U.S. Sensors Unable to Track Chinese, Russian Hypersonic Missiles: Report

U.S. radars are unable to track Chinese and Russian high-speed missiles until late in their flight, even as new systems are being developed as part of the Pentagon’s accelerated hypersonic missile defense program, according to a congressional report.

The Congressional Research Service report said that the Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency and Space Development Agency are working on parts of a hypersonic missile defense systems that could be used to stop the missiles, in part because current systems are inadequate for the job.

“U.S. defense officials have stated that both existing terrestrial- and space-based sensor architectures are insufficient to detect and track hypersonic weapons,” the Oct. 3 report states.

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For geostationary satellite sensors, hypersonic targets are 10 to 20 times harder to detect than conventional ballistic missiles, which travel in more predictable trajectories, the report said.

Hypersonic missiles travel at speeds greater than 1 mile per second. Current U.S. space and ground radar systems are unable to detect the missiles until late in flight, making interception with anti-missile systems difficult. (Read more from “U.S. Sensors Unable to Track Chinese, Russian Hypersonic Missiles: Report” HERE)

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