Defense Dept.: U.S. accelerating hypersonic missile development

June 10, 2021 — SpaceWar.com reports: “Development of hypersonic missiles is accelerating, but the Department of Defense said on Wednesday it is staying within its $6.6 billion budget for the weapons program.

Mike White, hypersonics director in the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering office, told the non-profit Center for Strategic and International Studies last week that the U.S. military’s program to develop hypersonic missiles is a key element of the Defense Department’s modernization efforts, according to a Pentagon press release.

The weapons, capable of traveling at speeds beyond five times the speed of sound — and potentially with nuclear warhead capability — are being advanced as a family of weapons capable of launch from land, sea or air, White said.

Each military branch, the Missile Defense Agency and U.S. allies are involved in initiatives, he added, although the Government Accountability Office said in March that the push to achieve hypersonic weapons should better define the roles and duties of those in leadership…”  (And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. – Luke 21:25 – 27. See the next two reports.)

Israel says used ‘airborne laser’ to down drones

June 22, 2021 — SpaceWar.com reports: “Israel has used an airborne laser to shoot down drones in a series of tests, officials said Monday, calling it a ‘milestone’ to update its already powerful defence systems.

During the tests, which took place ‘over the last week,’ a prototype of the high-power laser system carried on a small civilian plane ‘successfully intercepted several UAVs’, said Yaniv Rotem, head of the defence ministry’s research and development unit, using the acronym for unmanned aerial vehicles.

The system could down any flying object, including ‘drones, mortars, rockets, ballistic missiles,’ Rotem said, adding they hoped to have a working prototype in ‘three to four years’…”

India Looks to Enhance Military Capabilities in Space

June 28, 2021 — Voice of America News reports: “Driven by national security concerns and the emergence of China as a significant threat, India is looking to expand its military capabilities in space, according to analysts.

‘Geopolitics is the primary driver for India to focus on the military aspects of its space program,’ said Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, director of the Center for Security, Strategy and Technology at the Observer Research Institute in New Delhi.

‘It has to respond to the growing capabilities in space of China, with which time and again border disputes have flared. India has recognized that if it does not step up, it will lose out on using space assets for military purposes,’ he told VOA.

An Indian anti-satellite weapon test conducted two years ago to demonstrate that it could shoot down satellites in space was the country’s first significant step to give a military profile to its space program. With that test, India became the fourth country, after China, Russia, and the United States, to demonstrate anti-satellite capability…”