The US launched a doomsday ballistic missile, Minuteman III, which is capable of carrying nuclear warheads, off the California coast on Tuesday night. This comes days after several strikes took place in Iran and other parts of the Middle East, including Dubai, Israel, and Bahrain.
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The missile launch from an unarmed rocket, known as GT 254, hit its target near the Marshall Islands in the west-central Pacific Ocean, according to the US Space Force. The doomsday missile was fired thousands of miles into the Pacific Ocean from Vandenberg Space Force Base near Santa Barbara at 11 PM local time.
What is the doomsday missile?
The Minuteman III (LGM-30G) is the US’ sole active land-based intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), forming the ground leg of America’s nuclear triad. First deployed in 1970, it remains operational with approximately 400 missiles spread across hardened silos at three Air Force bases in Montana, North Dakota, and Wyoming.
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The missile has a range exceeding 13,000 km (8,000+ miles) and can carry up to three independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs) armed with W87 or W78 thermonuclear warheads (300–475 kiloton yield each). The missile is capable of carrying nuclear warheads 20 times more powerful than the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.
Why did the US fire its doomsday missile?
The launch was to assess the weapons system. “GT 255 allowed us to assess the performance of individual components of the missile system. By continually assessing varying mission profiles, we are able to enhance the performance of the entire ICBM fleet, ensuring the maximum level of readiness for the land-based leg of the nation’s nuclear triad,” Lt. Col. Karrie Wray, commander of the 576th Flight Test Squadron, said in a press release.
Air Force Global Strike Command said the launch was to ‘verify the effectiveness, readiness and accuracy’ of the weapons system. AFGSC added that the test is routine and was scheduled years in advance.
There is no clear Iran link with Tuesday’s test.
Latest from Iran
Meanwhile, it was reported that Kurdish Iranian dissident groups based in northern Iraq are preparing for a potential cross-border military operation in Iran. Khalil Nadiri, an official with the Kurdistan Freedom Party, or PAK, based in northern Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that some of their forces had moved to areas near the Iranian border in Sulaymaniyah province and were on standby.