Stealing Zeus's Thunder: Physical Space-Control Advantages Against Hostile Satellites
Abstract
In the deep, dark depths of space, unmanned spacecraft go about their business collecting intelligence information on US military forces. This information, collected and analyzed, could tip the balance of power in a conflict. Imagine the chaos that would result if the satellite did not function as expected-remote-sensing satellites blinded to the changes happening on Earth and communication satellites without signals to relay back to the ground station. The civilian term for intentionally causing catastrophic failure of satellite resources is space warfare. In the realm of military science, the concept of space warfare is quite young, having come into existence only when the space age came about approximately five decades ago. Many different areas of space warfare exist, most of them developed as an extension of land-, air-, or sea-warfare techniques adapted to the space environment. Since space warfare is pushing its way to the forefront of the US government's national strategic concerns, we should clearly define space warfare and strategy for the coming decades, without the overwhelming influences of land-, naval-, or air-warfare doctrine. The current situation resembles the one faced by airpower proponents in the early twentieth century. With weapons such as a parasitic attitude control system (PACS) with antisatellite (ASAT) capabilities and the tactics on how to use them, space warfare can begin to break the bonds of 50 years of earthbound politics and thought, thereby fulfilling its potential.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2006
- Accession Number
- ADP023956
Entities
People
- Joseph T. Page
Organizations
- Air University