The US and the UK have hit out at Russia accusing Moscow of launching a new projectile into space that could destroy their respective satellites. Photo / 123RF
The US and the UK have hit out at Russia accusing Moscow of launching a new projectile into space that could destroy their respective satellites. Photo / 123RF
The US and the UK have hit out at Russia accusing Moscow of launching a new projectile into space that could destroy their respective satellites.
The head of Britain's Space Directorate said it has all the "characteristics of a weapon". Washington said the threat from Russia was "real, serious and increasing".
But Russia has retorted that the object is merely an "inspector-satellite," that can scan its own satellites for damage.
On Thursday (US time) the newly formed US Space Command released a statement that claimed it has evidence Russia conducted a test of a "space-based anti-satellite weapon".
The statement said Russia had "injected a new object into orbit" from an existing satellite called Cosmos 2543 and this was "inconsistent with the system's stated mission as an inspector satellite".
"The Russian satellite system used to conduct this on-orbit weapons test is the same satellite system that we raised concerns about earlier this year, when Russia manoeuvred near a US government satellite," said General John W. Raymond, Commander of US Space Command.
"This is further evidence of Russia's continuing efforts to develop and test space-based systems, and consistent with the Kremlin's published military doctrine to employ weapons that hold US and allied space assets at risk."
Chief of Space Operations at U.S. Space Force Gen. John Raymond. Photo / AP
Time magazine reported that last November, Russia launched a satellite dubbed Cosmos 2542. This then hatched a smaller satellite called Cosmos 2543.
Both objects then seemed to stalk the US KH-11 reconnaissance satellite leading to a protest from Washington.
The Cosmos twins backed off but then, on July 15, the US said satellite 2543 fired some form of projectile.
The fear is Russia is testing a new satellite system that could see multiple smaller satellites birth from within a larger vehicle, each one able to target and destroy the enemy's space hardware.
Satellites support an increasing number of day to day activities including GPS and phone calls – but it's their military use that is particularly crucial.
"This event highlights Russia's hypocritical advocacy of outer space arms control, with which Moscow aims to restrict the capabilities of the US while clearly having no intention of halting its own counter space program — both ground-based anti-satellite capabilities and what would appear to be actual in-orbit anti-satellite weaponry," said Dr Christopher Ford, the US Assistant Secretary of State.
Air Vice-Marshal @HarvSmyth, director of the UK's Space Directorate, has responded to a recent Russian satellite test in space: pic.twitter.com/zGdGwCemmR
In a statement, Air Vice – Marshal Harv Smyth of the UK's Space Directorate said Russia's satellite move risked casing debris that could collide with other satellites and space systems the world depends on.
"We are concerned by the manner in which Russia tested one of its satellites by launching a projectile with the characteristics of a weapon.
"We call on Russia to avoid any further such testing".
Russia's defence ministry has said the new satellites had provided "valuable information" on the space object it examined.
"During testing of the latest space technology, one of the domestic satellites was examined close up using the specialised equipment of small space craft," Russia's Interfax news agency reported the foreign ministry as saying.
