system in the world is a match for it. (Int’l News Desk)
