Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Denver news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Des Moines news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Tampa Bay news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Charlotte news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
USS John Paul Jones, which fired the missile interceptor, pictured in 2003. Ted S. Warren / AP
The U.S Missile Defense Agency has successfully tested an interception of a medium-range ballistic missile, just off the coast of Hawaii, the MDA said Wednesday.
- The test was scheduled well in advance, per Reuters, but comes a day after North Korea launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile eastward that passed over Japan.
- That's the second time an SM-6 missile has successfully intercepted a medium-range ballistic missile in a test (the most recent test in June did not work).
- Why it matters: This gives the naval part of the U.S. missile defense system a vote of confidence since this shows it has a higher ability to block ballistic missiles in their terminal phase, per the MDA.