Obama To Ban Terrifying Space Weapons, Space Shuttle, Astronauts

Potential War Criminal

In seeking an international ban on the "weaponization of space," President Obama's naive confidence in the power of half-baked words is on full display:

Enacting a global ban on space weapons could prove even harder.

For instance, it was difficult to define exactly what constituted a "weapon" because even seemingly harmless weather tracking satellites could be used to slam into and disable other satellites, said two U.S. officials involved in the area who were not authorized to speak publicly.

If the prospect of kamikaze Roker Death Stars is not diabolical enough, how about this frightening scenario described by General Kevin P. Chilton, US STRATCOM Commander:

Let’s say you build a craft capable of pulling alongside a satellite, extending a robotic arm, and plucking the satellite’s solar panels off, thereby disabling it. Would you consider that a space weapon?

A roaming orbital nightmare gleefully plucking the solar wings off innocent satellites like they're so many helpless insects?! Chilton continues:

Well, if so, that would mean the U.S. space shuttle is a space weapon.

Oh.

And what about the chilling specter of specially trained government agents firing unguided kill vehicles at unsuspecting targets?

Yes, that was an accident and I'm being silly. But there's no denying that after decades of spacewalking and orbital repair missions, NASA's astronauts indeed have the requisite EVA skills to be exceptional satellite saboteurs, aka space weapons.

So let's put aside President Obama's lazy wordsmithing for a moment and assume he's talking about this kind of sneaky orbital activity (h/t: Danger Room):

In a top secret operation, the U.S. Defense Dept. is conducting the first deep space inspection of a crippled U.S. military spacecraft. To do this, it is using sensors on two covert inspection satellites that have been prowling geosynchronous orbit for nearly three years.

Since the U.S. is now demonstrating the ability to do such up close rendezvous and inspection of American spacecraft in geosynchronous orbit, it means USAF now has at least a "call up capability" to do the same to non-U.S. spacecraft like those from Russia and China.

The operation, at nearly 25,000 miles altitude, reveals a major new U.S. military space capability, says John Pike who heads GlobalSecurity.Org, a military think tank.

"There is not much we do in space any more that is really new, but this is really new," Pike tells Spaceflightnow.com.

So very small (500 lbs.) and stealthy, the tiny pair of DARPA-funded MiTex inspection satellites are sure to perk up antennae in Beijing:

A U.S. Defense Dept. analyst speaking on deep background says although a visit to a non-U.S. satellite is doubtful, the demonstration will cause concern, especially among Chinese government military analysts in Beijing. He said they will see the capability as a new U.S. intelligence tool that could theoretically also enable a sneak anti-satellite attack in geosynchronous orbit.

Read the whole thing--- lots of intriguing details about the MiTex mission, including how they were dispatched as "first responders" from the other side of the planet to inspect the ailing defense satellite.

Which brings us to our perennial topic: missile defense. The crippled "ghost ship" the MiTex twins are examining? None other than the recently launched, 2.5 ton DSP 23 missile-warning satellite I reported on going dark last November.

So while Obama's dimly vague definition of "space weapons" happens to encompass Space Shuttles and their spacewalking crews, his ban would in reality prohibit a mission like MiTex's --- a mission to examine an indispensable space asset used to detect and defend against actual, currently-deployed "space weapons."

Which space weapons? These:

Regarding the development and fielding of space-based elements, Obama has stated he will not "weaponize" space, but the ballistic missiles he has pledged to counter are space weapons. Since they fly through space, it should not surprise him that the most effective and cost-effective defenses against them will be space-based. Missile defense needs to go to space because that is where the missiles are during their flights.

Ever since the very first ICBM rocketed out of the atmosphere, space has been weaponized. "Oh, McKittrick, you're picking nits --- they're talking about weapons in orbit!" Well, a nuclear-tipped ICBM --- the most devastating weapon man has ever frickin' invented --- indeed operates in space. It ejects its thermonuclear warheads and countermeasures, makes targeting adjustments and proceeds to its holocaust ... from space. And exactly like a Chinese ASAT missile or a dual-use Space Shuttle, all ICBMs originate from terra firma.

In conclusion, Obama really needs to be semantically nailed down on his term "space weapons" before his ban is seriously considered.

Just Words.

(h/t: Instapundit for the Reuters story)

Comments

[2Hotel9]

The simple fact that ice and rock, necessary items for any large scale orbital/extra orbital development, are considered "weapons" by certain Committees and Directors of Committees in the UN pretty much shuts down all development in space. Unless someone can step their projects out into non-Earth orbit. Oops, rock and ice are still considered weapons. My bad.

[Eric S.]

ICBMs are in orbit. Its just that the orbit intersects the earth's surface.

- Eric.