How destructive is an ICBM and can it be stopped?

There are many types of rockets, and intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) are considered among the most destructive. Their main purpose is to deliver nuclear warheads over vast distances. These missiles were created exclusively as a means of strategic nuclear deterrence.

If such a missile is launched, the target country has extremely few opportunities to intercept it. As of 2025, in most cases this is technologically impossible, notes the resource Slash Gear. Despite this, world powers continue to invest in the development of missile defense systems capable of dealing with such threats.

What damage can an ICBM cause

To assess the destructive power of an ICBM, it is necessary to understand what its warhead represents. The unit of measurement for nuclear power is the kiloton, which is equivalent to the explosive force of 1,000 tons of TNT. A megaton, accordingly, is 1,000,000 tons of TNT.

Modern ICBMs are capable of causing colossal damage. For example, the US arsenal includes the LGM-30 Minuteman III missile, which is part of the country's nuclear triad. It can be equipped with a W87 warhead with a power of 300 to 475 kilotons. Before the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty between the US and Russia came into force, such missiles could carry three warheads each. Now, the Minuteman III is planned to be replaced with a more modern missile - the LGM-35 Sentinel, which may again carry multiple warheads.

For comparison: the bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 had a power of 15 and 21 kilotons respectively. These strikes took the lives of more than 214,000 people and destroyed both cities. Missiles were not used at that time - the warheads were dropped from aircraft. Just one W87-1 warhead mounted on an ICBM has a power more than 22 times greater than the most destructive bomb used in military history.

Journalists from Slash Gear refer to the simulator Nukemap, which calculates the consequences of a nuclear explosion depending on the power and point of impact. According to these calculations, if W87-1 were used against Hiroshima today, not only the city itself would suffer, but also nearby settlements - Hatsukaichi, Saka, Kumano, Kaita, and Fuchu. In the case of a strike on Washington, the destruction would cover the US capital, as well as Alexandria, Bethesda, College Park, Hyattsville, and other suburbs. Urban infrastructure for tens of kilometers would be destroyed or severely damaged, and radioactive fallout would pose an additional deadly threat depending on the detonation method.

Is it realistic to intercept an intercontinental ballistic missile

Intercepting an ICBM is an extremely difficult task, comparable to trying to hit one bullet with another bullet at a distance of thousands of kilometers. Even the United States, with its advanced missile defense system, does not yet have a full guarantee of protection against such threats, although they have already deployed ground and air interception systems.

Nevertheless, shooting down an ICBM is possible, although highly unlikely. The missile's flight is divided into three stages: the boost phase (approximately 2-5 minutes), the midcourse phase (20-30 minutes), and the final or terminal phase (less than one minute). Theoretically, interception is possible in two of them - the boost and midcourse phases.

However, the boost phase occurs shortly after launch, when the missile is still close to the launch pad. Intercepting it at this moment is extremely difficult, as air defense systems may simply not have time to react, especially if the launch is made from a territory remote from possible interceptors.

This leaves only one more or less realistic option - to shoot down the ICBM in the midcourse phase, when it has already left the atmosphere and is moving along a ballistic trajectory. But even here everything is extremely complicated: the interceptor needs to rise to an altitude of almost 5,000 kilometers and manage to detect a target that can move at speeds up to 23 Mach - that's about 28,400 km/h. In addition, the missile may carry decoys and reflectors, complicating the task of identifying the real warhead.

As experts emphasize, intercepting ICBMs today remains a technological challenge requiring further development, testing, and serious investment. So far, no missile defense system provides a full guarantee of repelling a massive strike of this scale.