"Burevestnik" and "Poseidon" began development back in the 1940s

The creation of the «Burevestnik» nuclear-powered cruise missile and the «Poseidon» underwater drone was the result of research by domestic scientists that began in the late 1940s. This was announced by the president of the National Research Center «Kurchatov Institute» Mikhail Kovalchuk.

According to him, in 1955, the report on the progenitor of «Burevestnik» was approved by Academician Igor Kurchatov, Academician Mstislav Keldysh and atomic scientist Anatoly Alexandrov.

Kovalchuk also presented a photocopy of the first page of the report «on the possibility of creating a supersonic long-range aircraft-missile with a nuclear ramjet engine».

At the end of October 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the completion of tests of the «Burevestnik» with a nuclear power plant. During the first launch, the missile traveled 14 thousand km, there are no analogues in the world. A few days later, the head of state also announced successful tests of the «Poseidon» underwater vehicle with the ability to carry nuclear warheads.

Valery Polovinkin, scientific director of the Krylov State Scientific Center, explained that the «Burevestnik» cruise missile uses artificial intelligence technologies, a map of the starry sky and terrain.

However, Western analysts considered the invulnerability of «Burevestnik» doubtful. They noted that the reliability of the system raises questions, since maintaining the integrity of the reactor in combat conditions is extremely difficult.

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