Report on hypersonic program: “It was a spaceship, not a rocket”

China has denied a report allegedly testing a hypersonic missile suitable for nuclear weapons. “It was a spaceship, not a rocket,” said a spokesman. In the USA there are fears about the effectiveness of missile defense.

China claims to have tested a new spacecraft with reusable technology. A newspaper report on an alleged attempt with a nuclear weapon-capable hypersonic missile denied the spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing, Zhao Lijian, against: “It was a spaceship, not a missile.” He spoke of a “routine test”.

It was a space technology that could be a “convenient and cheap way” for people to “use space for peaceful purposes,” said Zhao. “Many other countries and companies are doing similar tests.” Remains of the spaceship fell into the East China Sea. The spokesman did not give any further details.

US missile defense systems at risk

The British newspaper “Financial Times” reported on Saturday, citing five anonymous sources, that China had sent a high-speed slider into space with a missile of the type “Long March” in August. In space, the projectile circled the globe once in a low orbit before it missed the target by about 15 kilometers. It was taken as evidence that China’s military was far more advanced with its hypersonic weapons program than US intelligence agencies had previously assumed.

Mike Gallagher, a member of the US Congress, took the report as a wake-up call. “This test should serve as a call to action,” said the Republican. “If we stick to our current idle course, we will lose the New Cold War with communist China within this decade.”

According to Gallagher, China has increasing capabilities to undermine the US missile defense and even to threaten it with nuclear strikes. The Republican represents the US state of Wisconsin in the House of Representatives and sits on the important committee on the US armed forces.

Hypersonic missiles difficult to intercept

Hypersonic missiles are particularly difficult to intercept because they can reach more than five times the speed of sound, i.e. around 6200 kilometers per hour. Like ballistic missiles, hypersonic missiles can carry nuclear weapons. However, while ballistic missiles fly in a high arc through space, hypersonic missiles remain in low orbit. They are also remotely controlled, which makes shooting them much more difficult.

With information from Steffen Wurzel, ARD-Studio Shanghai