Russia tested most deadly nuke-missile

Russia’s new super-heavy thermonuclear armed ballistic missile is one step closer to deployment. The missile is a core part of the ongoing modernization program for the silo-based ballistic missile forces, one of the most costly legs of the country’s rearmament program.

The test is so far not officially reported by the Defense Ministry’s portal, but a brief note in Moskovsky Komsomolets refers to the test taking place at the Plesetsk cosmodrome in Arkhangelsk region on Wednesday. The test is said to be successful.

A so called ejection test is not a full launch, but limits the firing to the first stage engine. Moskovsky Komsomolets writes that the missile flew «several dozen kilometers.»

The Sarmat missile, by NATO also named Satan-2, can reportedly carry a payload of about 10 tons allowing for up to ten heavy nuclear warheads, or 15 lighter ones with yields ranging from 150 kt to 1 Mt. Like the submarine based missile Bulava, also the Sarmat is said by Russian officials to be able to penetrate any American anti-ballistic missile systems, the military TV channel Zvezda reports.

The new missile will when deployed replace today’s R-36M (by NATO named SS-18 or Satan) silo-based ballistic missiles. Sarmat has maximum range of 16,000 kilometers.