Shourya missile launch successful

India's hypersonic missile, Shourya, was successfully test-fired from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur, Orissa, on September 24, in its final configuration. The missile flew at 7.5 Mach, that is, 7.5 times the speed of sound and covered its full range of 700 km in 500 seconds.

This was the third successful launch of Shourya, a surface-to-surface missile and it paves the way for its production and induction into the Navy. It can carry both nuclear and conventional warheads. Shourya is the land-variant of the K-15 underwater missile that is being fitted into India's nuclear-powered submarine, Arihant. So Shourya can be used by both the Navy and the Army. It can carry both nuclear and conventional warheads.

The missile rose from a canister fixed on the ground "on the dot" at 2.30 p.m., climbed to an altitude of 40 km and traversed 700 km at 7.5 times the speed of sound.

It performed a terminable manoeuvre and closed in on the pre-designated impact point in the Bay of Bengal with a high degree of accuracy. The missile was designed and developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).