Air Force fires unarmed ICBM into Pacific Ocean with aim toward deterrence

[cheezerman]

Vandenberg routinely launches ICBMs, this isn't anything new.

They launch a few times a year [1]

[1]: https://www.spacearchive.info/vafblog.htm

[remarkEon]

Yeah this kind of thing is very routine. Whether it should be is a separate question, and the timing is probably why this is making the news.

[watersb]

A great article on the Minuteman ICBM testing program can be found in the Spring 2020 issue of "National Security Science", a glossy popular-science publication (not academic journal) of Los Alamos National Labs.

Page 50, "A Moment of Glory"

https://discover.lanl.gov/publications/national-security-sci...

[klyrs]

That'll show those uppity whales to stop the incessant assaults on our beaches

[graderjs]

How do you notify other countries when you are going to fire an ICBM that it's just a test?

Also, could this possible just be cover for taking out some secret UAP undersea base that spawns all those USOs?

[LinuxBender]

There are agreements in place discussed here [1] and documented here [2] but there are probably better documents that cover all the nuclear powers.

[1] - https://politics.stackexchange.com/questions/34628/do-countr...

[2] - https://www.atomicarchive.com/resources/treaties/launch-noti...

[32gbsd]

This is good news for the war machine

[jimmygrapes]

Election season must be coming up

[bailoon]

Funny how when we do it, it's "aimed toward deterrence". When other nations do it, it's portrayed as a threat to the entire world.

"North korea fires unarmed ICBM into Pacific Ocean with aim toward deterrence."

That's more valid than stripes' title.

[jdsully]

Probably because they literally broadcast threats while they do it.