North Korea's ICBM can hit US in just 33 minutes, claims defence experts in new study

Intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) that would be fired from North Korea are capable of hitting the United States in approximately 33 minutes, a team of experts in defence said in a new study published on Thursday. The North Korean ballistic missiles might target the US if its military fails to intercept them within the given span of time, the experts warned. The ICBMs launched from DPRK can hit the central US in 1,997 seconds, or about 33 minutes, the study cited by South China Morning Post noted. It was based on North Korea’s Hwasong-15 missile launch estimates that were test fired in 2017. The simulation projected the time in which the Hwasongpho-15 missile could reach Columbia, Missouri. 

Potential gaps in US' satellite-aided system 

The defence experts in the simulation compiled by the Beijing Institute of Electronic System Engineering estimated the potential gaps in the US' satellite-aided system for tracking missiles and the possible consequences should there be a delay in the launch. The firing of a Hwasongpho-15 missile from the central North Korean city of Sunchon in the direction of Columbia might take just a few minutes to hit the target, the team found. Hwasongpho-15 is a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile developed by North Korea in basically two stages that boasts a range of up to 8,000 miles. The missile's range could significantly hit the "entire US homeland," the study's lead author Tang Yuyan was quoted as saying. 

It would take the US missile defence system an estimated 20 seconds to be alerted about the missile launch after it would be fired from DPRK. The interceptor missiles can be launched to counter the incoming ICBM in approximately 11 minutes, the study noted. While the United States has a robust missile countering setup, the simulation assumed that there were loopholes in the military's satellite-aided system for tracking missiles. In this scenario, the missiles will take a few minutes to hit the United States, according to scientists. The study comes at a crucial time as North Korea, since last year, launched a barrage of ballistic missiles including the two strategic cruise missiles that it fired from a submarine off its eastern coast. On Thursday, DPRK launched another ICBM at 7 am that travelled  620 miles and plunged into the Japanese sea, according to South Korean and Tokyo officials.