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Humanity’s first space battle has already commenced with an out of this world missile interception.
Last week, (October 31) Israel’s Arrow 2 missile system destroyed a missile thought to have launched from Yemen that travelled at a suborbital distance from sea level. The missile, manufactured in Iran, was reportedly intercepted by the Arrow 2 Block-4 series outside of the Erth’s atmosphere Haaretz reported.
The outlet reports that the missile was likely aimed at the city of Eilat, on the southern tip of Israel on the Gulf of Aqaba. Yemen’s Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility for the attack.
READ MORE: Israel's army spotted firing missiles at Hamas saying 'this one's on Chandler Bing'
For the latest updates on the Israel-Hamas war, click here.
The shootdown is the first time the missile has been used for the purpose for which it was initially intended, counteracting weapons fired from across national borders. According to the paper, which is based in Israel, the missile that was destroyed was a Qader missile, a modified version of Iran’s Shahab 3.
The news comes as fears of escalation over the fighting in Gaza continue to escalate. Fears have been raised about the conflict spilling over the border, with tensions rising between Israel and other groups including Lebanon-base Hezbollah.
According to The Telegraph, the missile was shot down over Kármán line which is 62 miles above sea level and is regarded as the beginning of space.
Missiles are thought to have hit each other above the line before, according to Harvard-Smithsonian astronomer Jonathan McDowell via Gizmodo, but all of these were tests. This means this is the first time it has been done between forces based in two different countries in anger.
Speaking to the same outlet, Tomas Hrozensky, a senior research fellow at the European Space Policy Institute said: “There is currently insufficient information available to verify [this] situation”.
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- space
- Missiles
- Iran
- Israel-Hamas war
- Israel
- Space
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