Fergie's Tech Blog

Vandenberg Test-Launches Unarmed ICBM

An AP newswire article, via The Mercury News, reports that:

The Air Force successfully launched an unarmed intercontinental ballistic missile early Thursday. The Minuteman III dummy warheads were fired at 3:14 a.m. and traveled about 4,200 miles before hitting a water target in the Marshall Islands.

The launch was delayed by a day because of a power outage at a radar facility that handles flights in and out of Southern California.

The purpose is to test the defense system's reliability and accuracy. Earlier this month, North Korea shook up the world by firing several missiles into the Sea of Japan, including a failed long-range type believed to be capable of reaching the United States.

posted by Fergie @ 7/20/2006 08:05:00 AM