India successfully test-fires Agni-5 ballistic missile from APJ Abdul Kalam Island
This successful test comes amid the India-China standoff at the eastern Ladakh border.
The missile Agni-5 was a success after it was launched from APJ Abdul Kalam Island in Odisha on October 27, 7.50 pm.
The missile can strike targets at ranges up to 5,000 km and with high accuracy.
The Defence Ministry said in an official statement that this test was following the policy of India to have ‘credible minimum deterrence’.
Agni – 5 uses a 3 stage solid-fuelled engine. It is 17 metres in length and 2 metres wide. The missile can care over 1.5 tons of nuclear warheads and this was the eighth trial of the indigenously made missile.
The Agni missile is programmed to turn towards the gravitational pull of the earth after it reaches the peak of its trajectory.
After the Agni-5 missile enters the earth’s atmosphere, the air crashing the skin of the missile raises the temperature above 4,000 degrees Celsius.
The missile has a carbon-composite heat shield that protects the payload and itself burns when the temperature rises keeping the inside temperature below 50 degrees Celsius.
After the successful tests, Agni – 5 will be introduced to the military and our nation will be on the list of countries like Britain, China, Russia, France and the US that have intercontinental missile capabilities.
Currently India has 5 missiles Agni – 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 with 700km, 2,000km, 2,500km and 3,500km range respectively.
The first test of Agni – was conducted on April 19, 2012, and the second one occurred on September 15, 2013.
The 3rd and 4th tests occurred on January 31, 2015, and December 26, 2016.
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