Threats
Spooked by North Korea, Lawmakers Resurrect an Old Missile-Defense Idea
Technical experts say space-based interceptors haven’t gotten any more practical since the Reagan era, but House lawmakers still want the Pentagon to plan for them.
Science & Tech
Stinger Missiles Can Now Shoot Down Small Drones
A missile that gained notoriety in the 1980s has been updated for today’s battlefield.
Threats
Pentagon: Anti-Missile Weapons Can Keep US Safe Until 2020
The three-star who ran the May 30 test says it proves that U.S. defenses are at least three years ahead of North Korea’s ICBMs.
Science & Tech
Pentagon Accelerates Work on Multi-Warhead Interceptor
Officials won’t say it’s because of North Korea. But experts say Pyongyang’s planned ICBMs will almost certainly release decoys to cloak their nukes.
Threats
Hawaii Needs Better Missile Defense Radars, Pacific Commander Says
Adm. Harry Harris says current capability is up to current threats — but that could change.
Threats
Hawaii’s Renewed Jitters About Nukes
The state is asking the Department of Defense to help it prepare for a nuclear attack, amid escalating tensions between the United States and North Korea.
Threats
Here’s What US Missiles Hit At the Syrian Airbase
And why Shayrat Airfield’s runways weren’t one of the targets.
Ideas
‘It Was High Time’
The right move, if the wrong president, for Obama's internal critics who wanted air strikes in Syria for three years.
Threats
US Hits Syrian Airbase With Scores of Cruise Missiles
A retaliation for the Assad regime's April 4 use of chemical weapons, the strike deepens the U.S. involvement in Syria's civil war.
Ideas
US Missile Defenses Need Better Sensors, and Soon
Gaps in coverage leave interceptors less-equipped to defeat the threats of tomorrow.
Science & Tech
As Missile Defense Technology Improves, So Do Odds of an Arms Race in the Pacific
Next year, the U.S. plans to deploy a shipboard interceptor to help protect Japan. China and Russia will not be amused.
Threats
US Anti-Missile Batteries Arrive in South Korea, Touching Off Geopolitical Tumult
The weapon’s deployment converges with other tensions among China, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Malaysia, and the United States.
Ideas
Pick Up the Pace on Missile Defense
Five steps to keep U.S. defenses ahead of North Korea’s efforts to make weapons that can threaten American cities.
Ideas
Calm Down About North Korea’s Nukes
History shows that nuclear states don’t behave more aggressively or coercively.
Ideas
Russia Has Deployed a Treaty-Violating Missile. Here’s What the US Should Do About It
Hint: it’s not what we would have done in the 1950s, ’60s, ’70s, or ’80s.
Business
It's About to Cost a Lot More Money to Launch a Nuclear Bomb
New estimates predict the Pentagon's first new nuclear bombers, missiles, and subs in decades will be more expensive than thought.
Ideas
Welcome to America’s ‘Nuclear Sponge’
If ICBMs are meant to draw enemy missiles toward American soil, it’s time to rethink our nuclear strategy.
Ideas