Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Welcome! Log in to stay connected and make the most of your experience.

Input clean

Unsettling the Existing Balances

In recent years, defense analysts have increasingly turned their attention to the development of hypersonic weapons, a class of systems intended to strike fast, at range, and evade most existing defenses. Generally speaking, a hypersonic weapon is a system in which the kill vehicle (carrying the warhead) travels in excess of Mach 5 in its terminal phase, just prior to striking its target. Engineers can accomplish this through either a “boost glide” system, in which a ballistic missile launches the kill vehicle, or through a multiple-engine system on a platform similar to a conventional cruise missile. 

Different countries want hypersonic weapons for different reasons, but share a desire to strike targets quickly and avoid existing (and prospective) defenses. Extant defense networks concentrate on conventional cruise missiles and (increasingly) on short-range ballistic missiles. The combination of high speed and flat trajectory approach enables hypersonic weapons to defeat most of these defenses.  Interceptors fired from aircraft, ships, and fixed surface-to-air installations would struggle to catch and kill hypersonic vehicles.  Point defense systems (using missiles or guns) can do better but are limited in effect.  Railguns and lasers could also solve some of the problems of defense, although their capabilities remain notional at this point. 

Keep reading...Show less
Access all of The Cipher Brief’s national security-focused expert insight by becoming a Cipher Brief Subscriber+ Member.

Related Articles

How Trump Can Be the Winning President in Ukraine

“To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special [...] More

Report for Friday, July 11, 2025

8:40 America/New York Friday, July 11 [...] More

Dead Drop: July 11

IN THIS WEEK'S EDITION: (Yet) another Russian leader who falls out with Putin, has a really bad week; Reports emerge about Iran's low-budget [...] More

As Nukes Spread, Robust Missile Defenses Must Rise

OPINION — More countries aspire to be nuclear-weapons states, and we should prepare for this eventuality. That’s why the Golden Dome missile defense [...] More

Mission CIA: Mapping Beijing’s Path to War

Mission CIA: Mapping Beijing’s Path to War

Taiwan has launched its largest annual military exercise ever - amid growing concern that China is on the cusp of launching a military invasion. Many [...] More

Report for Thursday, July 10, 2025

8:40 America/New York Thursday, July 10 [...] More

Rekindling Memories of the Fuji Fire

Rekindling Memories of the Fuji Fire

In October1979, the most powerful cyclone in recorded history, raced across the Pacific and set in motion circumstances that caused a horrendous fire [...] More

Doing Battle in the Gray Zone

Doing Battle in the Gray Zone

Subscriber+Members are invited to join us on Wednesday, July 23 at 1:00p ET for an exclusive virtual conversation on gray zone operations led by [...] More

Report for Wednesday, July 9, 2025

9:12 America/New Wednesday, July 9 [...] More