China test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) into the Pacific Ocean in a rare occurrence, adding to tensions in the region where multiple countries have overlapping territorial claims and both Beijing and Washington seek to project their influence
Source: The Hindu
About Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM):
An intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) is a missile with a minimum range of 5,500 km. primarily designed for nuclear weapons delivery.
Conventional, chemical, and biological weapons can also be delivered with varying effectiveness, but have never been deployed on ICBMs.
Countries that have ICBMs include India, Russia, the United States, North Korea, China, Israel, the United Kingdom and France.
ICBMs are differentiated by having greater range and speed than other ballistic missiles.
Short and medium-range ballistic missiles are known collectively as the theatre ballistic missiles.
Pacific Ocean:
It is the largest and deepest of Earth\'s five oceanic divisions.
It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the continents of Asia and Australia in the west and the Americas in the east.
The western Pacific has many major marginal seas, including the Philippine Sea, South China Sea, East China Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, Bering Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Mar de Grau, Tasman Sea, and the Coral Sea.