I began this blog with a series of articles about the Chinese space program. There was a recent Chinese launch that caught the attention of the global media. The U.S. Department of Defense has issued a warning about what they consider to be a Chinese "destructive" space program. The warning came in an annual report released on May 8, 2015 titled ‘Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China 2015.’ The U.S. DoD report pointed to Chinese space missions aimed at stalling or destroying the satellites of other countries. The report specifically mentioned the Chinese launch of a "mysterious" object into a ballistic trajectory with a maximum altitude of about nineteen thousand miles.
The trajectory of this object took it near geosynchronous orbit where there are many communication and earth-sensing satellites. About ten hours after launch, the object reentered the Earth's atmosphere. DoD was unable to identify the type or mission of the Chinese launch. "The launch profile was not consistent with traditional space-launch vehicles, ballistic missiles or sounding rocket launches used for scientific research. It could, however, have been a test of technologies with a counterspace mission.”
The DoD report said that China is working on a "variety of capabilities" that could damage or destroy the satellites of countries they considered to be enemies. These capabilities include directed energy weapons that could destroy satellites and "jammers" that could interfere with the operation of satellites. The DoD considers these Chinese space weapons to be a "threat to all peaceful nations”. (Actually, what the DoD report should have said is that these destructive Chinese space technologies are a threat to any nation which has satellites in orbit.) Of special concern is the possibility that the Chinese could destroy or neutralize communications satellites launched by other nations to coordinate their military forces in a conflict.
India has a record of disagreement and even small armed conflicts with China over disputed border areas. They have GSAT-7 satellites which are advanced multi-band military communication systems for use in patrolling the Indian Ocean. China has recently begun deploying nuclear powered attack submarines carrying nuclear missiles in the Indian Ocean. China is becoming more aggressive in the past few years in projecting Chinese military power in Southern Asia, including the Indian Ocean. India, which has no nuclear armed submarines sees the Chinese actions in the Indian Ocean a clear provocation and challenge.
If the tension between China and India escalates into open conflict, there is the possibility of an exchange of nuclear missiles between the two nations. If China was able to disable or destroy the Indian GSAT-7 military communication satellites, this would give it a distinct strategic advantage in even without nuclear weapons being involved.
While China is getting negative publicity for the militarization of space, it is certain that other space-faring nations such as the U.S. and Russia are also developing their own space weapons systems. So far they have been successful in keeping it out of the headlines but that will pass as the Space Weapons Race heats up.
Artist's concept of Chinese space weapon:
