Pentagon Working On Ultra-High-Speed Super-High-Altitude Reentry Vehicle That Can Build A Childcare Center Anywhere On Earth Within One Hour

Ah, I'm just fuckin' with you. It blows shit up.

Another test of the HTV-2 prototype — a dart-like glider that would launch aboard rocket boosters, zoom through the upper atmosphere and careen into target at speeds exceeding Mach 5 — is slated for August. That is to be followed up by a more complex flight test in fiscal 2012, according to defense sources.

The purpose of such weapons is mostly defensive and/or preventative. You don't need such fast response time to destroy a city. A city can't exactly pack up and move in a five hours.

It's specifically for things like nuclear missiles being fueled.

Or, I suppose, a sighting of fleeting, high-value target. But that's nearly a defensive, or at least life-sparing, use itself -- it's a lot better for everyone to kill one guy and his entourage than grind up tens of thousands in his army.

posted by Ace at 11:11 PM

| Access Comments