Russia has carried out a military offensive against Ukraine which has been widely criticized. In this war, one of Russia's mainstay weapons candidates which Vladimir Putin also touted is hypersonic missiles.
"Our country has always been open to honest and open dialogue, but the interests of Russia and the security of our citizens are non-negotiable. So, we will continue to develop and improve the capabilities of our army and navy," Putin said in the video as Russia launched its attack on Ukraine.
"We will continue to develop advanced weapons systems including hypersonics and the use of digital technology and elements of artificial intelligence," he added.
One of the weapons in question is a hypersonic missile. Called hypersonic if a missile is capable of going faster than Mach 5 or 3,863 miles per hour.
That speed is 5 times faster than the speed of sound. Even more terrifying, as quoted by us from the Mirror, Wednesday (24/2/2022) at this time there is no surefire way to stop or intercept such sophisticated weapons.
Some hypersonic missiles are even faster. For example, Russia's ballistic missile, called the Kh-47M2, is said to be capable of hitting Mach 10, the equivalent of 7,600 miles per hour.
There are two types of hypersonic missiles, namely the so-called hypersonic cruise missiles and hypersonic glide vehicles. The first type of missile was fired by a jet engine, not the gravitational force that traditional ballistic missiles use.
Meanwhile, hypersonic glide vehicles are launched high into Earth's atmosphere. The missile then 'surfs' in the atmosphere at an altitude of between 40 and 100 kilometers, then reaches its target using aerodynamic forces.
"Hypersonic missiles have several advantages, especially if the target is moving, with the additional speed available. These types of missiles can also penetrate highly protected targets, such as aircraft carriers," said Dr James Bosbotinis, a British weapons expert.
The question is, will Putin and Russia use hypersonic missiles to hit Ukraine? So far there has been no such sign, but it is not yet known what the situation will be in the future if the war escalates.