Lockheed hails progress on hypersonic military aircraft

[hook_dupin]

That's already been researched / developed too. The US has a pretty good strangle hold on near-earth space despite what the news would have you think about Russia and China posing a threat. They do, but not in the sense that they have the means to take down even every single important satellite we have up there. Anyway... We have stuff out there the public won't know about for another 50 years, if ever.

I believe that everything the US does will eventually come out. That's just how our FOIA/declassification process works. For example: we're not tightly holding onto artillery spotting hot air balloon technology.

 

[ppragman]

I offer that a hypersonic vehicle is the weapon.

Ocean crossings in 27 minutes and a SR-72 is a bunch of hooey. A machine that can take out deeply buried targets through its own kinetic energy and without having to rely on a fuze or explosive fill... that's a need.

Beat me to it, there's only one reason to make something go that fast - it's to slam it into a hardened ground target. That's one of the reasons I am shocked that "rods from god" never took off. Realistically, they're essentially a strategic conventional weapon.

 

[Ajax]

I'm more interesting in a quiet sonic boom*, only because I want to break the sound barrier.

*Yep, total oxymoron but you know where I'm going with this