US military admits it has ‘catching up to do’ after China tested nuclear weapon that could be deployed while travelling at five times the speed of sound

A hypersonic weapon test carried out by China in July featured a missile fired at five times the speed of sound – a technological feat which no other country has demonstrated, according to US intelligence.

The hypersonic glide vehicle – a spacecraft with the ability to carry a nuclear warhead – fired a missile mid-flight over the South China Sea, catching US military and Pentagon scientists unaware.

Experts at Darpa – the Pentagon’s military research agency – are reportedly questioning how China was able to defy the laws of physics to fire a weapon from the space vehicle travelling at hypersonic speed, the Financial Times reports.

US scientists are also attempting to find the purpose of the missile, which was fired with no obvious target before landing into the sea.

Both Russia and the US have explored hypersonic weapons in recent years, but experts say China’s firing of countermeasures is proof that Beijing’s technology is more advanced than either the Kremlin or the Pentagon.

A National Security Council spokesman said: ‘This development is concerning to us as it should be to all who seek peace and stability in the region and beyond.

‘This also builds on our concern about many military capabilities that the People’s Republic of China continues to pursue.’

The hypersonic glide vehicle launched into space on an ‘orbital bombardment system’ rocket with the ability to fly over the South Pole, beyond the reach of US missile defences which are aimed against ballistic missiles heading from the North Pole.

General David Thompson, the US Space Force’s vice-chief of space operations, stated that the US was ‘not as advanced’ as China or Russia in hypersonic weapons.

He said: ‘We have catching up to do very quickly. The Chinese have had an incredibly aggressive hypersonic programme for several years.’

Vice-chair of the US joint chiefs, General John Hyten also voiced serious concern about the test.

He told CBS News: ‘Sputnik created a sense of urgency in the United States. The test on July 27 did not create that sense of urgency. I think it probably should create a sense of urgency.’

The US has announced it will quadruple its nuclear warheads to as much as 1,000 weapons over the next ten years.

‘We are not at all interested in having an arms race with other countries,’ said Liu Pengyu, spokesman of the Chinese embassy.

‘The US has in recent years been fabricating excuses like “the China threat” to justify its arms expansion and development of hypersonic weapons.’