Hyunmoo-5 Missile:
South Korea is ready to deploy its ‘monster missile’ Hyunmoo 5 at the end of the year marking a significant conventional arsenal upgrade against its northern counterpart in the Korean peninsula.
- It is a ballistic missile developed by South Korea.
- It is designed for deep penetration strikes with a massive conventional warhead capable of destroying heavily fortified underground targets.
- It is part of South Korea’s Korean Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR) framework, which is designed to deter North Korean aggression without the use of nuclear weapons.
- It was officially unveiled in October 2024.
- It has been dubbed as the “monster missile” for its size, Hyunmoo 5 weighs around 36 tonnes.
- It can carry an eight-tonne warhead.
- Its range is set to vary from 600 km to more than 5,000 km, depending on payload.
- Its design features a payload composed of heavy metals, optimized to destroy bunkers or command centers located at great depth.
- It has the capability to destroy fortified underground facilities buried over 100 meters deep.
- In its descending phase, the missile can reach speeds close to Mach 10.
- It is capable of being launched from a mobile platform.
