A Standard Missile - 3 (SM-3) Block IB interceptor is launched from the USS Lake Erie (CG 70) during a Missile Defense Agency test in the mid-Pacific. The SM-3 Block IB successfully intercepted a separating ballistic missile target that had been launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility, Barking Sands, Kauai, Hawaii. The Lake Erie's crew detected and tracked the target and its weapons system developed a fire control solution. The crew then launched the SM-3, with the intercept occurring a few minutes later.Photo by Ben Listerman