US NAVY DEPLOYS USS MICHIGAN NUCLEAR SUBMARINE IN CASE OF CONFLICT WITH NORTH KOREA

USS Michigan (SSGN-727) in Guam in 2012. The boat will be the first US submarine with female enlisted sailors by 2016. US Navy Photo

The USS Michigan nuclear-powered submarine is dispatched to port at Busan, South Korea to stand ready in case of escalation on the Korean Peninsula.

The USS Michigan Ohio-class nuclear-powered submarine is one of the 18 subs active with the US Navy that can be armed with 24 Trident I and Trident II ballistic missiles. Each Trident I can carry up to eight 100 kiloton warheads, while the Trident II carries 14, or eight warheads with a payload of a frightening 475 kilotons.

The USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier will be also dispatched to South Korea next week, Sputnik reported.

South Korea is ready to deploy graphite “blackout” bombs that will paralyze North Korea’s electrical power plants in the event of war breaking out on the peninsula, according to the Telegraph.

South Korea has been actively looking to increase its defensive capabilities against the North and considered using graphite bombs as they are not lethal to civilians in surrounding areas. The weapons have been developed by South Korea’s Agency for Defence Development.

Blackout bombs release a cloud of extremely fine, chemically treated carbon filaments over electrical components. The filaments are so fine that they act like a cloud and cause short circuits in electrical equipment.

Tensions on the peninsula have grown as North Korea tested missiles and a nuclear device. Several missiles fired have flown over Japan and Pyongyang threatened to test a hydrogen bomb over the Pacific ocean. In the light of North Korea preparing a test-launch of a ballistic missile rumored to be capable of reaching the US West Coast, the US and South Korea have been bolstering their defenses.

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