Anti-satellite weapon test?, Is this true? Options

[Thu]

According to this link, China fired a missile to destroy an orbiting weather satellite last week: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/China_Tras...e_Test_999.html

I am curios about what kind of projectile could be used? A "smart" one with on board guidance system or just a dumb one? How close did the "killer satellite" came to the target?

Does anybody have an idea?

[tty]

Actually a satellite in LEO is not a particularly challenging target. Its position and trajectory is known in advance and it is usually a non-maneuvring target. Also it usually has a nice big cross-section in both the radar, IR and visual band and operates in a very uncluttered environment.

All that is needed is a reasonably precise suborbital rocket and a suitable warhead. However I doubt that the "ball-bearing/sand" solution is cost effective. Unless You release quite close to the target they would probably disperse too thinly to ensure a kill. It would probably be better to use a homing warhead with a proximity fuse. Anybody having the technology for the carrier rocket should be able to handle the guidance system and the warhead too.

tty

[Bob Shaw]

It would probably be better to use a homing warhead with a proximity fuse. Anybody having the technology for the carrier rocket should be able to handle the guidance system and the warhead too.

tty

It's a tad more difficult than it looks. Most aircraft missile systems don't use thrust to control attitude, but instead rely on aerodynamic forces. An exoatmospheric vehicle has to be precisely stabilised, and because it has to actively hunt down a target then spinning probably won't do. You're looking at 3-axis attitude control, plus an ability to change direction at very short notice. Some of the Star Wars kinetic kill vehicles not only were 3-axis stabilised, but also spun to deploy arms at the last moment and then also disintegrated to provide further frontal area. All this has to be arranged in a space of seconds, with space-hardened computers. All in all, it's a very tough call, and the US has done it only a very few times (and sometimes by moving the goalposts after the event). China's success is a major milestone, and speaks highly of their space technology.


Bob Shaw

[helvick]

So with a bit of luck they might now consider that they have successfully shown all interested parties that they are well in contention in LEO and that they now need to demonstrate some serious long range remote capability - expect Chinese Moon, Mars and outer planets missions to follow shortly.

So it's time to go and learn Chinese folks so we can stay on top of CNSA's PR department.

(Just looking for the bright side since this is my 1000'th post. )

[climber]

(Just looking for the bright side since this is my 1000'th post. )

My 900 was yesterday
I was wondering if it was their first try of if we have infos that they've missed previously!

[Bob Shaw]

My 900 was yesterday
I was wondering if it was their first try of if we have infos that they've missed previously!

Interesting point. The ASAT engine plume would be highly visible in IR, so the US would almost certainly have seen the whole thing. Whether or not they'd have told anyone about previous attempts is a moot point, as the NRO (or whoever is running staring IR sensors in GEO) is notoriously shy and they'd rather not release any information which can be reverse-engineered to reveal their actual capabilities to any potential opponent. So the internal hierarchy of the US may well have known, and they may have told some of their regional allies, but that'd be about it - there's no international requirement for a nation to tell anyone else about sub-orbital activity if they don't want to, and the Chinese wanted a success rather than anything which might be seen as a failure. Personally, I'd be surprised if the Chinese managed an ASAT demonstration first time out, though the US appears to have done exactly that when they tried it. As an example of just how difficult it can be to launch big(ish) missiles from an aeroplane, see the whole NOTSNIK story!


Bob Shaw