Intercept Attempt Fails in Missile Defense Test off Hawaii
Audrey McAvoy | Washington Post
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency said it failed to intercept a ballistic missile during a test off Hawaii. The failure came during a test conducted with Japan’s Defense Ministry late Wednesday. The U.S. and Japan are jointly developing the interceptor to shoot down medium-range ballistic missiles. The allies have been investing in technology to counter North Korean missile threats. As part of the test, a medium-range target missile was launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai late Wednesday.
North Korea Tests Rocket Engine, Possibly for ICBM – U.S. Officials
Phil Stewart | Reuters
North Korea has carried out another test of a rocket engine that the United States believes could be part of its program to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile, a U.S. official told Reuters on Thursday. The United States assessed that the test, the latest in a series of engine and missile trials this year, could be for the smallest stage of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) rocket engine, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. A second U.S. official also confirmed the test but did not provide additional details on the type of rocket component that was being tested or whether it fit into the ICBM program.
Defense Bill Would Limit Implementation of Nuclear Arms Treaty with Russia
Rebecca Kheel | Hill
The annual defense policy bill would limit the implementation of an arms treaty with Russia after Democrats failed to remove the provision in a subcommittee markup Thursday. The strategic forces subcommittee portion of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) would ban funds from being used to extend the implementation of the New Strategic Arms Reduction (START) Treaty, which limits the number of deployed Russian and U.S. nuclear warheads, unless the president certifies that Moscow is in compliance with a separate arms treaty, known as the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.
Missile Threats Surging Worldwide, U.S. Defense Study Finds
Tony Capaccio and Larry Liebert | Bloomberg
Technology for ballistic and cruise missiles is advancing in countries from North Korea and Iran to Russia and China, increasing potential threats to the U.S. even if they don’t carry nuclear warheads, according to a new Pentagon report. “Many countries view ballistic and cruise missile systems as cost-effective weapons and symbols of national power,” defense intelligence agencies said in the report obtained by Bloomberg News in advance of its release. “Many ballistic and cruise missiles are armed with weapons of mass destruction. However, numerous types of ballistic and cruise missiles have achieved dramatic improvements in accuracy that allow them to be used effectively with conventional warheads.”
S.Korea to Suspend Construction of 2 Nuclear Reactors While Decides Fate
Reuters
South Korea's government said on Tuesday it would suspend construction of two partially-completed nuclear reactors while it gathers public opinion on the facilities and decides whether they should be scrapped. The government said in a statement that it would form a committee that would spend about three months deciding whether or not construction of the plants should continue. The move comes after the country's new president, Moon Jae-in, said South Korea would stop building new nuclear power plants and not extend the lifespan of old reactors to address public concerns over atomic safety.
Light Penalties and Lax Oversight Encourage Weak Safety Culture at Nuclear Weapons Labs
Center for Public Integrity | Peter Cary, Patrick Malone, R. Jeffrey Smith
The plan on a hot summer day was to liquefy highly flammable lithium at a temperature of more than 750 degrees and then pump it into a special chamber for cooling, as part of a research project at Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico. But what happened instead in August 2011 was a near-catastrophe that could easily have killed two workers. The experiment was designed to help learn more about lithium’s potential use in an advanced nuclear reactor. But it went awry when someone turned the wrong valve and the heater holding the lithium cracked, causing the molten liquid to leak and spray abruptly onto a pipe holding the coolant.