A reusable hypersonic jet that can reach a staggering Mach 5 (or five times the speed of sound) has completed its second successful test flight. The Talon-A2 is an unmanned, aircraft built by California-based firm Stratolaunch, founded by the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen in 2011. The autonomous drone is seen as a key milestone…
The US will face high costs and “monster” complexities to realise the Trump administration’s proposed “Golden Dome” missile defence shield designed in response to China’s expanding arsenal, according to analysts. Citing six sources familiar with the matter, Reuters reported last week that SpaceX, the rocket and satellite company run by Elon Musk, who is also…
What’s New The Chinese military may have deployed a new long-range missile that can carry either conventional or nuclear warheads, the Pentagon said in its report last week. Experts told Newsweek that such a dual-capable missile will give China an advantage in a nuclear war. The Chinese defense ministry did not immediately respond to a…
BREMEN, Germany — Beijing-based Space Transportation is projecting the second half of 2025 for a first test of its Cuantianhou near space reusable spaceplane prototype. Space Transportation, or Lingkong Tianxing Technology, said in late October it conducted a test flight of a prototype commercial transport plane that can travel at Mach 4. Followup assessments for…
India has successfully tested its first long-range hypersonic missile after its strategic competitor China revealed its design of a similar advanced weapon. A hypersonic weapon is capable of traveling at Mach 5 or faster—at least five times the speed of sound—and maneuvering within the atmosphere during its flight to the target. This type of superfast…