China jamming test sparks U.S. satellite
concerns
Posted 10/5/2006 12:57 PM ET E-mail | Save | Print | Subscribe to
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http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2006-10-05-satellite-laser_x.htm?POE=TECISVA
WASHINGTON (Reuters) China has beamed a ground-based laser at
U.S. spy satellites over its territory, a U.S. agency said, in an
action that exposed the potential vulnerability of space systems
that provide crucial data to American troops and consumers around
the world.
The Defense Department remains tight-lipped about details,
including which satellite was involved or when it occurred.
The Pentagon's National Reconnaissance Office Director Donald Kerr
last week acknowledged the incident, first reported by Defense
News, but said it did not materially damage the U.S. satellite's
ability to collect information.
"It makes us think," Kerr told reporters.
The issue looms large, given that U.S. military operations have
rapidly grown more reliant on satellite data for everything from
targeting bombs to relaying communications to spying on enemy
nations.
Critical U.S. space assets include a constellation of 30 Global
Positioning Satellites that help target bombs and find enemy
locations. This system is also widely used in commercial
applications, ranging from car navigation systems to automatic
teller machines.
The Pentagon also depends on communications satellites that relay
sensitive messages to battlefield commanders, and satellites that
track weather in critical areas so U.S. troops can plan their
missions.
"Space is a much bigger part of our military posture than it used
to be, so any effort by the Chinese or anybody else to jam our
satellites is potentially a big deal," said Loren Thompson, defense
analyst with the Virginia-based Lexington Institute.
Fresh concerns
Clearly, the incident sparked fresh concerns among U.S. officials
and watchdog groups about the U.S. ability to determine if
satellite problems are caused by malfunctions, weather anomalies
like solar flares, or targeted attacks.
Air Force Space Commander Gen. Kevin Chilton said it was often
difficult to know exactly what happened to satellites orbiting from
125 to 22,400 miles above the earth.
"We're at a point where the technology's out there and the
capability for people to do things to our satellites is there. I'm
focused on it beyond any single event," Chilton said.
Satellites are also vulnerable to man-made and natural events
affecting their ground stations and the links between the station
and the satellite, he told reporters last week.
Theresa Hitchens of the Center for Defense Information cautioned
against jumping to conclusions about the Chinese incident.
Beijing may have been testing its capability to track satellites,
not damage them, Hitchens said. "We don't know their intent, and we
don't have the capability to know."
Hitchens also noted current technology made it difficult to
identify anything smaller than a baseball in the orbits where spy
satellites fly, a capability that needed to be improved.
At the same time, she said, the Pentagon would be prudent to use
lower-cost and lower-risk systems closer to earth to do some
critical tasks like surveillance and communications.
Anti-satellite weapons?
Hitchens also emphasized that it would be extremely difficult to
disable a satellite with a laser and even U.S. scientists had not
developed a system to do that.
But there is growing concern among lawmakers about U.S. efforts to
develop such anti-satellite weapons.
House lawmakers tried to block a planned test of Starfire, a
satellite and star tracking program, for fiscal 2007 after learning
it could also be used as an anti-satellite weapon. The funds were
reinstated only after the Air Force assured lawmakers it would be
used only for tracking.
The Chinese incident also underscored the need to develop an
international code of conduct for space. Currently, there are no
specific rules or treaties governing behavior of the 40 countries
that operate satellites, and about a dozen countries that have
launch capability, Hitchens said.
Copyright 2006 Reuters Limited.
