Pyongyang, North Korea – U.S. officials believe North Korea fired a missile capable of reaching Alaska.
The two-stage ballistic missile could have a range of at least 3,500 miles and would mark a significant step in the country’s weapons program.
An announcer on North Korean state television declared, “It is a major celebration in our history. [North Korea] is now a proud nuclear state, which possesses [an] almighty ICBM rocket that can now target anywhere in the world.”
The test missile hit its target after flying for 39 minutes, according to state television.
U.S. Pacific Command in Hawaii said the intermediate-range missile landed in the sea just outside of Japan’s territorial boundary.
David Write, a missile scientist and security expert, wrote on a blog update the missile would “need to fly on a very highly lofted trajectory to have such a long flight time” and could have a possible maximum range of 4,160 miles. That’s enough to put Alaska within range.
Experts say the missile has not been confirmed as intermediate-range or intercontinental-range, but it is still the longest-range system the country has successfully tested.
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