A mysterious celestial event occurred in northwest China on Sept. 2, which appeared to be a “meteor” with a long tail trailing across the sky. Combined with China’s NOTAM ban, it is believed that Beijing was testing another strategic level weapon.
The video circulated on the Chinese Internet showed that the tested device was moving very fast and had a bright and long trail. Due to the distance, it was difficult for witnesses to identify what kind of aircraft it was.
According to China’s earlier NOTAM announcement, the unidentified vehicle lifted off from a launch site near Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, then flew over a no-fly zone over the Maowusu Desert in Inner Mongolia, suspected to be a booster drop zone, and then arrived in the Korla region of Xinjiang.
China had conducted tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles such as the DF-31AG and DF-41 intercontinental ballistic missile tests, land-based mid-stage anti-missile interception tests, and hypersonic missile tests on the “Taiyuan-Korla” route before.
Observers believe, based on a photo taken from the air, that the mysterious device’s test flight was relatively low in trajectory and was probably an intra-atmospheric hypersonic glider flight test.
Currently, China military is equipped with the DF-17 tactical short- and medium-range hypersonic ballistic missiles with a strike range of 2,500 kilometers, but DF-17 can only cover Japan, South Korea, and the first and second island chains, as well as parts of the Indian mainland.
To be able to break through the U.S. missile defense network and deter the U.S. mainland, China needs to develop strategic-grade hypersonic ballistic missiles.
