US Intelligence believes China tested anti-sat Weapon

Chinese Apparently Test Anti-Satellite Weapon

U. S. intelligence agencies believe China performed a successful anti-satellite (asat) weapons test at more than 500 mi. altitude Jan. 11 destroying an aging Chinese weather satellite target with a kinetic kill vehicle launched on board a ballistic missile.

The Central Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency, NASA and other government organizations have a full court press underway to obtain data on the alleged test, Aviation Week & Space Technology will report in its Jan. 22 issue.

Now this wasn't that unexpected now was it? Are we heading into a new Cold War? I hope not...

[edit on 18-1-2007 by sardion2000]

Now wouldn't a 'kinetic kill' constitute a missile attack rather than a laser attack?
This IS definitely unexpected if true..
What remains to be seen is whether the kill had any real offensive potential(laser/EM/cluster missiles etc) or whether it was as simple as injecting another payload(in this case proximity detonated explosive?) in the same orbital path as the target sat at the same time the target flew by.
Now I doubt that would be too hard if you knew exactly where the target satellite was and what its orbital trajectory was.

Edit: spelling!!


[edit on 18-1-2007 by Daedalus3]

Where the hell di laser come into it. Your own source says it was a Kinetic kill vehicle launched from a ballistic missile.

U. S. intelligence agencies believe China performed a successful anti-satellite (asat) weapons test at more than 500 mi. altitude Jan. 11 destroying an aging Chinese weather satellite target with a []betic kill vehicle launched on board a ballistic missile.

I just cut and pasted the thread title from a blog post. My bad. I am also guilty of skiming. I'll correct the title.

Im not really too worried about it because if it was their own satellite then it will have been a lot easier to kill than would a foreign satellite. In the case the United States have tested ANSAT weapon in the past. Still the fact that they blew up a satellite could be seen as a hostile act, but until they start staging the missiles in locations that would be strategic in blowing up satellites i wouldnt be worried.

This is not so much of a surprise, the Chinese have been looking into ASAT weapons for years. They have also apparently tested ground based lasers as a means of blinding photo recon satellites.

If the US is going to rely more on space technology to give us an edge, we can expect our rivals to seek means of denying us that edge.

Is this the same Intelligence community that believed Saddam had weapons of mass destruction and provided Colin Powell with a phiall of 'Anthrax' when he addressed the UN Security Council?

truttseeker wrote:

Im not really too worried about it because if it was their own satellite then it will have been a lot easier to kill than would a foreign satellite. In the case the United States have tested ANSAT weapon in the past. Still the fact that they blew up a satellite could be seen as a hostile act, but until they start staging the missiles in locations that would be strategic in blowing up satellites i wouldnt be worried.

From what I can gather it wouldn't really be any more difficult for them to hit one of our satellites. There isn't much stealth involved in the production of satellites. Most of the focus during satellite design is on maximizing efficiency while reducing cost. Considering that we have the ability to track things like screwdrivers and pieces of trash as they orbit the earth, it isn't very far fetched to assume that the Chinese could easily locate our satellites. Not only that, but GPS satellites are in "low earth orbit", meaning they are relatively close to the earth when compared with communications satellites and such. This is due to the fact that the close the GPS satellite is to the Earth, the more accurate it is. This is all just based on simple geometry.

The real issue the Chinese will face is determining which satellites are crucial to certain military activities. According to this website there are about 30 satellites in use for GPS purposes right now. This number changes, and it likely doesn't include top-secret government use only satellites.
Another question is, do the Chinese currently possess the capability to neutralize many of these satellites? How many missiles like this do they have? I'm not really up to speed on the missile systems China has. Maybe someone could comment on this?

The reasoning for using so many satellites is that you need enough satellites to provide GPS capabilities at all hours of the day and in all location. This also varies based on if a satellite is geo-stationary or geo synchronous, meaning that the satellite either stays in one place as the earth turns or follows the earths orbit in some ratio. So if the Chinese destroyed a few satellites, then they could neutralize our GPS capabilities in certain places and/or at certain times of the day, depending on which satellites were hit and what type they were. It takes 3 satellites to perform GPS functions accurately, so by hitting 10 of the right satellites, the Chinese could theoretically neutralize 30. Kinda scary, huh?

Most of this info can be found with a simple google search or at wikipedia. I didn't really refer to any articles this is all just stuff I have picked up reading and watching the Discovery Channel haha so if you want to fact check it feel free!

[edit on 18-1-2007 by secretsoldier]

I think it's a bit rich that America CONDEMNS china's abilities. While at the same time developing it's own ASAT. The Americans have no more right to space than anyone else...

Originally posted by fritz
Is this the same Intelligence community that believed Saddam had weapons of mass destruction and provided Colin Powell with a phiall of 'Anthrax' when he addressed the UN Security Council?

exactly

the US does this so that they can:

1) start to militarize their own space programs

2) get excuse to furthur increase their military spending

it's basically a US propaganda that can eventually legalize their own space weapon programs. the US government does this kind of political moves all the time, that now it's getting old and repetitive.

lets just put it this way: if this is the UK whos testing it on its own old satellite, then no one will get blamed. Infact, the US had anti satellite missiles 20 years ago, and now it it testing its anti-missile systems, and all that just seemed normal.

[edit on 1/19/2007 by warset]

hmmm...interesting timing...China can destroy satellites.....and this test took place 1 week before a US classified satellite was lost...

US Unable To Contact Military Reconnaissance Satellite

[edit on 19-1-2007 by Murcielago]

Originally posted by fritz
Is this the same Intelligence community that believed Saddam had weapons of mass destruction

Saddam did have WMD's...he killed over a hundred thousand kurds with using it. Nukes arn't the only thing considered WMD's. Also, Saddam had nuclear scientists working for him, and nuclear components were foung in Iraq......and BTW, China has confirmed that its true, that they did shoot a satellite.


warset - Are you serious, the US doesn't control the world, we have no control over what China does, or Russia, or Iran, Syria, etc...

warset
the US government does this kind of political moves all the time, that now it's getting old and repetitive.

You do know that the US isn't the only country condemning this action...right. Many other countries like Japan & Austrailia...and even your precious little Canada.

[edit on 19-1-2007 by Murcielago]

Originally posted by Murcielago
warset - Are you serious, the US doesn't control the world, we have no control over what China does, or Russia, or Iran, Syria, etc...

warset
the US government does this kind of political moves all the time, that now it's getting old and repetitive.

You do know that the US isn't the only country condemning this action...right. Many other countries like Japan & Austrailia...and even your precious little Canada.

[edit on 19-1-2007 by Murcielago]

you are just further proving that the US does indeed have control over the world.
countries like canada and japan are basically its "pupet states"
although politically speaking, the US does not control any other country, and serves justice and freedom, but actually, the reality is quite different from what's said in US politics. infact, very often it's the opposite.

one INTERESTING reaction made by the US government: (source: BBC News)

"While the US may be unhappy about China's actions, the Washington administration has recently opposed international calls to end such tests.

It revised US space policy last October to state that Washington had the right to freedom of action in space, and the US is known to be researching such "satellite-killing" weapons itself. "

ah ha! so why oppose?! what does this tell us? this basically proves my first reply in this thread.


[edit on 1/19/2007 by warset]

Originally posted by Murcielago

Originally posted by fritz
Is this the same Intelligence community that believed Saddam had weapons of mass destruction

Saddam did have WMD's...he killed over a hundred thousand kurds with using it. Nukes arn't the only thing considered WMD's. Also, Saddam had nuclear scientists working for him, and nuclear components were foung in Iraq......and BTW, China has confirmed that its true, that they did shoot a satellite.
warset - Are you serious, the US doesn't control the world, we have no control over what China does, or Russia, or Iran, Syria, etc...

warset
the US government does this kind of political moves all the time, that now it's getting old and repetitive.

You do know that the US isn't the only country condemning this action...right. Many other countries like Japan & Austrailia...and even your precious little Canada.
[edit on 19-1-2007 by Murcielago]

Please don't try to lecture me on so called weapons of mass destruction. I know all about those because, as I have previously mention hundreds of times before, I was a Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Warfare Instructor.
I have forgotten more than most people have ever known or will ever find out on the www!

There has only ever been one weapon of mass destruction, and that is the nuclear bomb. Only the USA has ever developed and deployed nuclear weapons and just in case you have forgotten, that was at Nagasaki and Hiroshima.

Biological weapons [agents] are at the very best, Theatre weapons whilst Chemical agents are best suited for the Battlefield. Period.

Your assertion that just because Saddam's scientists were working with nuclear technology means that he was developing a nuclear bomb is, sadly, typical of those who wanted the war and will do anything to justify their actions and what is happening in Iraq today.

How strange that in a more recent post you say: warset - Are you serious, the US doesn't control the world, we have no control over what China does, or Russia, or Iran, Syria, etc...

Is this not another case of double standards? Saddam was working towards a bomb, we'd better invade - and yet you [US] are repeatedly berating Iran for working with nuclear materiels which, I might add, they say is for peaceful purposes only.

So if I read the situation correctly, those countries who developed their own nuclear forces and then signed a non-proliferation treay and formed the nuclear club, does not want other countries to follow suit because, at some stage the USA may regard such sovereign states that do develope nuclear technology as potential enemies?

As for the Chinese admitting they shot down a sat with a missile. So what? This is just China levelling the playing field and guess what? America cries Foul! How ironic!

Don't think its a technological leap if true; more of a political statement if true..
Still waiting to see if its true?

Originally posted by Murcielago

Originally posted by fritz
Is this the same Intelligence community that believed Saddam had weapons of mass destruction

Saddam did have WMD's...he killed over a hundred thousand kurds with using it. Nukes arn't the only thing considered WMD's. Also, Saddam had nuclear scientists working for him, and nuclear components were foung in Iraq......and BTW, China has confirmed that its true, that they did shoot a satellite.


warset - Are you serious, the US doesn't control the world, we have no control over what China does, or Russia, or Iran, Syria, etc...

warset
the US government does this kind of political moves all the time, that now it's getting old and repetitive.

You do know that the US isn't the only country condemning this action...right. Many other countries like Japan & Austrailia...and even your precious little Canada.

[edit on 19-1-2007 by Murcielago]

Now, I'm not your regular left wing US IS THE SOURCE OF ALL EVILS IN THIS WORLD U MURDERING NAZIS!! kind of guy but our excuse for Iraq invasion wasnt for chemical weapons its well known Saddam had them. But we didnt invade Iraq for it, Chemical weapons are not illegal according to the UN. And heres the shocker we gave Saddam the money for his chemical weapons. We gave Saddan $200million and weapons to fight our by proxy war with Iran after them sponsoring Hezbollah and the Beiruit Barracks Bombings. Saddam used the $$ to buy chemical weapons and used them on Iran while initally Iran lodged a complaint with the UN and we looked the other way until theres was indispuitable proof of it. Which we then barely condemned it. I think Saddam killed something like 250,000 Iranians. But thats the price you pay for waging by proxy war on the US. Realistically the 280 or so marines that died in the terrorist attack claimed by Hezbollah gets Iran 250,000 casualties.

True true..
soo dezz ne..so dezz ne..

www.defensetech.org...
aviationnow.com.../CHI01177.xml

These are the links I found on this.

Does this really surprise anyone, I mean really? Look at it in this context... China used an anti ballistic missile to do this from what I understand. Now they really might not have any real plans to develop an anti sat. weapon, then again they may, either way after bush minor claimed that America has the right to deny anyone access to space that it deems a threat... (a claim that is supremely arrogant and short sighted if you ask me but what else is new from that moron?) do you think that any power worth its salt, especially one with a space program, is going to let that pass without some form of challenge? I fully expect to see more acts like this from other countries with space programs now. They really have no choice.

Call Iran... Call North Korea... he's at it again! Way to go shrub provoking the very responses we don't want, AGAIN!

[edit on 19-1-2007 by grover]