An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a guided ballistic missile with a minimum
range of 5,500 km (3,400 mi) primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery
Nuclear strikes can be carried out from land, air, and sea and this is known as Nuclear
Triad.
ICBMs are designed to fill the land-based role.
Russia, the United States, China, and India are the only countries currently known to
possess operational land-based ICBMs.
Israel has maintained secrecy regarding actual deployment.
North Korea too has tested several ICBMs but they are not officially deployed.
France deploys only Submarine Launched Ballistic Missiles (SLBM)
In this video Defense Updates lists top 6 Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBMs)
Let’s gets started
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On 28 November 2017 North Korea stated that it had successfully tested its Hwasong-15,
a newly developed ICBM that could deliver heavy nuclear warheads anywhere in the continental
United States.
State news agency KCNA called the missile "the most powerful ICBM" and said it "meets
the goal of the completion of the rocket weaponry system development set by the DPRK," or the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
The then-Defense Secretary Jim Mattis had expressed concern, emphasizing there were
major technical advances on display in the 53-minute flight.
Mr. Mattis said in the White House “It went higher, frankly, than any previous shot they’ve
taken.
He had added, “The bottom line is, it’s a continued effort to build a threat — a
ballistic missile threat that endangers world peace, regional peace, and certainly, the
United States."
Hwasong-15 traveled nearly 600 miles or 965 km and landed in the Sea of Japan.
The important fact is that was launched with a lofted trajectory and if it was launched
on a standard trajectory it would have been able to travel 13,000 km or 8,100 miles.
The two-stage missile is thought to be capable of carrying a payload of 1,000 kg or 2,200 lb.
The Jericho III is the third missile to serve as Israel’s land-based nuclear deterrent.
The Jericho III is believed to have a range between 4,800 and 6,000 km that is between
2982 miles and 3728 miles.
It is capable of carrying a 1,000 kg or 2,204 lbs warhead payload.
Some reports suggest that it is capable of carrying 2 to 3 low yield MIRV (Multiple Independent
Reentry Vehicle) warheads.
So, a single missile can hit multiple targets.
Jericho III is reportedly solid-fueled, meaning it can be launched with minimum preparation,
and housed in silos capable of resisting attack.
The Jericho III, as well as the older generation Jericho II missiles, may be based at Palmachim
Air Base.
The precise yield of Israel’s ICBM warheads is unknown but unconfirmed reports peg them
at 20 kilotons.
Agni 5 is an intercontinental ballistic missile developed by the Defence Research and Development
Organization of India.
It is the latest iterative development in Agni series missiles
Though the stated range is 5,500 km or 3417 miles, most experts believe it has a maximum
range of 8,000 km or 4,970 miles and above.
The U.S missile proliferation survey for the Congressional Research Service puts the possible
maximum range at 11,500 km or 7,145 miles.
The missile brings the whole of Asia and most parts of Europe within India’s striking
range.
Agni 5 is a three-stage solid-fueled ballistic missile and is capable of carrying warheads
up to 1,500 kg or 3,300 lb.
In the future, it is expected to feature 5 MIRVs.
It is a road and rail-mobile missile and uses 8 × 8 Tatra TEL (Transporter Erector Launcher).
Minuteman series of missile gained range with the incremental versions and the Minuteman
III is acknowledged to have an operational range of 13,000 km (8,100 miles), though the
exact range is classified.
As per many analysts, the missile actually can travel as far as 16,000 km or 9,940 miles
depending on the warhead configuration.
Minuteman III was the first true MIRV-capable missile.
It can carry a maximum of 3 warheads.
It carries W78 or W87 warhead.
The W78 has a publicly announced yield of 335–350 kilotons of TNT.
The W87 is an improvement on W78 and has max yield of 475 kilotons.
The Dongfeng-41 or DF-41 is a Chinese nuclear solid-fueled road-mobile intercontinental
ballistic missile.
DF-41 is the fourth generation of strategic missile developed by China and is also the
latest generation
The development of DF-41 with MIRV technology is reported to be in response to the deployment
of the United States national missile defense system which degrades China's nuclear deterrence
capability.
The missile is reportedly capable of reaching the United States within 30 minutes.
It was officially unveiled at the China National Day military parade on October 1st, 2019.
DF-41 is estimated to be capable of carrying 2-10 MIRVs.
Some analysts think it most likely carries only three warheads, with the additional payload
used for many penetration aids.
DF-41 road-mobile ICBM.
It is expected to replace one or more of the older ICBMs that are currently present in
Chinese inventory.
The RS-28 Sarmat is a Russian liquid-fueled, MIRV-equipped, heavy thermonuclear intercontinental
ballistic missile (ICBM), under development by the Makeyev Rocket Design Bureau since
2009.
It is intended to replace the R-36M ICBM which is also known as Satan.
Sarmat uses Liquid Propellant the exact nature of which is classified.
It weighs in at a massive 100 tons, making it the heaviest missile in the world.
To give viewers a perspective, the Minuteman 3, has a weight of 35 tons approximately.
According to some estimates, the missile's striking range is about 18,000 km (11,184.6 miles).
It also has a payload capability for 10 to 15 warheads, each with a capacity of up to
750 kilotons This if true will make it the most destructive
weapon on the earth.
To give viewers a perspective, Little Boy atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima had a yield
of 15 kt of TNT.
Samrat’s cumulative explosive power will be 15 warheads multiply by 750 kt that is
around 11,000 kt of TNT.
The Russian news outlet Sputnik reported in May that an RS-28 rocket is “capable of
wiping out parts of the Earth the size of France or Texas” and by these figures, it
seems that the analysis is correct.
The missile's preparation to launch is under 60 seconds utilizing a highly automated launch
system.
The missile’s payload capacity will enable it to carry up to 3 Avangard hypersonic glide
vehicles (HGVs) which is under development.
It will also have countermeasures designed to defeat anti-missile systems.
Land-Based missiles are vulnerable to preemptive strikes and hence Russian experts are going
great lengths to shield it.
The Sarmat’s silos will be protected by active protection measures including 100 guns
capable of firing a metallic cloud of 40,000 30 mm bullets to an altitude of up to 6 km
or 3.7 miles.
The Russians are also planning to protect the Sarmat with their new S-500 air defense
systems.
On 30 March 2018, the Russian Defence Ministry published a video showing the Sarmat performing
its second successful test-launch at the Plesetsk Cosmodrome.
Sarmat will be operationally deployed by 2021.