About the Pentagon shooting down one of its own satellites

[xiphias]

So, the Pentagon is preparing to shoot down one of its own spy satellites, prior to the satellite's orbit decay and fall to earth. They claim that the reason for this is to make sure that it breaks into enough pieces that none of it will survive re-entry, purely as a safety issue -- they don't want it to fall on anything important and hurt anyone.

Of course, when China shot down one of its own weather satellites on January 11, the US protested, pointing out that that action caused a lot of space debris and endangered other satellites, as well as it being a bad precedent for the militarization of space.

They've designed a special missile for this purpose.

A Pentagon official has stated that "this is not a test of an anti-satellite weapons system." I wish that we had a press corps with could have followed up with the obvious next question: "So, you're shooting down a satellite. If you're not using an anti-satellite weapons system, what ARE you using?"

Comments

[thnidu.livejournal.com]

Of course, when China shot down one of its own weather satellites on January 11, the US protested, pointing out that that action caused a lot of space debris and endangered other satellites, as well as it being a bad precedent for the militarization of space.

Though I can't remember the source, apparently the debris from this shot is expected to be much less and to scatter over a much smaller area, and much of the Chinese debris will remain in orbit for many years. Something to do with altitude/apogee.

[wordweaverlynn.livejournal.com]

"Well, we have this really big slingshot. . . ."

[cakmpls.livejournal.com]

Ah, but they didn't say they're not using an anti-satellite weapons system, they said they aren't testing one.

[unquietsoul5.livejournal.com]

Actually according to a piece on Wired Magazine, it's one of the Raytheon anti-ballistic missile missiles that they are reprogramming (they only actually have about 20 of these in inventory, and so far only used for tests). It's supposed to not explode but have a 'kinetic warhead', that is something real hard to hit it really fast and break it into small pieces on the edge of the atmosphere... and which has worked 10 out of 12 times, or so they claim. Actually many believe that a number of the tests were less than successful....

[voltbang.livejournal.com]

"not a test of an anti-satellite weapons system"

Being familiar with the mindset, I can see several ways to make it true.

"not a test" You don't test a proven system. This may simply be a deployment of an anti-satellite weapons system, with some data gathering and observation. The fact that we may not be admitting that we have such a system isn't important.

"anti-satellite" it may be an anti-something else system. I'm thinking ballistic missle. I was under the impression they were going to shoot after it was no longer in a stable orbit.

And that last word "system". It may be a missle test, or a guidance test, but not a "system" test.

Hey, at high levels, the military mind is a close cousin to the lawyer mind, and we all know, lawyers are made of weasel. And not the good kind that gets soaked in baby oil and has group sex in barrels.

[ruth-lawrence.livejournal.com]

They are using peenk pompons?

:::sigh:::

[danceboy.livejournal.com]

I think it's reasonable.

Well, ignoring for the moment the possibility that the satellite was intentionally disabled in order to provide a thing that needed to be shot down... Oh yeah, and the fact that they're not really worried that it will land on someone, so much as that it might be reverse engineered...

This honestly wasn't an anti-sat missile. The sat (due partially to being disabled) was in a sufficiently low orbit that it could be hit with traditional missiles. Further, part of the problem with China's test was that it left debris orbiting the planet that will stay up there forever, damaging one sat or ship at a time. All of this (sat+missile) will be down sometime this month.

I can see how this can be considered a second step in the weaponization of space that China started last year, but even if the sat was disabled on purpose, it's equivalent to "China pulls out a sword and rattles it", followed by "The US (who admittedly has a LOT of swords) pulls out a knife and starts cleaning its fingernails while whistling aimlessly".