North Korea may have fired ballistic missile from submarine

[TheGreenGoblin]

If true then this would mark an exponential leap in North Korea's ballistic missile prowess.

North Korea may have fired a ballistic missile from a submarine, a move that came just hours after Pyongyang said it would resume nuclear talks with the US.

South Korean officials said a missile launched near the port of Wonsan flew about 450km (280 miles) and reached an altitude of 910km, before landing in the Sea of Japan.

If confirmed, this would be a significant escalation from the short-range tests it has conducted since May.North Korea may have fired a ballistic missile from a submarine, a move that came just hours after Pyongyang said it would resume nuclear talks with the US.

South Korean officials said a missile launched near the port of Wonsan flew about 450km (280 miles) and reached an altitude of 910km, before landing in the Sea of Japan.
If confirmed, this would be a significant escalation from the short-range tests it has conducted since May.

Submarine launched ballistic missile?

Picture provided by North Korea purporting to be the actual launch of their SLBM!

Photoshop anyone?

[Fox3WheresMyBanana]

Good summary of the situation here, with more photos
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/3 ... hree-years

–Pukguksong-3
–Solid-fueled
–Cold-launched from TULP (underwater platform, not likely a sub. Ed)
–2-stage
–910 km apogee/450 km range (~1,900 on MET)
–No Kim Jong Un at launch
–Launched off Wonsan
–Longest-range solid-fuel missile seen in #NorthKorea
–First “strategic” launch since November 2017

More on the intended submarine launch platform here. It is a modified Romeo-class, which they got via the Chinese. The SLBM bit is probably similar to the Golf, with 2 or 3 missiles tubes in an extended sail. The Chinese use one for SLBM testing, so the Norks have probably got some info on that and adapted it.
https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/2 ... ed-antique
http://www.hisutton.com/ROMEO-Mod_Submarine.html

The range of the new missile tested here would allow the sub to operate from inshore waters on either coast and still strike Japan or South Korea, representing a viable second strike capability, though not a permanent one as a fleet of four boats to allow one on station permanently would normally be needed for that. Given that the Norks are likely to initiate any conflict however, one will do.

[TheGreenGoblin]

Good summary of the situation here, with more photos

I assume that the word "strategic" is noted in inverted commas because the North Koreans haven't yet proven the ability to miniaturize a nuclear war head to allow a launch on any one of their motley collection of missiles. I guess it is only a matter of time before they learn that trick too if they haven't already.

Interesting articles, thanks for posting those.

[Fox3WheresMyBanana]

There are several possible reasons for the inverted commas. This missile does not exceed the range limit voluntarily set by Yung Fat Wun a couple of years ago in his test moratorium, so it arguably isn't strategic in that sense. However, the Norks did use the world strategic, and they have heretofore avoided doing so, plus the point you mention. It's also not strategic in the intercontinental sense, but is strategic from the point of view of the Nork's strategy, which would presumably include the ability to hit Tokyo and the US Base at Okinawa, which is just within the range of this missile, and I suspect this isn't a co-incidence.