The US Army's hypersonic Dark Eagle missile recently passed a critical test

• The US Army successfully completed an all-up-round flight test of its Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon.
• The truck-launched missile system, known as Dark Eagle, can reach speeds over 3,800 mph once aloft.
• The Army aims to field the boost-glide hypersonic weapon system by next year.

The US Army recently completed a successful "end-to-end" flight test of its forthcoming surface-launched hypersonic missile known as the Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon, or more ominously, Dark Eagle.

The weapon was launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Kauai, HI, and flew in what's commonly called an "all-up round" configuration, meaning the missile is already in a nearly operational trim.