[65][needs update], Kinetic energy device designed to destroy satellites in orbit. To understand the relevance of satellites, particularly for military purposes, one only needs to look at the statistic that four nations/blocs have global positioning systems. He suggested that a low-orbit test against a purpose-launched satellite would not be seen as irresponsible. [43][44] The operation was named Mission Shakti. The system was declared operational in February 1973. [22] An open source analysis[by whom? Further testing of weapons effects was carried out under the DOMINIC I series. The use of satellites for communication, reconnaissance and, in recent decades, navigation have effectively meant it was inevitable that major powers develop countermeasures to disrupt the capabilities of rivals. [26], According to the U.S. government, the primary reason for destroying the satellite was the approximately 450 kg (1000 lb) of toxic hydrazine fuel contained on board, which could pose health risks to persons in the immediate vicinity of the crash site should any significant amount survive the re-entry. "[64] The Sokol Eshelon is a prototype laser system based on an A-60 airplane which is reported to be restarting development in 2012. In 1962, Robert McNamara, the secretary of defense under then US president John F. Kennedy, cleared the development of the Nike-Zeus missile for the anti-satellite role. It is also believed (by experts such as Prof. Yitzhak Ben Yisrael, chairman of the Israel Space Agency), that it will operate as an ASAT. ASATs were generally given low priority until 1982, when information about a successful USSR program became widely known in the west. Research on possible anti-satellite weapons started years before, with the US Air Force testing various concepts. An upgraded version was developed in the 1980s that could target manoeuvring satellites; however, the Soviet-origin co-orbital ASAT system was decommissioned by Russia in 1993. Obrana a Strategie/Defence & Strategy 2014.2 (2014): 61. [3][4][5], ASAT roles include: defensive measures against an adversary's space-based and nuclear weapons, a force multiplier for a nuclear first strike, a countermeasure against an adversary's anti-ballistic missile defense (ABM), an asymmetric counter to a technologically superior adversary, and a counter-value weapon.[6]. The ASAT weapon “apparently came within four miles of its target”; the programme was called 'Bold Orion'. According to the Federation of American Scientists, an “air-launched ballistic missile” was fired from a B-47 bomber of the US Air Force at an Explorer VI satellite. Mission Shakti - Anti-Satellite Missile Test (ASAT) * Indian PM announced that India had carried out a successful anti-satellite missile test (ASAT), Mission Shakti. Unlike nuclear bombs or equipment like fighter aircraft, ASAT weapons have traditionally stayed on the periphery of conventional public discourse on weapons. US media reports, quoting intelligence sources, said the weapon could be operational by 2022. The US first tested ASAT technology in 1958, the USSR followed in 1964 and China in 2007. FY-1C was a weather satellite orbiting Earth in polar orbit at an altitude of about 865 km (537 mi), with a mass of about 750 kg (1650 lb). The test highlighted the consequences of destructive ASAT technologies: the destroyed satellite generated more than 250 pieces of persistent space debris large enough to be tracked, as well as more than 800 smaller pieces. At 22:28 UTC on 11 January 2007, the People's Republic of China successfully destroyed a defunct Chinese weather satellite, FY-1C. After the Soviet Union collapsed, there were proposals to use this aircraft[clarification needed] as a launch platform for lofting commercial and science packages into orbit. However, shortly after launch communications with the missile were lost and the camera packs could not be recovered to see if the test was successful. On 27 March 2019, India tested its ASAT missile (Mission Shakti) destroying a pre-determined target of a live satellite. [37], In April 2012, DRDO's chairman V. K. Saraswat said that India possessed the critical technologies for an ASAT weapon from radars and interceptors developed for Indian Ballistic Missile Defence Programme. The US has the eponymous GPS, Russia has the GLONASS constellation, the EU has Galileo and China has deployed the BeiDou system. The Nike-Zeus, which could hit space objects up to an altitude of 150miles was tested in the following year. In January 2007, China tested its first anti-satellite weapon, using a converted ballistic missile to hit a weather satellite at a height of 530miles. Thereafter, the two countries carried out a series of such tests up till early 1980s. China fired an anti-satellite missile at one of its own, discarded weather satellites. Nonetheless, the strategic implications of a possible unforeseen breakthrough in technology forced the USSR to initiate massive spending on research in the 12th Five Year Plan, drawing all the various parts of the project together under the control of GUKOS and matching the U.S. proposed deployment date of 2000. [56], The Arrow 3 or Hetz 3 is an anti-ballistic missile, currently in service. [21] However, U.S. government sources described it as the first test of a new ground-based ASAT system. [14] Ironically, it was at about this point that the U.S. started its own testing in response to the Soviet program. India has conducted its first anti-satellite weapons test, destroying an existing satellite today in low-Earth orbit. purposes. ", "India says space debris from anti-satellite test to 'vanish' in 45...", "Explained Mission Shakti | What is A-SAT and how it hit Microsat-R in 168 secs", "India shows off tech to 'kill' satellites, will also help tackle high-altitude missiles", "India successfully tests anti-satellite weapon: Modi", "U.S. says studying India anti-satellite weapons test, warns on debris", "Frequently Asked Questions on Mission Shakti, India's Anti-Satellite Missile test conducted on 27 March 2019", "India Says Its Anti-Satellite Weapon Test Created Minimal Space Debris. Even if an ISR satellite is knocked out, the U.S. possesses an extensive array of manned and unmanned ISR aircraft that could perform missions at standoff ranges from Chinese land-based air defences, making them somewhat higher priority targets that would consume fewer resources to better engage. Смотреть онлайн. Russia is also testing an anti-satellite laser weapon, the US military says. История России", "Did Star Wars Help End the Cold War? [50] Brian Weeden of Secure World Foundation agreed, but warned about the possibility of some fragments getting boosted to higher orbits. The first launch of the new anti-satellite missile took place in January 1984. Anti-satellite weapons (ASAT) are space weapons designed to incapacitate or destroy satellites for strategic or tactical[1] In addition to using dedicated missiles, the major powers have also conducted research on high-power lasers and other 'directed-energy' weapons for potential use against satellites. Other research was based on more conventional lasers or masers and developed to include the idea of a satellite with a fixed laser and a deployable mirror for targeting. The first anti-satellite test (ASAT) was carried out by the US military way back in 1959. Evidence suggests that the same SC-19 system was also tested in 2005, 2006, 2010, and 2013,[20] although none of those events created any long-lived orbital debris. In April this year, The Barents Observer reported about this year’s first anti-satellite missile test from Plesetsk. 1959: USA performs first anti-satellite test. By 1988 the US project had evolved into an extended four-stage development. Several nations possess operational ASAT systems. [60] After the collapse of the Soviet Union, this project was put on hold due to reduced defense expenditures. A total of 23 launches have been identified as being part of the IS test series. Another area of research was directed into energy weapons, including a nuclear-explosion powered X-ray laser proposal developed at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in 1968. [54] Russia acknowledged India's statement on the test not being targeted against any nation and invited India to join the Russian–Chinese proposal for a treaty against weaponisation of space. Russia carried out the first successful flight test of a new anti-satellite missile this month, marking a new phase in the global militarization of space. Depending on the level of tracking capabilities, the interceptor would have to pre-determine the point of impact while compensating for the satellite's lateral movement and the time for the interceptor to climb and move; U.S. intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) satellites orbit at about 800 km (500 mi) high and move at 7.5 km/s (4.7 mi/s), so a Chinese Intermediate-range ballistic missile would need to compensate for 1350 km (840 mi) of movement in the three minutes it takes to boost to that altitude. The two-stage Bold Orion missile passed within 4 mi (6.4 km) of Explorer 6. One of the projects studied under the 199A umbrella was Martin's Bold Orion air-launched ballistic missile (ALBM) for the B-47 Stratojet, based on the rocket motor from the Sergeant missile. [25] On 14 February 2008, it was reported that the United States Navy had been instructed to fire an RIM-161 Standard Missile 3 ABM weapon at it, to act as an anti-satellite weapon. As Modi noted, only three nations have tested ASAT missiles before—the US, Russia (Soviet Union previously) and China. [41] The interceptor was able to strike a test satellite at a 300-kilometre (186 mi) altitude in low earth orbit (LEO), thus successfully testing its ASAT missile. On 27 March 2019, India tested an anti-satellite weapon during an operation code named Mission Shakti (IAST: Śakti; lit. "destroyer of satellites") program, was made in March 1961. It provides exo-atmospheric interception of ballistic missiles. [13] Although the Soviet military was aware these claims were false,[citation needed] Brezhnev believed them and ordered a resumption of IS testing along with a Shuttle of their own. The interceptor was launched at around 05:40 UTC at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur, Odisha and hit its target Microsat-R[42] after 168 seconds. [55], While it has been suggested that a country intercepting the satellites of another country in a conflict, namely between China and the United States, could seriously hinder the latter's military operations, the ease of shooting down orbiting satellites and their effects on operations has been questioned. These programs include the Experimental Spacecraft System (USA-165), the Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE), and the space-based interceptor (SBI). Elements within the Soviet space industry convinced Leonid Brezhnev that the Shuttle was a single-orbit weapon that would be launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, manoeuvre to avoid existing anti-ballistic missile sites, bomb Moscow in a first strike, and then land. One area of research was development of a 'miniature' anti-satellite missile that could be carried on the then-brand-new MiG-31 fighter. Unlike the US strategy of relying on missiles, the Soviet Union adopted a 'co-orbital' method, which involved launching a 'killer satellite', which would enter the same orbit as its target and approach it for destruction. The government-run DRDO had successfully conducted the first A-SAT test on March 27 last year. A China weather satellite—the FY-1C polar orbit satellite of the Fengyun series, at an altitude of 865 kilometres, with a mass of 750 kilograms —was destroyed by a kinetic kill vehicle traveling with a speed of 8 km/s in the opposite direction. [56], The Global Positioning System and communications satellites orbit at higher altitudes of 20000 km (12000 mi) and 36000 km (22000 mi) respectively, putting them out of range of solid-fuelled Intercontinental ballistic missiles. The use of high-altitude nuclear explosions to destroy satellites was considered after the tests of the first conventional missile systems in the 1960s. 02.04.2019 . Soviet Response to the SDI Program", "Exclusive: Russian MiG-31 Foxhound Carrying Huge Mystery Missile Emerges Near Moscow", "Anti-satellite Tests in Space – The Case of China", "China once again high-altitude scientific exploration test: height higher data more", "U.S. sees China launch as test of anti-satellite muscle: source", "Through a Glass, Darkly: Chinese, American, and Russian Anti-satellite Testing in Space", "Revealed: The Details of China's Latest Hit-To-Kill Interceptor Test", Associated Press – Broken Satellite Will Be Shot Down, "Navy missile hits dying spy satellite, says Pentagon", "Russia Flight Tests Anti-Satellite Missile", "Russia succeeds in mobile anti-satellite missile test: US intelligence report", "Russia to field new anti-satellites missiles for MiG-31 interceptor already soon – New Russian weapons", "Russia's MiG-31 Spotted With Possible Anti-Satellite Missile", "Russia launches test of anti-satellite weapon", "Russia tests anti-satellite missile, US general says", "India has all the building blocks for an anti-satellite capability", "Anti-satellite missile project was given clearance 2 years back: DRDO chief", "Explained: What's Mission Shakti and how was it executed? The Indian public came across a rarely heard term on Wednesday afternoon as Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the country had successfully tested its first anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon. [28], The successful flight test of Russia's direct ascent anti-satellite missile, known as PL-19 Nudol, took place on 18 November 2015, according to defence officials familiar with reports of the test. During the Hardtack Teak test in 1958 observers noted the damaging effects of the electromagnetic pulse (EMP) caused by the explosions on electronic equipment, and during the Starfish Prime test in 1962 the EMP from a 1.4-megaton-of-TNT (5.9 PJ) warhead detonated over the Pacific damaged three satellites and also disrupted power transmission and communications across the Pacific. Research and Development (both of ASAT systems and other space based/deployed weapons) has, however, reported to have been resumed under the government of Vladimir Putin as a counter to renewed U.S. Strategic Defense efforts post Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. The world's first successful intercept was completed in February 1970. [58][unreliable source?] The destruction was reportedly carried out by an SC-19 ASAT missile with a kinetic kill warhead[19] similar in concept to the American Exoatmospheric Kill Vehicle. In 2013 China tested a DN2, a predecessor to the current model. Delays in that program led to the introduction of a simpler version, the 2A, which launched its first IS test on 27 October 1967, and a second on 28 April 1968. As part of this work the IS system was expanded to allow attacks at higher altitudes and was declared operational in this new arrangement on 1 July 1979. [11] The first successful test (the second overall) achieved 32 hits (each could penetrate 100 mm of armour).[12]. It was launched with a multistage solid-fuel missile from Xichang Satellite Launch Center or nearby. China Confirms Recent Anti-Satellite Test. Two such tests were carried out on 1 November 1963 and 12 April 1964. [48][49] According to Jonathan McDowell, an astrophysicist at Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, some debris might persist for a year, but most should burn up in the atmosphere within several weeks. The U.S. has begun working on a number of programs which could be foundational for a space-based ASAT. To record its flight path, the Bold Orion transmitted telemetry to the ground, ejected flares to aid visual tracking, and was continuously tracked by radar. It travelled 18,600 miles (30,000km) into space, the orbital region of US intelligence satellites. [57], In a televised press briefing during the 97th Indian Science Congress in Thiruvananthapuram, the Defence Research and Development Organisation Director General Rupesh announced that India was developing the necessary technology that could be combined to produce a weapon to destroy enemy satellites in orbit. The US National Air & Space Intelligence Center, in a December 2018 report titled Competing in Space, claimed “the number of foreign reconnaissance and remote sensing satellites has tripled from 100 to 300.”, A collage of the ASAT test by a US F-15 fighter in 1985 | Wikipedia Commons, successfully tested its first anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon, India, South Korea reaffirm support to initiatives to promote peace, stability in the region, BrahMos is ready to meet all export requirements, Jindal Steel, Kotak, and GMS among potential bidders for Reliance Naval: Report, MoD approves acquisition 118 'improved' Arjun Mark-1A tanks for Army, Hasina requests India to play 'strong role' in Rohingyas' early repatriation to Myanmar, WATCH: BJP MLA thrashed, clothes torn by protesting farmers in Punjab, Who we are in reality gets lost in playing characters: Abhishek Bachchan, After Sachin, Yusuf Pathan tests positive for COVID-19, Robot’s NFT self-portrait sells for nearly $700,000. The initial US plan was to use the already-developed MHV as the basis for a space based constellation of about 40 platforms deploying up to 1,500 kinetic interceptors. It was reported about a month after launch that the satellite had failed. [45] With this test, India became the fourth nation with anti-satellite missile capabilities. [62][63] Further reports in May 2010 based on statements from Col. Eduard Sigalov in Russia's air and space defense forces, indicated that Russia was "developing a fundamentally new weapon that can destroy potential targets in space. On 11 January 2007, China conducted an anti-satellite missile test. [27] On 20 February 2008, it was announced that the launch was carried out successfully and an explosion was observed consistent with the destruction of the hydrazine fuel tank. The initial stage would consist of the Brilliant Pebbles[18] defense system, a satellite constellation of 4,600 kinetic interceptors (KE ASAT) of 45 kg (100 lb) each in Low Earth orbit and their associated tracking systems. India’s anti-satellite missile test Another reminder of the gaps in the 1967 Outer Space Treaty. The first, and only, successful interception was on 13 September 1985. Although satellites have been successfully intercepted at low orbiting altitudes, the tracking of military satellites for a length of time could be complicated by defensive measures like inclination changes. In any event, work on the WS-199 projects ended with the start of the GAM-87 Skybolt project. The first US anti-satellite weapon was the Bold Orion Weapon System 199B. Microsat-R is the suspected target of the Indian ASAT experiment. Testing resumed in 1976 as a result of the U.S. work on the Space Shuttle. The system was then modified with the addition of an Altair upper stage to create an anti-satellite weapon with a 1770-kilometre (1100 mi) range. [9] Although successful, the program was cancelled in 1988. Both Slazer and the NASIC report pointed to the example of China's anti-satellite test in 2007. Even if somehow a communications satellite were hit, a battle group could still perform its missions in the absence of direct guidance from the NCA. The United States performed the first anti-satellite tests in 1959, when satellites themselves were rare and new. And according to some scientific journal reports, Russia may be resurrecting some Soviet-era anti-satellite missile programs, particularly one missile known as Kontakt, which was meant to be fired from a MiG-31D fighter. The Chinese ASAT test triggered waves of protest from western countries. A "crash program" followed, which developed into the Vought ASM-135 ASAT, based on the AGM-69 SRAM with an Altair upper stage. ], based in part on commercial satellite imagery, found that it may indeed have been a test of a new ASAT system that could potentially threaten U.S. satellites in geostationary Earth orbit. [52][53] The United States Department of State acknowledged Ministry of External Affairs' statement on space debris and reiterated its intention to pursue shared interests in space including on space security with India. "Power"). The Soviet Union continued research into ASAT systems even as Yuri Andropov, the then leader of the country, announced a unilateral moratorium on tests in 1983. Research in the U.S. and the Soviet Union was proving that the requirements, at least for orbital based energy weapon systems, were, with available technology, close to impossible. According to the Federation of American Scientists, an “air-launched ballistic missile” was fired from a B-47 bomber of the US Air Force at an Explorer VI satellite. Further tests carried out against a special target spacecraft, the DS-P1-M, which recorded hits by the IS warhead's shrapnel. Russia test-fired an anti-satellite missile in its pursuit to turn space into a “warfighting domain,” the U.S. Space Command announced Wednesday. "Still All Quiet on the Orbital Front? A 2018 report of the US intelligence community claimed the ASAT weapons of both China and Russia will probably reach initial operating capability (IOC) in the “next few years”. In 2008, the US Navy used an SM-3 missile, meant to intercept ballistic missiles, to destroy an old reconnaissance satellite. However, anti-satellite weapons are as old as the space age itself. The development and design of anti-satellite weapons has followed a number of paths. However, in 1983, Yuri Andropov ended all IS testing and all attempts to resume it failed. Pomala Proliferace Protisatelitnich Zbrani." 2007: China enters anti-satellite arena. [61] However, in August 2009, the Russian Air Force had announced the resumption of this program. Indian Ballistic Missile Defence Programme, Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, Defence Research and Development Organisation, Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Learn how and when to remove this template message, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, "Indian ASAT Debris Threatens All LEO Sats: Update", "Space Command calls out another Russian anti-satellite weapon test", "Russia conducts space-based anti-satellite weapons test", "Chinese missile destroys satellite in 500-mile orbit", "Исторические сведения "Истребитель спутников" – программа", "Сезон космической охоты (крылатые ракеты, противоспуниковая система ИС).