With tensions brewing between the United States and North Korea — highlighted by a flurry of nuclear missile tests and fighting words by both countries — the possibility of nuclear war seems closer than it has been in years, according to experts.
Pentagon officials announced today (Nov. 28) that North Korea conducted a nuclear test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile with the range to reach Washington D.C. South Korean officials believe its hostile neighbor to the north could have the ability to pair such a missile with a nuclear warhead sometime in 2018, CNN reported. Though North Korea doesn't currently have the ability to nuke the United States capital, the mere possibility of a nuclear attack put people around the world on edge. In the event that North Korea did decide to attack the states, is there any way to stop nuclear missiles once they've been fired?
One option that has been floated — and refloated — over the years, is to somehow create a shield or defense system to protect people from nuclear attacks. From the earliest uses in 1959 of the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which is designed to deliver nuclear weapons, the U.S. has been working on methods that would protect people from such an attack. Yet decades later, the country still has only a flawed system that most experts believe would not reliably protect Americans against a nuclear attack, said Philip E. Coyle III, a senior science advisor with the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation and the former director of operational tests and evaluation with the Pentagon, who has extensively evaluated missile defense systems. Read more...
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Pentagon officials announced today (Nov. 28) that North Korea conducted a nuclear test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile with the range to reach Washington D.C. South Korean officials believe its hostile neighbor to the north could have the ability to pair such a missile with a nuclear warhead sometime in 2018, CNN reported. Though North Korea doesn't currently have the ability to nuke the United States capital, the mere possibility of a nuclear attack put people around the world on edge. In the event that North Korea did decide to attack the states, is there any way to stop nuclear missiles once they've been fired?
One option that has been floated — and refloated — over the years, is to somehow create a shield or defense system to protect people from nuclear attacks. From the earliest uses in 1959 of the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which is designed to deliver nuclear weapons, the U.S. has been working on methods that would protect people from such an attack. Yet decades later, the country still has only a flawed system that most experts believe would not reliably protect Americans against a nuclear attack, said Philip E. Coyle III, a senior science advisor with the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation and the former director of operational tests and evaluation with the Pentagon, who has extensively evaluated missile defense systems. Read more...
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