The US says Russia has launched a space weapon into orbit
22 May 2024 10:24
Last week, Russia launched a satellite that US intelligence officials believe is a weapon capable of checking and attacking other satellites. This was reported by Reuters with reference to the US Space Command, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports
On 16 May, a Russian Soyuz rocket lifted off from the Plesetsk cosmodrome about 800 km north of Moscow. In low Earth orbit, the rocket deployed at least nine satellites, including COSMOS 2576, a type of Russian military “inspection” spacecraft, according to US officials. They condemned Russia’s move as a demonstration of reckless space behaviour.
The command claims that the Russian spacecraft is currently following an American spy satellite in orbit.
“We have observed nominal activity and estimate that this is likely a counter-space weapon capable of attacking other satellites in low Earth orbit. Russia has deployed this new weapon in the same orbit as a US government satellite,”
– a US space command spokesman said.
US intelligence agencies had been anticipating the launch of COSMOS 2576 and informed allies of their assessment of the satellite before it was deployed in space. The launch also included civilian satellites deployed in different orbits.
“This combination of military and civilian payloads was completely unexpected. We’ve never seen anything like it before in a Russian launch,”
– said Bart Hendricks, an analyst who follows Russia’s space programme.
COSMOS 2576 looks similar to satellites that Russia launched in 2019 and 2022, which the United States also called counter-space weapons. The 2019 satellite ejected an object into space and closely followed a satellite from the US National Reconnaissance Office (NRO).
As of Tuesday, COSMOS 2576 was not approaching the US satellite, but space analysts have noticed that it is in the same orbital ring as USA 314, a bus-sized NRO satellite launched in April 2021.
The Russian satellite appears to be catching up with USA 314, and they will eventually close in.
The satellite deployment comes as the US accuses Russia of developing space-based nuclear weapons capable of destroying entire satellite networks. The US believes that Russia has launched at least one satellite, COSMOS 2553, linked to its nuclear space weapons programme. However, US officials have stated that Russia has not placed nuclear weapons in space.
