Chinese asat missile. The ASAT’s kinetic kill vehicle (KKV) was likely boosted by a two-stage launcher based on a DF–21 medium-range ballistic missile, which may be mounted on a mobile transporter-erector-launcher. 6 km). In January 2007, China conducted an anti-satellite test, destroying a non-operational weather satellite with a ballistic missile. It was the first known successful satellite intercept test since September 1985, when the United States destroyed the Solwind P78-1 satellite with ASM-135 anti-satellite missile released by a F-15 Eagle flying at a speed of Mach 0. Direct-ascent antisatellite missiles are designed to disable or destroy a satellite or spacecraft Sep 1, 2020 · WASHINGTON — China is progressing with the development of missiles and electronic weapons that could target satellites in low and high orbits, the Pentagon says in a new report released Sept. Similarly on 5 February 2018, China tested an exoatmospheric ballistic missile with the potential to be used as an ASAT weapon, the Dong Neng-3, with state media reporting that the test was purely defensive and it achieved its desired objectives. Tests of these systems have either been directly acknowledged by the PRC, or reported on as ASAT capable. 1 Jan 13, 2023 · China’s destruction of one of its own weather satellites by means of a modified ballistic missile created the largest-ever debris field in space, with more than 3,000 trackable pieces. Dec 15, 2023 · Space Force Still Dodging Chinese Satellite DebrisiStock illustration Anti-satellite attacks not only have consequences for the space vehicle itself, but can cause problems for other systems in orbit for years, and even decades, to come. Chance Saltzman highlighted the danger posed by China’s anti-satellite (ASAT) missile capabilities as one of the Space Force’s biggest challenges as the young service nears its fourth birthday. The destruction created a ABSTRACT On 2007 January 11, the People’s Republic of China conducted a successful direct-ascent ASAT test against one of their own defunct polar-orbiting weather satellites. Feb 22, 2007 · China’s anti-satellite test in January drew international condemnation but also piqued interest in some quarters about instituting a space weapons ban. China’s ASAT Programs China launched a direct-ascent ASAT weapon on January 11, 2007, which struck a Chinese FY–1 weather satellite in low Earth orbit (LEO). 934 and an altitude of 38,100 ft (11. The test produced at least 2,087 pieces of debris large enough to be routinely tracked by the US Space Surveillance Network and the NASA Orbital Debris Program Office estimated it generated over 35,000 pieces of debris . More than 15 years later, the International Space Station was forced to maneuver to avoid some of that debris last year, a reminder of its lasting impact. Apr 3, 2025 · China is rapidly building out its arsenal of counterspace weapons: everything from ground-based lasers to satellites that can grab other satellites, all of which pose a “grave threat” to the Nov 15, 2023 · Chief of Space Operations Gen. China reportedly conducted several Aug 1, 2022 · Chinese direct-ascent ASAT The Chinese direct ascent program’s first known tests were in 2005 and 2006, using the SC-19, also referred to as Dong Neng-1 (DN-1), and is likely a variant based on the DF-21 mobile series of ballistic missiles. Since its inception, the ASAT program has made progress on the development of three ASAT capable Systems: direct fire, directed-energy weapon, and microsatellites. China has tested two direct-ascent antisatellite missiles: the SC–19 and the larger DN–2. B. Nov 17, 2021 · Lobbed into space atop a ballistic missile, the ASAT destroyed the weather-watching satellite that had been orbiting Earth since May 10, 1999. gpnr qe8obs bwxnn lep hr ihtr yqw 4mlib enh ta