China 'developing electromagnetic rocket with greater fire range'

[left-of-center2012]

China is developing the world’s first electromagnetic surface-to-surface rocket that offers greater fire range and could give its military an advantage in high-altitude regions like the Himalayas and Tibetan plateau, according to state media.

The state media suggested that the new electromagnetic rockets could be deployed in Tibet. With possibly hundreds of kilometres of range, from there they would be able to strike the heartland of India.

Last year Indian and Chinese troops had a 73-day stand-off in Doklam, a trijunction border area the nations also share with Bhutan, after Chinese troops with construction vehicles and road-building equipment began extending an existing road southward. Though both nations eventually announced their withdrawal from the disputed area, it was still the worst border dispute between the two Asian giants in decades.

Details of the rocket system – such as its precise range and deployment schedule – remain unclear. But the programme’s lead scientist Han Junli told the state media Science and Technology Daily that “substantial progress” has been made on the rocket.

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy-defence/article/2161338/china-developing-electromagnetic-rocket-greater-fire

[dameatball]

1. Who knows what the U.S. may have that we don't know about. But it sure does seem like China and even

Russia are outstripping us in new military technology. Especially since we outspend them by a wide margin. I wonder how much of our military budget could be allotted to development of new technology if we did not have a military base to support in seemingly every damn country on the planet. Or, I could just not know what I'm talking about. Wouldn't be the first time.

[Cicada]

2. When I was 10 or 11 I overheard a missile secret, reported only when I was in college

My best friends parents worked at Boeing and were in their kitchen unaware I was outside the door. The man told the woman that they had a way to detect a missile launch anywhere in the world. I saw that “revealed” in a New York Times story when I was in college. So we have technology we don’t know about.

[dameatball]

3. I believe that as well. Who knows what everybody has and how well it works?

Weird world, spending trillions on stuff we all hope not to use.