Get Task & Purpose in your inbox
MOST READ
North Korea claims that it has launched its first intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM, which experts say could have the ability to reach Alaska.
State officials made the boast early Tuesday morning, several hours after the country launched a missile that landed in the sea near Japan. The North Korean government went so far as to say its new missile could hit any location on the planet, a claim whose validity was unclear.
South Korea had earlier warned that the test appeared more advanced than usual. The missile's trajectory had an unusually steep angle, suggesting it could travel farther than previous efforts.
The launch, which North Korea's state media said was ordered and supervised by leader Kim Jong Un, sent the rocket 933 kilometers, or 580 miles. North Korea announced a flight time of 39 minutes, though the US Pacific Command listed the flight time at 37 minutes. The rocket reached an altitude of 2,802 km, Reuters said.
David Wright, the codirector of the Global Security Program at the US-based Union of Concerned Scientists, said North Korea's claims suggested the missile may be powerful enough to "allow it to reach all of Alaska."
In a blog post, he said: "If the reports are correct, that same missile could reach a maximum range of roughly 6,700 km (4,160 miles) on a standard trajectory."
Officials from South Korea, Japan, and the US said the missile had landed in the sea near the coast of Japan after being launched near an airfield in Panghyon, about 100 km (60 miles) northwest of North Korea's capital, Pyongyang.
"The test launch was conducted at the sharpest angle possible and did not have any negative effect on neighboring countries," North Korea's state media said in a statement.
#DPRK TV: Kim Jong Un guided successful Hwasong-14 ICBM test launch. pic.twitter.com/KXxOH6xt2m
— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) July 4, 2017
South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who convened a National Security Council meeting, said his government was looking at the possibility that the missile was an ICBM, although it thought it more likely to be an intermediate-range version.
Analysts cited by Reuters said the flight details on Tuesday suggested the new missile had a range of more than 8,000 km, underscoring major advances in North Korea's project. Other analysts said they believed its range was not so far. ICBMs by definition have a minimum range of 5,500 km.
US President Donald Trump responded to the launch via Twitter. He called on China to "put a heavy move on North Korea" to stop the tests.
Trump criticized North Korean leader Kim for authorizing the launch, asking: "Does this guy have nothing better to do with his life?"
North Korea has just launched another missile. Does this guy have anything better to do with his life? Hard to believe that South Korea.....
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 4, 2017
....and Japan will put up with this much longer. Perhaps China will put a heavy move on North Korea and end this nonsense once and for all!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 4, 2017
North Korea has long been working to develop a nuclear-tipped ICBM capable of hitting the US, ignoring repeated warnings from the international community.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday said he would ask the presidents of China and Russia to play more constructive roles in efforts to stop Pyongyang's arms project.
"Leaders of the world will gather at the G-20 meeting" on Friday, Abe told reporters, according to Reuters. "I would like to strongly call for solidarity of the international community on the North Korean issue."
China has urged "restraint" from all parties following the missile launch, according to AFP.
John Everard, the former British ambassador to North Korea, told Sky News: "This is not just bravado, this is a real threat."
The White House doctor still under investigation for doling out pills like a ‘candy man’ is now running for Congress
Ronny Jackson, the former White House physician and retired Navy rear admiral who had a short run as the nominee for the Department of Veterans Affairs in 2018, now plans to run for a seat in Congress.
Pentagon implements 'operational pause' on training of foreign students after Pensacola shooting
The Pentagon will implement an "operational pause" on the training of foreign students inside the United States as the military undergoes a review of screening procedures, according to senior defense officials.
University of Phoenix to pay $191 million for lying to troops about its close ties with major companies
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The University of Phoenix, which is owned by Apollo Education Group, has agreed to pay $191 million to settle charges that it falsely advertised close ties with major U.S. companies that could lead to jobs for students, the Federal Trade Commission said on Tuesday.
The University of Phoenix will pay $50 million to the FTC to return to consumers and cancel $141 million in student debt.
Some of the advertisements targeted military and Hispanic students, the FTC said.
Soldiers may soon start using VR to practice detecting IEDs
As UCF research associate Shane Reynolds guides his avatar over a virtual minefield using his iPad, small beeps and whistles reveal the location of the scourge of the modern war zone: Improvised Explosive Devices, or IEDs. He must take his time to sweep every last inch of the playing field to make sure his character doesn't miss any of the often-deadly bombs.
Despite his slow pace, Reynolds makes a small misstep and with a kaboom! a bomb blows up his player, graphically scattering body parts.
Navy posthumously awards aviator and air crew wings to 3 sailors killed in Pensacola shooting
The Navy has posthumously awarded aviator and aircrewman wings to three sailors killed in last week's shooting at Naval Air Station Pensacola.
"The selfless acts of heroism displayed by these young Sailors the morning of Dec. 6 are nothing short of incredible," Chief of Naval Air Training Rear Adm. Daniel Dwyer said in a statement.