The May 30 test of U.S. missile defenses involved a target missile launched from the Marshall Islands in the western Pacific. Department of Defense / Missile Defense Agency The target missile, launched from Kwajalein Atoll, was closely tracked by radars positioned in advance on Wake Island and on a floating platform, the Sea-Based X-Band Radar. (Department of Defense / Missile Defense Agency)The test also strayed from operational realism in its use of decoys, the experts said. Barton served on a National Academy of Sciences panel that studied the GMD system, and he has advised U.S. intelligence agencies. (John Wagner / Fairbanks Daily News-Miner)The GMD system was declared operational in 2004 and has cost taxpayers more than $40 billion to date.

Source: Los Angeles Times July 07, 2017 10:01 UTC