LONG RANGE TEST
What is Hwasong-14 and how far is North Korea’s intercontinental ballistic missile capable of travelling?
NORTH Korea has raised global tensions yet again after firing a ballistic missile over Japan.
Kim Jong-un is also understood to possess an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the United States. Here's what we know about the Hwasong-14.
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What is Hwasong-14?
The Hwasong-14 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) was tested by North Korea on July 4, 2017.
Experts claim it is capable of reaching "anywhere in the world" and its test was "far more successful than expected".
North Korean state media said the missile flew 580 miles (933 km) and reached an altitude of 1,741 miles (2,802 km) in its 39 minutes of flight, before crashing into Japanese waters.
According to reports, the flight details suggested it flew more than 4,970 miles (8,000 km) - putting significant parts of US mainland in its range.
Acknowledging its capability to reach Alaska, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called it a "new escalation of threat" to the US.
John Schilling, a contributor to the Washington-based North Korea monitoring project, 38 North said it would now probably only be a year or two before a North Korean ICBM achieved "minimal operational capability".
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When was the test Hwasong-14 missile launched?
The Hwasong-14 missile was launched on July 4 - the day Americans celebrate independence - and is said to have been overseen by Kim Jong-un himself.
The despot apparently laughed as the weapon was fired and declared it a "special gift for American b******s".
Bizarrely describing the intercontinental missile as a “handsome good-looking boy” the leader said the North “should send them [the US] gifts once in a while to help break their boredom”.
Despite North Korea's bragging, it is still unclear if they have the technology to get a nuclear missile onto an ICBM.
In a direct response to Pyongyang’s missile launch, US and South Korean soldiers fired “deep strike” precision missiles into South Korean territorial waters.
South Korea says the response was “intended as a strong warning against North Korean provocation.”
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When did North Korea launch its latest missile?
On September 15 North Korea fired what is believed to be a intercontinental ballistic missile over Japan and into the Pacific, responding to new UN sanctions with its furthest-ever missile flight in what analysts called a demonstration of its ability to target Guam.
The launch, from near Pyongyang, came after the United Nations Security Council imposed an eighth set of measures on the isolated country following its sixth nuclear test earlier this month.
The blast was by far its largest to date and Pyongyang said it was a hydrogen bomb small enough to fit onto a missile.
The missile travelled at least 1,677 miles before it broke into pieces and plunged into the sea off the east coast of Hokkaido, NHK reports.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe classified the missile test as provocative action at the "most serious and grave" level.
Millions of Japanese residents reportedly woke up to a series of frightening text messages warning them to take cover as a North Korean missile flew overhead.
South Korea's Joint Chief's of Staff said it was jointly analysing the missile for details with the US - but didn't' immediately confirm how far the projectile travelled or where it landed.
Japanese officials said the military did not attempt to shoot down the missile and there were no reports of damage to ships.
In response, South Korea bombed the country's border with its northern neighbour in what officials described as a show of "overwhelming force".
Earlier this summer, North Korea threatened to "engulf" the US territory of Guam in the Pacific in "fire" - causing Donald Trump to threaten a massive retaliatory strike on the rogue state.
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What nuclear weapons does North Korea have?
The Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security estimated last year that North Korea had 10 to 16 nuclear weapons at the end of 2014.
This was based on analysis of the country’s production of weapons-grade uranium and plutonium recovered from spent nuclear fuel.
Revised estimates have led officials to believe the country has four warheads.
Each of the weapons reportedly 50 per cent less explosive power than those deployed by the US against Japan in WWII.
Recent new satellite images of Jong-un’s main missile test site reveal North Korea’s weapons are more powerful than first thought.
Fears are mounting that Kim could soon have long-range weapons capable of reaching Alaska and Hawaii after the photos showed increasingly large scorch marks from missiles.
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