SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea conducted what would be its largest intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test ever on Thursday, according to South Korea and Japan, bringing new attention to a massive new missile that may be under development.
North Korea has not confirmed what missile was involved in the test, but it came after officials in Seoul and Washington said launches on Feb. 27 and March 5 involved parts of the Hwasong-17 ICBM system, likely in preparation for eventually conducting full test like the one on Thursday.
The unknown missile on Thursday was reported to have flown for 71 miuntes to a maximum altitude of 6,200 km (3,853 miles) and a range of 1,080 km (1,738 miles). That is further and longer than North Korea’s last ICBM test in 2017, when it launched a Hwasong-15 missile that flew for 53 minutes to an altitude of about 4,475 km and range of 950 km.
Here’s what we know the Hwasong-17, which analysts have called a “monster missile”:
North Korea first unveiled the previously unseen ICBM at an unprecedented predawn military parade in October 2020, with analysts noting it appeared “considerably larger” than North Korea’s last new ICBM, the Hwasong-15, which was test fired in November 2017.
It was displayed a second time at a defence exhibition in Pyongyang in October 2021. After examining photos of the exhibit, analysts concluded the official designation of this large ICBM is most likely “Hwasong-17”, not Hwasong-16.
It is unclear whether the Feb. 27 and March 5 test-fires used all or part of the two-stage missile. Some analysts say the tests may have involved only one stage.
The Hwasong-17, which has been shown on a transporter vehicle with 11 axles, would be one of the largest road-mobile ICBMs in the world if it becomes operational.
Its diameter is estimated to be between 2.4 and 2.5 metres, and its total mass, when fully fuelled, is likely somewhere between 80,000 and 110,000 kg, according to 38 North, a U.S.-based programme that monitors North Korea.
The Hwasong-17’s size has prompted analysts to speculate that it will be designed to carry multiple warheads and decoys to better penetrate missile defences. Some observers said that the satellite technology that North Korea claimed to have tested in the two launches could also be used for a multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle (MIRV) system, potentially allowing a single missile to drop nuclear warheads on different targets.
(Reporting by Josh Smith; Editing by Nick Macfie)
