With the Chinese Communist Party and Russia vying to develop anti-space capabilities in an attempt to counter the U.S. military’s dominance in space, the Pentagon is gearing up for space warfare. In this arena, the U.S. military is seeking the ultimate high ground.
Satellites crucial for defense and global communication have long been facing threats from the ground such as signal jamming and missile attacks. Orbital threats have emerged as the next frontier. In recent years, the growing threats to space from China and Russia have spurred the United States to defend its security interests in space.
According to a report by The Wall Street Journal on May 27, U.S. defense companies are developing various systems ranging from satellites capable of chasing other satellites in orbit to ground stations that can launch signals into space. Protecting these assets is critical as mobile navigation services and various TV and internet services rely on orbital equipment. Start-up companies are exploring technologies that could have military applications, including orbital platforms, sensors, and satellite structures.
Officials at the Pentagon are also doing something unusual: openly discussing the weapons that adversarial countries might employ for space warfare.
According to CNN, experts and open-source reports indicate that China and Russia have been advancing technologies that could be used for anti-space purposes in recent years. Experts suggest that with the intensifying geopolitical competition on Earth, China and Russia are increasingly inclined to weaken America’s space superiority.
Based on the Union of Concerned Scientists’ latest data from May 2023, there are currently over 7,500 operational satellites orbiting the Earth. Among these satellites, over 5,000 are owned by the United States, with the majority being commercial satellites. China has 628 satellites, followed by Russia with fewer than 200 satellites, according to the UCS data.
Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, Director of the Observer Research Foundation’s Centre for Security, Strategy & Technology in New Delhi, stated, “Developing (anti-satellite) weapons and other anti-space capabilities provides means to disrupt an adversary’s space-based capabilities, be it communication, navigation, command and control systems, or logistical networks reliant on space-based systems.”
She added, “Preventing the U.S. from gaining any advantage in space during conventional military conflicts is driving China and Russia to develop (anti-space) capabilities and formulate strategies.”
In 2007, the Chinese Communist Party launched a missile into space to destroy one of its aging weather satellites, publicly declaring Beijing’s ambitions in anti-space capabilities.
Analysts believe that since then, China has conducted multiple non-destructive missile tests to enhance its ability to target satellites. According to the Secure World Foundation (SWF), the most recent test was in April last year, which, like previous tests, the Chinese government described it as a missile interception technology test.
The U.S. Space Force believes that China is “developing jamming equipment to target a wide range of satellite communications” and possesses “multiple ground-based laser systems.”
In a March report by the U.S.-based independent organization the Secure World Foundation, it is believed that Russia has revived its Cold War-era anti-satellite research programs, such as developing airborne laser systems for disrupting image reconnaissance satellites.
The report suggests new evidence indicates that Russia may also be developing space-based technologies to interfere with signals from orbiting satellites, thereby expanding its ground-based electronic warfare capabilities.
On May 21, Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder stated, “Russia launched a satellite into low Earth orbit, and we believe it may be a counter-space weapon,” noting it shares the “same orbit” as a U.S. government satellite. Ryder added that Washington would continue to monitor the situation and stand ready to protect its interests.
Russia firmly denies U.S. officials’ claims about Russia developing space-based anti-satellite nuclear weapons, dismissing them as fake news.
At the annual Space Symposium in Colorado Springs in April, U.S. Space Force Space Operations Commander Chance Saltzman stated that the Space Force “must leverage the benefits of technological innovation and emerging capabilities to outpace our competitors.”
As reported by The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. Space Force has ramped up its training, including on how best to operate U.S. satellites and anticipate the possible plans of adversaries.
The U.S. military has devised strategies to counter scenarios involving lasers, jammers, grapplers, and nuclear weapons being used in space. U.S. officials oppose deploying nuclear weapons in orbit as they must adhere to a decades-old Outer Space Treaty, but the Pentagon is seeking to further deploy its own space-based weapons and capabilities.
In the Space Force’s recent budget request, approximately 25% of the $29.4 billion funding will be used to build space superiority, with Saltzman referring to the concept as “responsible anti-space.”
Quoting Robert Winkler of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, The Wall Street Journal reported, “We need to treat this as a space war.”
This defense company is developing a space warfare training system.
Military and industry officials say this is a two-step process. The first step is to seize the high ground, whether standing on mountaintops overlooking the battlefield or in orbit thousands of miles above the Earth, a principle that has underpinned U.S. military tactics for thousands of years. Losing these “orbital eyes” could result in missile defense systems becoming “blind,” which has been an integral part of nuclear deterrence for the past 65 years.
The second step is transitioning to more mobile assets, akin to how ground warfare evolved from fortresses and castles to tanks, jet aircraft, and missiles. These more mobile assets can maneuver more easily in orbit, either moving away from danger or posing enough threat to enhance deterrence.
Moving satellites in space requires the capability for energy storage or refueling, or obtaining other services in orbit. Many commercial companies are pursuing this capability, developing potential satellite-maneuvering space tugs as well as tugs equipped with grappling arms and other robot technologies.
The U.S. military’s space strategy urges utilizing private sector technologies and services to enhance military capabilities during times of crisis. Satellite manufacturer True Anomaly launched two Jackal satellites earlier this year using SpaceX rockets, hoping to conduct tests on them through exercises in orbit for mutual chase. The flight objectives aimed to gain insights into the best way to maneuver close to other spacecraft. Though the company did not achieve all objectives of this flight, adjustments are being made for the next test flight.
At an industry gathering, former Pentagon space policy official John Plumb was asked why there is little discussion about America’s ability to pursue Chinese and Russian space assets, to which he simply responded, “We just don’t do that.”
Apart from countering China and Russia’s anti-space actions, the U.S. military is also bolstering its own anti-space capabilities. U.S. Space Force Space Operations Commander Saltzman explained in a speech in Washington last November why the U.S. believes it needs the capability to counter China’s space capabilities. He stated that the Chinese military adopted a “killing chain” strategy to increase the range and precision of its weapons within the strategically significant “second island chain” from Japan to Guam.
“All of these are space capabilities,” Saltzman said.
The U.S. possesses a recognized, operational anti-space system – electronic warfare capabilities to jam satellite signals – widely acknowledged to have advanced capabilities in disrupting communications and some navigation satellites. According to SWF, the U.S. has also extensively researched ground-based lasers that could dazzle or blind imaging satellites, but there is no indication that these lasers have been deployed.