Putin hastily prepares ‘flying Chernobyl’ nuclear missile with UNLIMITED range, eerie satellite imagery suggests

PUTIN is rushing through tests of its deadly ‘mysterious hypersonic nuclear missile’ with UNLIMITED range, according to chilling new satellite images.

The Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile, dubbed “flying Chernobyl” by experts, was reportedly sighted this month at a test site in a remote area of ​​northern Russia.

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This month, an expert uncovered images reportedly showing the fearsome missiles being prepared at the remote former Soviet nuclear test site in Novaya Zemlya, high in the Arctic Circle.

According to the images, the Burevestnik rocket’s transport tank was recently moved in front of the launch rails at the notorious Pankovo ​​site.

Auxiliary ships were also brought to the site, including the huge nuclear-powered cargo ship Sevmorput.

Military analyst Tony Roper, who has spent years studying satellite imagery of Novaya Zemlya, received new images last weekend, which he posted on his personal website.

“It’s definitely Burevestnik,” he told The Barents Observer.

The images, taken from a space image captured by Airbus on Sept. 16, reportedly show Burevestnik being prepared for launch from the Pankovo ​​base.

A canister, similar to the one previously seen in video released by the Russian Defense Ministry, can be seen next to the rails on a launch pad covered by a retractable shelter.

Other minor infrastructure improvements appear to have been made around the base over the summer as the war in Ukraine raged on.

This includes a new waterfront jetty where equipment from ships in the freezing Barents Sea is disembarked before being transported to base.

The road to the base was also improved while helicopters, new buildings, shelters and concrete slabs were built.

It comes as Putin has stepped up his threats to nuke his enemies following his chaotic war in Ukraine.

This week, the mad tyrant made a chilling speech to his people, announcing the partial mobilization of his country, with up to 300,000 conscripts being called up for active duty.

Experts have told The Sun Online that Putin’s nuclear threat is a “desperate bluff” but proves the twisted leader is willing to up the ante to salvage his doomed war.

It’s definitely Burevestnik

Tony Ropermilitary analyst

Putin’s Burevestnik missile, known as Skyfall by NATO, was publicly announced by President Putin in March 2018 in his annual address to the nation along with five other so-called “superweapons”.

The fearsome missile – which means “petrel” in Russian – is said to have been successfully tested for the first time in January 2020.

It was due to be completed by 2025, but sources suggest its development has been accelerated given the ongoing war in Ukraine.

The long-range nuclear-powered missile was described by US military officials in 2021 as a “unique weapon with intercontinental range.”

It was designed to carry a nuclear warhead, while an onboard mini-nuclear reactor is said to provide far greater range than any previous non-ballistic cruise missile.

In theory, the nuclear power core could send it flying around the world multiple times before hitting its target.

President Putin himself called it “a radically new type of weapon” with “unlimited range and unlimited manoeuvrability”.

It can also follow a flat trajectory at extremely low altitudes, making it “invisible” as it flies below the range of most missile detection systems.

The warhead is just part of Putin’s terrifying arsenal of up to 6,000 nuclear weapons and other superweapons.

However, such a bizarre experimental weapon form has a number of disadvantages.

Just months after it was announced with fanfare by Putin, US intelligence sources reported that one of the missiles was lost at sea in late 2017.

Such a small airborne reactor is very unstable and is likely to result in release of deadly radioactive isotopes into the atmosphere.

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In 2019, it was linked to the deaths of at least five scientists after an accident in Nyonoska in north-eastern Russia triggered a radiation spike “a thousand times higher than fatal”.

The infamous accident happened in the White Sea while the team from Russia’s nuclear power company Rosatom was recovering material from a crashed Burevestnik rocket.

In the nearby town of Severodvinsk, home to nearly 200,000 people, an explosion killed five scientists and sent radiation levels skyrocketing.

Such missiles have previously been tried with limited success.

In the 1950s, as Cold War tensions rose, the US Air Force began development of its nuclear SLAM, or Supersonic Low Altitude Missile.

SLAMs were designed to fly at supersonic speeds under cover of enemy radar and launch thermonuclear warheads at up to 16 different targets.

But the project was eventually abandoned in 1964 after the development of ICBMs and advances in defensive ground-penetrating radars effectively rendered the missiles obsolete.

Putin’s announcement of partial mobilization has sparked a reported exodus in Russia as thousands try to flee the country before receiving their draft papers to fight in Ukraine.

Thousands of protesters were arrested across Russia, and some of those arrested were issued draft papers at police stations.

Other desperate Russian men have tried to get married quickly to avoid conscription.

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