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Community => Recreation Commons => Destination: Alpha Centauri => Topic started by: Buster's Uncle on November 18, 2014, 07:07:11 pm

Title: This unidentified spacecraft could be the Russian military's 'satellite killer'
Post by: Buster's Uncle on November 18, 2014, 07:07:11 pm

This unidentified spacecraft could be the Russian military's 'satellite killer'
The Week
Meghan DeMaria  8:11am ET



The Soviet "Istanbul Sputnikov" anti-satellite program hasn't gained much attention since the Cold War, after which it was thought to be retired. But a new, mysterious spacecraft has reignited rumors about the so-called "satellite killer."

The Washington Post explains that it was widely believed the collapse of the Soviet empire had grounded the killer. But this past May, the Russian "Roar" rocket was launched into space and deployed a satellite, Object 2014-28E, that remains a mystery to scientists across the globe.

Quote

(http://A mysterious Russian space object could be the return of the ‘satellite killer’ - The Washington Post [url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/11/18/a-mysterious-russian-space-object-revives-speculation-about-satellite-killer/?tid=hp_mm&hpid=z3]http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/11/18/a-mysterious-russian-space-object-revives-speculation-about-satellite-killer/?tid=hp_mm&hpid=z3[/url] …) Andrew S. Ginsburg   @GinsburgJobs 
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A mysterious Russian space object could be the return of the ‘satellite killer’ - The Washington Post http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/11/18/a-mysterious-russian-space-object-revives-speculation-about-satellite-killer/?tid=hp_mm&hpid=z3 (http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/11/18/a-mysterious-russian-space-object-revives-speculation-about-satellite-killer/?tid=hp_mm&hpid=z3) …

7:05 AM - 18 Nov 2014

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A mysterious Russian space object could be the return of the ‘satel... 
By Terrence McCoy @terrence_mccoy

It could be nothing. But it could be much more.
(https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/378800000252568100/7a366ac8d0f934b5318e721ba049e9b1_normal.png)Washington Post @washingtonpost

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The satellite may simply be debris, or "space junk," but it could also be "the latest chapter in the militarization of space," according to the Post. If a spacecraft is able to target satellites, they could interfere with cellphone and television services, impairing "a nation's abilities to conduct its military or shut down crucial global communication services."

However, experts also noted that the possibility of the spacecraft interfering with satellites "makes little sense," since hackers can interfere with satellites without leaving Earth. Robert Christy, a former member of the Kettering Group of astronomers, told the Post that the Russian satellite could theoretically destroy other satellites in orbit. While there's no proof yet that the satellite is connected to a future space war, there's also no indication about what it's actually doing.


http://theweek.com/article/index/272174/speedreads-this-unidentified-spacecraft-could-be-the-russian-militarys-satellite-killer (http://theweek.com/article/index/272174/speedreads-this-unidentified-spacecraft-could-be-the-russian-militarys-satellite-killer)

Title: Unusual Russian orbiter has stargazers wondering: Is it a satellite killer?
Post by: Buster's Uncle on November 18, 2014, 08:08:11 pm

Unusual Russian orbiter has stargazers wondering: Is it a satellite killer?
Object 2014-28E, a Russian satellite, has been scooting across the skies in an odd fashion – and stirring speculation that Russia has reignited its space-weapons program.
Christian Science Monitor
By Fred Weir  3 hours ago



Is it just a piece of space junk, or an orbital predator?

That is the question many amateur astronomers and, no doubt, military professionals are asking themselves as they track an odd space vehicle, known as Object 2014-28E, as it appears to maneuver among other satellites. Some suggest it could be the reincarnation of the top-secret Soviet-era "Istrebitel Sputnikov" satellite killer program, which was shelved when the USSR collapsed more than two decades ago.

The object, launched last May in a cluster with several other Russian satellites, was originally classified as space debris. But then it started moving around in ways uncharacteristic for inert trash, and it rang alarm bells last weekend when it appeared to rendezvous with a piece of the rocket that originally launched it.

There is no official comment from Moscow. Although the Russian media has lately been full of stories about a new generation of Russian satellites and ambitious plans to revive the once-mighty Soviet space program, there has been no mention of an undeclared, highly maneuverable satellite as part of Russia's currently operating space inventory.

Experts quoted by the Financial Times warn against rushing to judgment. Assuming the observations are accurate, the object could have several possible missions, including satellite repair and removing dangerous space junk from orbital corridors. But given the Russian secrecy surrounding its launch and orbital activities, they say, it could just as easily be a military project.

Most Russian space experts refuse to even discuss the claim that Object 2014-28E might be part of a renewed Russian "satellite killer" program. Some claim the reports are just part of a wave of "cold war hysteria" sweeping the West, including headlines about alleged Russian submarines lurking in Swedish waters, or alarmist reports about what the Russians describe as the renewal of routine Soviet-era military patrols in international airspace.

"I keep reading these stories about Russian troops invading Ukraine, invisible submarines, and now secret satellites. You should talk to a psychotherapist about this, not to me," says Andrei Klimov, deputy chair of the international affairs committee of the Federation Council, Russia's upper house of parliament.

Alexander Golts, a military expert with the online Yezhednevny Zhurnal, says that little is known about the Soviet Istrebitel Sputnikov project. Even today there are only rumors about a manned vehicle that had been developed to cruise the spaceways and destroy enemy satellites in the event of World War III.

He says he does not completely discount the speculations about Object 2014-28E, but adds that there are strong reasons to remain skeptical.

"For one thing, all Russian arms control policies are founded on strong objections to the militarization of space. We know we could not win, technologically, in a space arms race with the US. Hence our main goal is to prevent it through political and diplomatic means. Getting caught launching an actual satellite killer would upend decades of patient Russian diplomacy about this," he says.

Second, he adds, Russia's military space program is still far behind its targets.

"We have only two of the needed 10 early warning satellites in operation today. The very last thing we should want to do just now is trigger a space arms race."


http://news.yahoo.com/unusual-russian-orbiter-stargazers-wondering-satellite-killer-164608757.html (http://news.yahoo.com/unusual-russian-orbiter-stargazers-wondering-satellite-killer-164608757.html)

Title: Re: This unidentified spacecraft could be the Russian military's 'satellite killer'
Post by: Geo on November 18, 2014, 10:19:01 pm

Which reminds me: what was that USAF unmanned mini-space plane exactly doing in orbit for the better part of two years?

Title: Re: This unidentified spacecraft could be the Russian military's 'satellite killer'
Post by: Buster's Uncle on November 18, 2014, 10:21:02 pm

Killing Russian satellites.

Why do you ask?

Title: Re: This unidentified spacecraft could be the Russian military's 'satellite killer'
Post by: Geo on November 19, 2014, 04:28:12 pm

 ;lol

Why do you want to know?

Title: Re: This unidentified spacecraft could be the Russian military's 'satellite killer'
Post by: Buster's Uncle on November 19, 2014, 06:29:13 pm

Can you keep a secret?

Title: Re: This unidentified spacecraft could be the Russian military's 'satellite killer'
Post by: Geo on November 19, 2014, 08:34:24 pm

Do you?

Title: Re: This unidentified spacecraft could be the Russian military's 'satellite killer'
Post by: Buster's Uncle on November 19, 2014, 08:35:28 pm

So far.