Russia Announces Successful Test of Atomic-Propelled Storm Petrel Weapon

Russia has tested the reactor-driven Burevestnik long-range missile, as stated by the country's leading commander.

"We have launched a prolonged flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it traversed a vast distance, which is not the limit," Top Army Official Valery Gerasimov reported to President Vladimir Putin in a televised meeting.

The low-altitude prototype missile, originally disclosed in the past decade, has been portrayed as having a potentially unlimited range and the ability to evade defensive systems.

Foreign specialists have in the past questioned over the weapon's military utility and the nation's statements of having successfully tested it.

The head of state declared that a "last accomplished trial" of the missile had been held in the previous year, but the statement could not be independently verified. Of over a dozen recorded evaluations, only two had partial success since the mid-2010s, based on an disarmament advocacy body.

The military leader reported the missile was in the atmosphere for fifteen hours during the trial on the specified date.

He said the weapon's altitude and course adjustments were tested and were found to be meeting requirements, based on a national news agency.

"As a result, it displayed advanced abilities to bypass missile and air defence systems," the outlet reported the official as saying.

The projectile's application has been the focus of intense debate in military and defence circles since it was initially revealed in 2018.

A 2021 report by a foreign defence research body stated: "An atomic-propelled strategic weapon would offer Moscow a unique weapon with global strike capacity."

Yet, as a foreign policy research organization commented the identical period, the nation confronts considerable difficulties in making the weapon viable.

"Its integration into the country's inventory likely depends not only on resolving the significant development hurdle of ensuring the consistent operation of the atomic power system," specialists noted.

"There have been multiple unsuccessful trials, and a mishap resulting in several deaths."

A defence publication cited in the report states the projectile has a operational radius of between 10,000 and 20,000km, allowing "the projectile to be deployed across the country and still be capable to target targets in the continental US."

The corresponding source also explains the weapon can fly as at minimal altitude as 50 to 100 metres above ground, causing complexity for aerial protection systems to engage.

The missile, designated an operational name by a foreign security organization, is believed to be driven by a nuclear reactor, which is supposed to activate after initial propulsion units have sent it into the atmosphere.

An examination by a media outlet last year identified a facility 295 miles north of Moscow as the possible firing point of the weapon.

Utilizing satellite imagery from August 2024, an expert informed the agency he had observed several deployment sites being built at the location.

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