Key Highlights:
- China’s space program is surpassing the United States two to one, creating an “extraordinary threat” that may make the country the main superpower.
- They can launch jammer and laser blinding assaults. They have a comprehensive set of cyber capabilities.
- To counter any future space threats, the Space Force is launching a swarm of lower-cost satellites.
China to become a space superpower by 2030
China’s space program is surpassing the United States two to one, creating an “extraordinary threat” that may make the country the main superpower in space by the end of the decade if the United States does not change its strategy, the deputy head of the United States Space Force said on Sunday.
Gen. David Thompson said that while the United States is “still the greatest in the world” in the new frontier, China is moving at an “amazing rate,” revealing that China is launching twice as many satellites as the United States.
“Our capabilities are the greatest in the world of space,” Thompson added, “but they’re advancing quickly.” “They’re moving swiftly, and we need to change our strategy.”
The general detailed how the Chinese are attacking the United States from space.
Advanced cyber capabilities
“[The Chinese] have assault robots in orbit,” Thompson explained. “They can launch jammer and laser blinding assaults. They have a comprehensive set of cyber capabilities.”
David Thompson also claimed that China performed an anti-satellite test in 2007, comparable to Russia’s destructive test last month, in which the Kremlin destroyed one of its own defunct satellites.
“This is an absolutely huge issue that we must handle now and in the future,” he added.
The Space Force, according to the general, was established to better comprehend these dangers and develop counter-tactics and procedures.
“It’s our responsibility in the Space Force to make sure that if they intend to attack us with anything like a space robot or whatever else, we have countermeasures, strategies, and tools to prevent that attack from succeeding,” Thompson added.
To counter any future space threats, the Space Force is launching a swarm of lower-cost satellites, each with lower individual capabilities that, when combined, equal the capabilities of earlier satellites that were individually expensive, complex, and launched in smaller groupings.
Thompson explained that the goal was to make it such that attempting to strike these satellites in orbit would have “no benefit.”
Meanwhile, Thompson stated that the US is attempting to encourage discussions with China and Russia on proper and safe space operations.
“There are ongoing discussions. They make proposals as well, as do we “He went on to say that recent conversations had not progressed very far.
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