China tests new space capability with hypersonic missile: Report

Beijing: China has tested a new space capability with a hypersonic missile, the Financial Times (FT) reported.

The report, citing several sources familiar with the test said that Beijing launched a nuclear-capable missile in August that circled the Earth in low orbit before descending towards its target, which they missed by more than 32 kilometers (20 miles).  

FT sources said the hypersonic glide vehicle was carried by a Long March rocket, launches of which it usually announces, though the August test was kept under wraps.

The report added that China's progress on hypersonic weapons "caught US intelligence by surprise".

Reportedly, this missile can deliver nuclear weapons and fly at more than five times the speed of sound. 

The hypersonic technology is maneuverable (much slower, often subsonic cruise missile), which makes it harder to detect and defend.

Apart from China, the US, Russia and at least five other countries are working on this technology. 

If compare ballistic and hypersonic missiles, the former can fly high into space in an arc to reach their target, while the hypersonic flies on a trajectory low in the atmosphere, potentially reaching a target more quickly. 

According to a recent report by the US Congressional Research Service (CRS), China has been aggressively developing the technology, seeing it as crucial to defend against US gains in hypersonic and other technologies.

The Pentagon, however, did not immediately respond on the FT report.