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137-550: Brilliant Pebbles is named as a play on "Smart Rocks," a concept promoted by Daniel O. Graham under the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI). Smart Rocks envisioned large orbital battle stations equipped with powerful sensors and carrying numerous small missiles. However, deploying at least 423 stations to maintain coverage over the Soviet Union was impractical due to limited space lift capabilities at

274-688: A show of force . ASATs have also been used to remove decommissioned satellites. ASAT roles include: defensive measures against an adversary's space-based and nuclear weapons, a force multiplier for a nuclear first strike , a countermeasure against an adversary's anti-ballistic missile defense (ABM), an asymmetric counter to a technologically superior adversary, and a counter-value weapon. Use of ASATs generates space debris , which can collide with other satellites and generate more space debris. A cascading multiplication of space debris could cause Earth to suffer from Kessler syndrome . The development and design of anti-satellite weapons has followed

411-406: A 46 m altitude in a 59-second flight. The second flight on September 11, 1993, tested ascent and landing mode control and ground effects survey, reaching 92 m in a 66-second flight. The third test flight on September 30, 1993, demonstrated 180-degree roll and provided aerostability data while reaching 370 m during 57 second flight. Unfortunately, this marked the last test of first series as the vehicle

548-523: A bare minimum of information. One observer derided the concept as being "one view-graph deep" and "unencumbered by practical engineering considerations or the laws of physics". In spite of this, Graham soon found a group of like-minded Republicans who formed a group known as the High Frontier Panel to help develop and support his idea. The group was led by Karl Bendetsen and began meeting in a room provided by The Heritage Foundation . Around

685-586: A clever play on the Smart Rocks name, calling the newer, smaller, smarter concept Brilliant Pebbles. In another clever turn of phrase, one skeptical congressman would later refer to them as "loose marbles". With Teller's help, Wood was able to brief Abrahamson on the concept in October 1987. Abrahamson was impressed enough to visit Livermore to view the mockups and watch the animated simulation they had created. This led to increased funding for further studies of

822-403: A concept that would be feasible. The two had breakfast with Gregory Canavan, a Los Alamos physicist who worked on SDI related topics. Canavan noted that ongoing improvements meant microprocessors were on the verge of delivering supercomputer performance on a single chip. These chips were powerful enough that the processing capacity that formerly required the battle stations, or even computers on

959-499: A conflict, thereby making the system less efficient compared to localized or regional missile defense systems. Pebbles replaced Rocks as the baseline SDI design and in 1991 it was ordered into production and became the "crowning achievement of the Strategic Defense Initiative". By this time the Soviet Union was collapsing and the perceived threat changed to shorter-range theatre ballistic missiles . Pebbles

1096-519: A defunct Chinese weather satellite, Fengyun-1C (FY-1C, COSPAR 1999-025A ). The destruction was reportedly carried out by an SC-19 ASAT missile with a kinetic kill warhead similar in concept to the American Exoatmospheric Kill Vehicle . FY-1C was a weather satellite orbiting Earth in polar orbit at an altitude of about 865 km (537 mi), with a mass of about 750 kg (1650 lb). Launched in 1999, it

1233-467: A deployment option for a system that was for all intents and purposes an updated version of Smart Rocks. Named "Strategic Defense System, Phase I", or SDS for short, the concept added a ground-based interceptor that would be located in the United States, along with a host of radars and high- and low-orbit sensor satellites, all netted together with a command and control system. They briefed Reagan on

1370-730: A factor of 10 as Wood's estimates required. George H. W. Bush became President in 1989, as the Cold War was coming to an end. He immediately ordered a review of all ongoing strategic programs. This led to the June 1989 National Security Directive 14, continuing the SDI program on the basis of the SDS. Meanwhile, Abrahamson's tenure at the helm of SDIO came to an end. He wrote an end-of-term report stating that Brilliant Pebbles should be aggressively pursued and that tests could be carried out within two years for

1507-451: A gaseous hydrogen explosion. The vehicle demonstrated its autoland capabilities after reaching an altitude of 790 meters during a 78-second flight. After repairs were made, the DC-X continued expansion of the flight envelope on May 16, 1995, demonstrating constant angle of attack after reaching an altitude of 1330 m during a 124-second flight. Graham was elated and continued to work closely with

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1644-517: A glossy book on the topic. It claimed that the system could be "fully deployed within five or six years at a minimum cost of some $ 10–$ 15 billion". A pre-publication copy was sent to the Air Force, who dismissed it, saying that it "had no technical merit and should be rejected". On 23 March 1983, Reagan gave his famous "Star Wars" speech that called on the scientists of the United States to build defenses that would render nuclear weapons obsolete. Over

1781-457: A modified F-15 Eagle that carried the missile directly under the central line of the plane. The F-15's guidance system was modified for the mission and provided new directional cuing through the pilot's head-up display , and allowed for mid-course updates via a data link . The first launch of the new anti-satellite missile took place in January 1984. The first, and only, successful interception

1918-521: A nuclear weapon, but useless for conventional warheads. A similar project carried out under 199A, Lockheed 's High Virgo , was initially another ALBM for the B-58 Hustler , likewise based on the Sergeant. It too was adapted for the anti-satellite role, and made an attempted intercept on Explorer 5 on 22 September 1959. However, shortly after launch communications with the missile were lost and

2055-500: A number of paths. The initial efforts by the United States and the Soviet Union used ground-launched missiles from the 1950s; many more exotic proposals came afterwards. In the late 1950s, the US Air Force started a series of advanced strategic missile projects under the designation Weapon System WS-199A. One of the projects studied under the 199A umbrella was Martin 's Bold Orion air-launched ballistic missile (ALBM) for

2192-410: A purpose-launched satellite would not be seen as irresponsible. The programme was sanctioned in 2017. On 27 March 2019, India successfully conducted an ASAT test called Mission Shakti . The interceptor was able to strike a test satellite at a 300-kilometre (186 mi) altitude in low earth orbit (LEO), thus successfully testing its ASAT missile. The interceptor was launched at around 05:40 UTC at

2329-560: A second on 28 April 1968. Further tests carried out against a special target spacecraft, the DS-P1-M, which recorded hits by the IS warhead's shrapnel.In November 1968, 4 years after Polyot 1 and 2 were tested for a potential Satellite intercept, Kosmos 248 was successfully destroyed by Kosmos 252 which came within the 5km 'kill radius' and destroyed Kosmos 248 by detonating it's warhead. A total of 23 launches have been identified as being part of

2466-600: A stop work on the program. This was part of significant budget rollbacks to the entire program, limiting the organization to work on a single kill-vehicle. Brilliant Pebbles was dead. In August 1994, the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization was reoriented to a single Boost Phase Interceptor program. Daniel O. Graham Daniel Orrin Graham (April 13, 1925 – December 31, 1995) was a United States Army officer who ultimately rose to

2603-449: A system could be scaled, he came up with a lower limit under 1 gram (0.035 oz). But if one considered armored ICBMs, a practical lower limit would be a burnout weight around 1.5 to 2.5 kilograms (3.3–5.5 lb), in order to have more than enough impact energy to destroy any conceivable fuselage. Considering the numbers required, it appeared a fleet would have on the order of 7,000 missiles in orbit, which would keep about 700 over

2740-488: A system deployment in five years at a total cost of $ 25 billion. Bush and Vice President Dan Quayle were vocal supporters of the Pebbles concept in the press; Quayle noted its low cost and light weight and stated that "it could revolutionize much of our thinking about strategic defense". Abrahamson's replacement, George L. Monahan, Jr. , planned a rapid series of studies with the goal of moving to approval for deployment by

2877-467: A system of crewed space fighters, but the idea was quickly dismissed. Next, he revived the 1960s Project BAMBI to be the basis of a new system he referred to as Smart Rocks. This concept used "battle stations" in low Earth orbit , each carrying several dozen small missiles similar to a conventional air-to-air missile. The platforms would carry advanced sensors to detect and track Soviet ICBMs as they launched, and then launch its missiles and guide them until

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3014-470: A weapon to destroy enemy satellites in orbit. On 10 February 2010, DRDO Director-General and Scientific Advisor to the Defence Minister, Dr. Vijay Kumar Saraswat stated that India had "all the building blocks necessary" to integrate an anti-satellite weapon to neutralize hostile satellites in low earth and polar orbits . In April 2012, DRDO's chairman V. K. Saraswat said that India possessed

3151-856: A week earlier, on 21 February 2008, the US Navy destroyed USA-193 in Operation Burnt Frost , using a ship-fired RIM-161 Standard Missile 3 about 247 km (153 mi) above the Pacific Ocean. That test produced 174 pieces of orbital debris large enough to detect that were cataloged by the US military. While most of the debris re-entered the Earth's atmosphere within a few months, a few pieces lasted slightly longer because they were thrown into higher orbits. The final piece of detectable USA-193 debris re-entered on 28 October 2009. According to

3288-629: A year in 1963 dollars (equivalent to $ 299 billion in 2023). Additionally, it was noted that there was no effective way to protect the stations against attacks by anti-satellite weapons (ASATs), and the Soviets could easily afford to launch one for each platform. Although twenty years had elapsed since BAMBI had first been studied and the concept had been re-examined several times, no obvious solution to these problems had presented itself. The Smart Rocks proposal, now known officially as Global Ballistic Missile Defense, ignored all of these problems, presenting

3425-496: A year, but most should burn up in the atmosphere within several weeks. Brian Weeden of Secure World Foundation agreed, but warned about the possibility of some fragments getting boosted to higher orbits. US Air Force Space Command said that it was tracking 270 pieces of debris from the test. Following the test, acting United States Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan warned about the risks of space debris caused by ASAT tests, but later added that he did not expect debris from

3562-412: Is a deterrent and is not directed against any nation. In a statement released after the test, Indian Ministry of External Affairs said that the test was conducted at low altitude to ensure that the resulting debris would "decay and fall back onto the Earth within weeks". According to Jonathan McDowell , an astrophysicist at Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics , some debris might persist for

3699-502: Is an anti-ballistic missile, currently in service. It provides exo-atmospheric interception of ballistic missiles. It is also believed (by experts such as Prof. Yitzhak Ben Yisrael, chairman of the Israel Space Agency ), that it will operate as an ASAT. While it has been suggested that a country intercepting the satellites of another country in the event of a conflict could seriously hinder the latter's military operations,

3836-430: Is considered by most to be the actual originator of the Strategic Defense Initiative concept. The plan as put forward by Reagan also included an emphasis on directed energy technologies such as lasers and particle beams, in addition to the cheaper, "off the shelf" kinetic energy technologies promoted by Graham and High Frontier. The Strategic Defense Initiative Organization was renamed by President Bill Clinton to

3973-629: Is reported to be restarting development in 2012. Three more launches were reportedly held in December 2016, on 26 March 2018, and on 23 December 2018—the latter two from a TEL. A new type of ASAT missile was seen carried by a MiG-31 in September 2018. On 15 April 2020, US officials said Russia conducted a direct ascent anti-satellite missile test that could take out spacecraft or satellites in low Earth orbit . A new test launch took place on 16 December 2020. In November 2021, Kosmos 1408

4110-425: Is responsible for this program, running around town with [a mockup] ... on a little cart." There were concerns about the changing estimates through this period; cost estimates for the pebbles were initially $ 100,000, but by the end of 1988 this had already risen to $ 500,000 to $ 1.5 million. Additionally, the sensor alone cost several million dollars and there was scepticism about whether this could be scaled down by

4247-649: The 12th Five Year Plan , drawing all the various parts of the project together under the control of GUKOS and matching the US proposed deployment date of 2000. Ultimately, the Soviet Union approached the point of experimental implementation of orbital laser platforms with the (failed) launch of Polyus . Both countries began to reduce expenditure from 1989 and the Russian Federation unilaterally discontinued all SDI research in 1992. Research and Development (both of ASAT systems and other space based/deployed weapons) has, however, reported to have been resumed under

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4384-501: The Almaz space stations with Rikhter R-23 aircraft auto-cannons. Another Soviet design was the 11F19DM Skif-DM/Polyus , an orbital megawatt laser that failed on launch in 1987. In 1987, Mikhail Gorbachev visited Baikonur Cosmodrome and was shown an anti-satellite system called "Naryad" (Sentry), also known as 14F11, launched by UR-100N rockets. The era of the Strategic Defense Initiative (proposed in 1983) focused primarily on

4521-523: The B-47 Stratojet , based on the rocket motor from the Sergeant missile . Twelve test launches were carried out between 26 May 1958 and 13 October 1959, but these were generally unsuccessful and further work as an ALBM ended. The system was then modified with the addition of an Altair upper stage to create an anti-satellite weapon with a 1770-kilometre (1100 mi) range. Only one test flight of

4658-578: The DC-X for Delta Clipper Experimental. The name honored the firm's successful Thor / Delta rocket and recalled the famous 19th-century commercial clipper ships . The McDonnell Douglas SSTO team saw the Delta Clipper as opening the "space trade routes in the same way that the Yankee Clipper ships opened the sea trade routes." The needs of the commercial launch industry thus were integral to

4795-709: The IS test series. The system was declared operational in February 1973. Testing resumed in 1976 as a result of the US work on the Space Shuttle . Elements within the Soviet space industry convinced Leonid Brezhnev that the Shuttle was a single-orbit weapon that would be launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base , manoeuvre to avoid existing anti-ballistic missile sites, bomb Moscow in a first strike, and then land. Although

4932-785: The United States Military Academy at West Point and earned a B.S. degree in 1946. He also graduated from the Army Command and General Staff College in 1959 and the Army War College in 1967. From 1963 to 1966, Graham worked for the CIA in the Office of National Estimates. During the Vietnam War from 1967 to 1968 he was chief of the army's military intelligence estimates. Graham served again in

5069-668: The 1960s. During the Hardtack Teak test in 1958 observers noted the damaging effects of the electromagnetic pulse (EMP) caused by the explosions on electronic equipment, and during the Starfish Prime test in 1962 the EMP from a 1.4-megaton-of-TNT (5.9 PJ) warhead detonated over the Pacific damaged three satellites and also disrupted power transmission and communications across the Pacific. Further testing of weapons effects

5206-604: The Ballistic Missile Defense Organization on May 13, 1993, and continues today. He was also a member of the American Freedom Coalition and was vice chairman of the U.S. Council for World Freedom, and served on the advisory board of a Unification Church sponsored anticommunist association, CAUSA- USA . General Graham was also an unsuccessful Republican candidate for the Arlington County, Virginia, Board of Supervisors after his retirement from

5343-532: The Coalition for the Strategic Defense Initiative, and in 1978 became co-chairman of the Coalition for Peace through Strength. After he retired from the army, Graham's goal was to promote a defense against nuclear weapons. The father of seven, said he felt it was unconscionable to fail to protect the American public against nuclear attack. Also, as a student of military history, he was keenly aware that no weapon

5480-625: The DC-XA had been renamed the "Clipper Graham." The next day, June 8, 1996, to demonstrate the quick-turnaround capability of the rocket, the Clipper Graham soared into the skies over the old White Sands Missile Range to a height of 3,120 meters (10,240 feet) and stayed in the air for over two minutes before landing. That flight was the highest and longest the vehicle had ever flown until then. Robert A. Heinlein dedicated his 1985 novel The Cat Who Walks Through Walls to Graham and eight of

5617-785: The Experimental Spacecraft System ( USA-165 ), the Near Field Infrared Experiment (NFIRE), and the space-based interceptor (SBI). After the collapse of the Soviet Union , the MiG-31D project was put on hold due to reduced defence expenditures. However, in August 2009, Alexander Zelin announced that the Russian Air Force had resumed this program. The Sokol Eshelon is a prototype laser system based on an A-60 airplane which

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5754-611: The IS. The Polyot 1 and 2, launched on 1 November 1963 and 12 April 1964 respectively, carried out one such intercept test in early 1964. Later in the year Khrushchev cancelled the UR-200 in favour of the R-36, forcing the IS to switch to this launcher, whose space launcher version was developed as the Tsyklon-2 . Delays in that program led to the introduction of a simpler version, the 2A, which launched its first IS test on 27 October 1967, and

5891-569: The Indian test to last. The United States Department of State acknowledged Ministry of External Affairs ' statement on space debris and reiterated its intention to pursue shared interests in space including on space security with India. Russia acknowledged India's statement on the test not being targeted against any nation and invited India to join the Russian–Chinese proposal for a treaty against weaponisation of space . The Arrow 3 or Hetz 3

6028-612: The Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur, Odisha and hit its target Microsat-R after 168 seconds. The operation was named Mission Shakti . The missile system was developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)—a research wing of the Indian defence services. With this test, India became the fourth nation with anti-satellite missile capabilities. India stated that this capability

6165-650: The Missile Defense Act, and maintained its place as the primary weapon within the GPALS system. With funding secured, in June 1991 the SDIO sent out development contracts for Brilliant Pebbles and Brilliant Eyes to Martin Marietta and TRW . Brilliant Eyes was a low-orbit detection platform to aid Pebbles and the ground-based missiles. Additional contracts for the ground-based missiles and interceptors went out at

6302-492: The NCA to have the battle group withdraw or stand down, but ASATs could only achieve the opposite. Moreover, even if somehow a communications satellite were hit, a battle group could still perform its missions in the absence of direct guidance from the NCA. On November 1, 2022, a UN working group adopted for the first time a resolution calling on countries to ban destructive anti-satellite missile tests. Although not legally binding,

6439-824: The Naval Telecommunications System (NTS) used by the US Navy uses three elements: tactical communications among a battle group; long-haul communications between shore-based forward Naval Communications Stations (NAVCOMSTAs) and deployed afloat units; and strategic communication connecting NAVCOMSTAs with National Command Authorities (NCA). The first two elements use line-of-sight (25–30 km (13–16 nmi; 16–19 mi)) and extended line-of-sight (300–500 km (160–270 nmi; 190–310 mi)) radios respectively, so only strategic communications are dependent on satellites. China would prefer to cut off deployed units from each other and then negotiate with

6576-530: The Navy's Standard Missile . As work continued, the Gulf War broke out and Cooper's scenario of United States troops being attacked by short range missiles came true; the nightly news carried vivid images of Scud missiles being attacked by Patriot missiles . Bush praised Patriot, claiming that 42 launches had resulted in 41 intercepts. Congress, formerly skeptical of SDI, suddenly had a very different opinion of

6713-587: The Office of National Estimates during 1968–1971, then served as director of collections for the Defense Intelligence Agency in 1971. During 1973–1974 Graham served as deputy director of the CIA under Director William Colby and from 1974 to 1976 he was the director of the DIA. Ronald Reagan called upon General Graham to be his military advisor for his 1976 and 1980 campaigns. General Graham promoted

6850-687: The Pebbles system. On 2 February 1993, he issued budget guidance lowering its budget from $ 100 million to $ 75 million, and moving it to the "follow on technology" category. In March 1993, it was renamed the Advanced Interceptor Technology Program. On 1 May 1993, the SDIO became the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO), reflecting the administration's shift towards the theatre ballistic missile problem. On 1 December 1993, James D. Carlson, its acting deputy director, ordered

6987-532: The SDS concept were coming, and had been told to prepare a report for them for early 1990. The new system relied on Brilliant Pebbles as the baseline design. BSTS was not cancelled outright, but instead passed to the Air Force as a replacement for their existing Defense Support Program satellites. Other parts of the original design, including the land-based ERIS missile and its host of supporting radars and low-orbit satellites, remained. Early contract tenders were sent to six suppliers for production vehicles. Testing

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7124-471: The SDS concept with simplified "gun rack" garages versus a Pebbles system, which concluded the former would cost $ 69 billion and the latter $ 55 billion. This system included only 4,600 pebbles, and some of the savings were due to the removal of the high-orbit Boost Surveillance and Tracking System (BSTS), a role the pebbles themselves would fill. Monahan had already given the DAB a "heads up" that major changes to

7261-413: The SDS system should move ahead, he suggested that the system be modified to provide defenses against these new threats. Cooper noted that pebbles in their current form were designed to operate against a missile in the boost phase. Against a short-range rocket, this period would be too short for a pebble to reach it. To make it effective in this "Protection Against Limited missile Strikes" concept, or PALS,

7398-463: The Soviet Union at any given time. The ratio of the total number of missiles in orbit to those available for action was known as the absentee ratio . If one wanted complete coverage against any potential attack, the numbers could reach as high as 100,000 missiles in total. Since the cost of each missile was expected to scale down into the $ 100,000 range, even the fully expanded system would cost $ 10 billion. Launch costs were not part of that estimate. If

7535-415: The Soviet military was aware these claims were false, Brezhnev believed them and ordered a resumption of IS testing along with a Shuttle of their own. As part of this work the IS system was expanded to allow attacks at higher altitudes and was declared operational in this new arrangement on 1 July 1979. However, in 1983, Yuri Andropov ended all IS testing and all attempts to resume it failed. Ironically, it

7672-470: The Treaty, meaning it could have a maximum of 100 ground-based interceptors and they had to be in the vicinity of Grand Forks Air Force Base . It was specifically stated that Brilliant Pebbles would not be part of this initial system. Although there was some concern about the Missile Defense Act, many considered it to be the best deal that could be made. Cooper essentially ignored the anti-Pebbles sentiment of

7809-399: The US government, the primary reason for destroying the satellite was the approximately 450 kg (1000 lb) of toxic hydrazine fuel contained on board, which could pose health risks to persons in the immediate vicinity of the crash site should any significant amount survive the re-entry. On 20 February 2008, it was announced that the launch was carried out successfully and an explosion

7946-653: The US project had evolved into an extended four-stage development. The initial stage would consist of the Brilliant Pebbles defense system, a satellite constellation of 4,600 kinetic interceptors (KE ASAT) of 45 kg (100 lb) each in Low Earth orbit and their associated tracking systems. The next stage would deploy the larger platforms and the following phases would include the laser and charged particle beam weapons that would be developed by that time from existing projects such as MIRACL . The first stage

8083-422: The United States, a ground- and sea-based system to defend overseas United States forces and allies, Brilliant Pebbles in space, and a command and control system tying them all together. Brilliant Pebbles was seen as both a system for providing early detection of launches, as well as being able to attack any missile with a range greater than 600 kilometers (370 mi). With the deployable system finally specified,

8220-419: The United States, to our forces overseas, and to our friends and allies. This change in posture meant the system no longer had to deal with a large-scale attack, only small ones. Once again the number of pebbles was reduced, this time to between 750 and 1,000. The new GPALS concept was fully described in a May 1991 report published by the SDIO. It consisted of four parts: a ground-based missile system to protect

8357-552: The age of 70. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors. Anti-satellite weapon Anti-satellite weapons ( ASAT ) are space weapons designed to incapacitate or destroy satellites for strategic or tactical purposes. Although no ASAT system has yet been utilized in warfare , a few countries ( China , India , Russia , and the United States ) have successfully shot down their own satellites to demonstrate their ASAT capabilities in

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8494-431: The alternatives. Cooper's report went much further. Considering the major changes to the strategic outlook with the ongoing dissolution of the Soviet Union, Cooper stated that the massive attack that SDS was designed to defeat was no longer the only concern, or even the main one. Instead, it was United States forces in the field that bore the brunt of the missile threat, this time from short and medium range missiles. Although

8631-414: The answer was "launch our own missiles". Whatever the source, Reagan was convinced that mutual assured destruction (MAD) was ridiculous, dismissing it as the international equivalent of a suicide pact. Reagan asked Daniel O. Graham , his military advisor during the 1980 presidential campaign and former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency , to look for possible solutions. At first, Graham proposed

8768-519: The anti-satellite mission was carried out, making a mock attack on the Explorer 6 at an altitude of 251 km (156 mi). To record its flight path, the Bold Orion transmitted telemetry to the ground, ejected flares to aid visual tracking, and was continuously tracked by radar. The missile successfully passed within 6.4 km (4 mi) of the satellite, which would be suitable for use with

8905-438: The autonomous pebbles are kept in continuous low Earth orbit near the edge of the atmosphere. This low-altitude placement makes them susceptible to anti-satellite attacks . However, it also reduces the risk of contributing to Kessler Syndrome and space debris , as pebbles decay automatically due to atmospheric drag, re-enter the atmosphere, and are regularly replaced—a form of planned obsolescence . Because of their low orbit,

9042-402: The baseline system that required hundreds of battle stations, each of which weighed 30 short tons (27 t) and could only be launched one at a time. Starting the next year, Wood had the former Excalibur team begin a more detailed study. By the fall of 1987, he had blueprints of the proposed design, a physical model to show, and computer simulations of the system in action. He also came up with

9179-549: The booster broke up shortly after liftoff. The final language for the 1992 version of the bill contained Nunn's language on the focus towards the Limited Defense System. It firmed up language that stated that the deployed system would have to be fully compliant with the ABM Treaty, and reduced funding for the space-based portions from $ 465 million in the 1991 version to $ 300 million. Further, the wording that

9316-547: The camera packs could not be recovered to see if the test was successful. In any event, work on the WS-199 projects ended with the start of the GAM-87 Skybolt project. Simultaneous US Navy projects were also abandoned although smaller projects did continue until the early 1970s. The use of high-altitude nuclear explosions to destroy satellites was considered after the tests of the first conventional missile systems in

9453-549: The concept in 1956 at his OKB-1 , while others attribute the work to Vladimir Chelomei 's OKB-52 around 1959. What is certain is that at the beginning of April 1960, Nikita Khrushchev held a meeting at his summer residence in Crimea, discussing an array of defence industry issues. Here, Chelomei outlined his rocket and spacecraft program, and received a go-ahead to start development of the UR-200 rocket, one of its many roles being

9590-409: The concept of SDI to President Reagan and is considered to be the father of SDI. General Graham is a member of the Military Intelligence Hall of Fame . In later years, Graham devoted a lot of time to the research and development of Single-Stage To Orbit (SSTO) spacecraft in conjunction with NASA . McDonnell Douglas was awarded a contract to build an SSTO test vehicle on August 16, 1991, and named it

9727-428: The concept on 17 December 1986, and by mid-1987 had a proposal ready for review by the Defense Acquisition Board (DAB). The system immediately faced withering criticism. As before, the newly christened "garage satellites" would be open to attack by anti-satellite weapons; a single ASAT attacking the station or its sensors could disable all of the interceptor missiles within. Although this concern had been raised before,

9864-458: The concept was well known in spite of any official indifference. This led to a constant stream of questions by politicians to the SDIO about the system and why they were not working on it. In 1985, Sam Nunn asked James A. Abrahamson , director of the SDIO, about it once again. Abrahamson stated that "he would not recommend that the United States proceed to deploy it". By 1986, many of the systems being studied had run into difficulties. Among these

10001-481: The concept. In March 1988, Teller and Wood were able to directly brief President Reagan on the concept, taking the model pebble with them and theatrically hiding it under a black cloth when reporters were allowed to take pictures. Teller reiterated that the price for the system would be on the order of $ 10 billion. In May 1988, Abrahamson initiated the Space Based Element Study in order to refine

10138-419: The critical technologies for an ASAT weapon from radars and interceptors developed for Indian Ballistic Missile Defence Programme . In July 2012, Ajay Lele, an Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses fellow, wrote that an ASAT test would bolster India's position if an international regime to control the proliferation of ASATs similar to NPT were to be established. He suggested that a low-orbit test against

10275-499: The design of SDS's Space Based Interceptor (SBI). As part of this study, he had Livermore's work considered as one of the interceptor concepts. This study agreed with the basic concept that all the required sensors could be placed on the missile. While this was going on, the United States Air Force Space Division began a similar study on the baseline Space Based Interceptor. They also concluded that

10412-484: The development of systems to defend against nuclear warheads, however, some of the technologies developed may be useful also for anti-satellite use. The Strategic Defense Initiative gave the US and Soviet ASAT programs a major boost; ASAT projects were adapted for ABM use and the reverse was also true. The initial US plan was to use the already-developed MHV as the basis for a space based constellation of about 40 platforms deploying up to 1,500 kinetic interceptors. By 1988

10549-548: The director of the SDIO on 10 July 1990, and Monahan retired. Within SDIO at least, PALS was now the mainline concept. In order to fill the need for a ground-based interceptor to back up the pebbles, the Army began development of the High Endoatmospheric Defense Interceptor (HEDI), essentially a short-range, mobile version of ERIS. A new lightweight interceptor, LEAP , would arm both ERIS and

10686-504: The early phases of SDI, the Smart Rocks concept was ignored by the SDIO. A study by research scientist Ashton Carter (to become Secretary of Defense much later) concluded that the system had "extremely limited capability for boost phase intercept of present Soviet ICBMs and no capability against future MX-like Soviet boosters, even with no Soviet effort to overcome the defense". Graham's connections in Washington's political circles meant

10823-410: The ease of shooting down orbiting satellites has been questioned. Although satellites have been successfully intercepted at low orbiting altitudes, the tracking of military satellites for a length of time could be complicated by defensive measures like inclination changes. Depending on the level of tracking capabilities, the interceptor would have to pre-determine the point of impact while compensating for

10960-578: The empty weight was on the order of a few kilograms, then a single Space Shuttle could launch dozens, perhaps hundreds. They were so light that some consideration was given to launching them from the ground using a railgun . Such lightweight designs would have a limited "cone of action", carrying so little rocket propellant that they could only attack targets right in front of them. A larger interceptor with more propellant could attack more targets, so smaller numbers would be needed to provide coverage. In any event, launch costs would be greatly reduced compared to

11097-527: The end of the year. Among the first of these studies was one prepared by the JASONs , a standing committee of science advisers administered by Mitre Corporation . Their report essentially stated that there were no apparent "show stopper" issues in the concept, although they did have concerns about possible countermeasures. Soon after, a similar report by the Defense Science Board offered largely

11234-595: The energy could be greatly increased by using a metal rod instead. The idea had been largely theoretical until a key test of the new concept in November 1980. By surrounding a nuclear warhead with dozens of rods, each could be independently aimed to shoot down an enemy missile. A single such warhead might be able to destroy 50 missiles in a radius of a 1,000 kilometers (620 mi) around it. A small fleet of such warheads could seriously disrupt any Soviet attack. In February 1981, Teller and Wood traveled to Washington to pitch

11371-589: The event a Soviet anti-satellite weapon approached, it could either blow itself up to attack the ASAT, or allow itself to be blown up by the ASAT. In either case, the Excalibur would be destroyed. Teller soon returned with a solution. In this concept, the Excalibur weapons would be placed on missiles on submarines and launched when needed. Seeing himself increasingly sidelined, Graham left the group in December 1981 to form High Frontier Inc. In March 1982, they published

11508-401: The government of Vladimir Putin as a counter to renewed US Strategic Defense efforts post Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty . However, the status of these efforts, or indeed how they are being funded through National Reconnaissance Office projects of record, remains unclear. The US has begun working on a number of programs which could be foundational for a space-based ASAT. These programs include

11645-554: The ground before being able to launch in rapid succession. The constellation of 30 GPS satellites provides redundancy where at least four satellites can be received in six orbital planes at any one time, so an attacker would need to disable at least six satellites to disrupt the network. However, even if the attack is successful, signal degradation only lasts for 95 minutes and backup inertial navigation systems (INS) would still be available for relatively accurate movement as well as laser guidance for weapons targeting. For communications,

11782-482: The ground, could now fit in the missiles themselves. Additionally, new sensors offered the optical resolution needed to track a missile at long range and still fit within a missile nose cone. Such a design offered an enormous advantage over the SDS; by flying freely, without a garage satellite, the interceptors could not be attacked en masse . If the Soviets wished to attack the system, they would have to launch an anti-satellite weapon for every one. Wood began exploring

11919-467: The idea of a Manhattan Project -level development effort to produce these weapons in what they called Project Excalibur . Teller was also a member of the High Frontier group and began attacking Graham's Smart Rocks as "outlandish", and suggested his own Excalibur be used in its place. Graham countered by pointing out a serious flaw in Excalibur; he noted that it worked by blowing itself up, so in

12056-474: The idea using back-of-the-envelope calculations. Wood's "O-group" had been working for some time on new computing systems in their S-1 project that aimed to produce a "supercomputer on a wafer". He combined this with a new sensor system known as "Popeye". At the speeds the interceptors and ICBMs would be approaching each other, the mass of the projectile had six times the energy of an equal weight of TNT , meaning no warhead would be needed. Considering how small such

12193-405: The implied threat to the program, Cooper soon moved $ 2 billion out of Pebbles into the ground-based systems. Nunn reiterated his attack on Pebbles in August, at which point Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney stepped in and threatened that if the attacks continued that the president might veto the entire bill. His position was undermined by the failure of the third Pebbles test on 22 October 1992, when

12330-490: The launch site. Once the satellite is detected, the missile is launched into orbit close to the targeted satellite. It takes 90 to 200 minutes (or one to two orbits) for the missile interceptor to get close enough to its target. The missile is guided by an on-board radar. The interceptor, which weighs 1400 kg (3086 lb), may be effective up to one kilometre from a target. Delays in the UR-200 missile program prompted Chelomei to request R-7 rockets for prototype testing of

12467-526: The launcher for his anti-satellite project. The decision to start work on the weapon, as part of the Istrebitel Sputnikov (IS) (lit. "destroyer of satellites") program, was made in March 1961. The IS system was "co-orbital", approaching its target over time and then exploding a shrapnel warhead close enough to kill it. The missile was launched when a target satellite's ground track rises above

12604-507: The lengthy report stated in no uncertain terms that none of the concepts were remotely ready for use. In every case, performance had to be improved at least a hundred times, and for some of the concepts, as much as a million times. It concluded that at least another decade of work was required before they would even know if any of the systems could ever reach the necessary performance. In a sudden reversal, in late 1986 Abrahamson and Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger agreed to proceed with

12741-657: The matter, especially with the realignment of the concept towards the PALS concept which would have been helping deal with missiles like Scud. On 29 January 1991, Bush used the State of the Union speech to announce that SDI was being refocussed to the new "Global PALS", or GPALS, concept: I have directed that the SDI program be refocused on providing protection from limited ballistic missile strikes – whatever their source. Let us pursue an SDI program that can deal with any future threat to

12878-611: The meeting. He noted that the complaints that SDIO was not being provided with the required funding was largely their problem, because Cooper was directing too much funding towards Pebbles, which would not be ready by 1996. He stated: So, it is my assertion, Mr. Ambassador – which you can rebut – that what you've done by a combination of funding, and the reduction in GSTS, is, you made sure that Grand Forks would not be effective if we did it during this decade. Therefore, you made it almost impossible for it to happen during this decade. I don't know

13015-510: The military "As you know, Dan, you and I were talking about missile defense before you set up High Frontier in September of '81...You and a small group of dedicated, determined people helped us move the SDI concept over all the roadblocks put up by people of less vision and belief in American capacity. God bless you!"—President Ronald Reagan, March 1993 Graham died of cancer at his home in Arlington, Virginia on Sunday, December 31, 1995, at

13152-498: The missile's own infrared sensors picked up the ICBM. As the ICBM rocket engine was extremely bright in infrared, even a very simple interceptor missile could successfully track them. As the interceptors were relatively small and carried a limited amount of rocket fuel, they could only attack ICBMs within a limited range of the stations. This meant the stations had to be in low orbit, to keep them close to their targets. At these altitudes,

13289-403: The motive for that, but that's what it looks like to me. In defending his priorities, Cooper stated that the budget for these items was actually within the guidelines laid out the year before, about 11% for Pebbles and 14% for the other components of the space-based portion. He went on to suggest that the 1996 date was unrealistic and that setting priorities to make it happen would not help. Seeing

13426-522: The next step was to go to Congress for funding. This led to the Missile Defense Act of 1991. From one perspective, the Missile Defense Act was a victory for SDI as it considered making changes to the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty that would allow deployment, and ordered "robust funding" for Brilliant Pebbles. But it also stated that the immediate goal was to produce a Limited Defense System by 1996 what would be fully compliant with

13563-595: The next year this was formalized as the Strategic Defense Initiative Office (SDIO) as a separate branch under the Department of Defense , and soon, many of the United States weapons laboratories and major defense contractors were exploring a variety of systems to meet this goal. Along with Excalibur and the space-based laser, new proposals included ground-based lasers, various particle-beam weapons and nuclear shaped charges . Through

13700-573: The origins of Ronald Reagan 's Strategic Defense Initiative . According to one often repeated tale, it was Reagan's viewing of Alfred Hitchcock 's Torn Curtain that did it. Edward Teller instead pointed to a talk he gave on the topic of BMD in 1967 that Reagan attended. Others point to Reagan's visit to the Cheyenne Mountain Complex in 1979; there he saw the systems that could detect a Soviet launch and then track their warheads. When he asked what they could do in that situation,

13837-643: The other members of the Citizens' Advisory Council on National Space Policy . According to the account of several eyewitnesses in the CBS Report "Uncounted Enemy", Graham deliberately manipulated enemy strength estimate figures in order to please his superiors. Several high ranking intelligence officers in MACV and in the CIA came to the conclusion in 1967 that the Vietcong and PAVN army were far larger than what

13974-416: The pebbles must travel at high velocities to maintain altitude, which prevents them from remaining fixed over a single location. Consequently, a constellation of many thousands of pebble satellites evenly distributed around the Earth is necessary to ensure sufficient coverage, making it inherently a global system. Critics contend that this global distribution renders the majority of satellites ineffective during

14111-495: The pebbles should be able to continue tracking the missiles after their motors had burned out. This would either require a dramatic increase in the capability of the pebble's seekers, or require a network of low-orbit satellites to provide this same information. Following Cooper's lead, Monahan began the Mid-and-Terminal Tiers Review (MATTR) in early 1990. Before this was complete, Cooper was appointed as

14248-570: The potential to be used as an ASAT weapon, the Dong Neng-3, with state media reporting that the test was purely defensive and it achieved its desired objectives. In a televised press briefing during the 97th Indian Science Congress held in Thiruvananthapuram, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Director General Rupesh announced that India was developing the necessary technology that could be combined to produce

14385-435: The program was cancelled in 1988. USA-193 was an American reconnaissance satellite , which was launched on 14 December 2006 by a Delta II rocket, from Vandenberg Air Force Base . It was reported about a month after launch that the satellite had failed. In January 2008, it was noted that the satellite was decaying from orbit at a rate of 500 m (1640 ft) per day. After publicly announcing its intention to do so

14522-399: The program. Graham would not live to see the full glory of the DC-X program. He died in December 1995. On Friday, June 7, 1996, at White Sands, New Mexico , the second series vehicle designated DC-XA was successfully launched. It flew to a height of 485 meters (1,591 feet) and then moved horizontally 105 meters (344 feet) before safely landing. After that flight, NASA officials announced that

14659-408: The proponents still had no answer to this problem. But now the system added more critical elements, especially the high-orbit sensor satellites which not only had to survive, but had to be able to transmit their information at high speed to the interceptors. Disrupting any one of these many systems could render the system useless. The $ 40 billion (equivalent to $ 90 billion in 2023) budget estimate

14796-829: The rank of lieutenant general . Graham served in Germany, Korea, and Vietnam and received several decorations including some of the highest the United States military bestows: the Distinguished Service Medal , the Legion of Merit with two oak leaf clusters, and the Distinguished Intelligence Medal during his distinguished 30-year military career. Graham was born in Portland , Oregon and grew up in Medford . He attended college at

14933-479: The same SC-19 system was also tested in 2005, 2006, 2010, and 2013. In January 2007 China demonstrated a satellite knock out whose detonation alone caused more than 40,000 new chunks of debris with a diameter larger than one centimeter and a sudden increase in the total amount of debris in orbit. In May 2013, the Chinese government announced the launch of a suborbital rocket carrying a scientific payload to study

15070-401: The same assessment. A third review focussing on possible Soviet countermeasures did find that the system was possibly compromised by a number of issues, but pointed out that this was true for any other space-based system and these should not be the basis for selecting some other system over SDS. The final study, carried out late in 1989, was an Air Force report making one last comparison between

15207-449: The same time that Graham was formulating his Smart Rocks concept, studies into X-ray lasers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL or Livermore) made an apparent breakthrough. Nuclear explosions give off massive amounts of X-ray energy, and it appeared possible these could be focused down into narrow beams as the basis for a long-range laser weapon. Previous systems had used carbon-based lasing materials, but calculations showed that

15344-724: The same time. This marked the first time since the Safeguard program of the 1960s that a production of a ballistic missile defense system was funded, and the first for SDI. On 9 April 1992, Cooper testified before the Subcommittee on Strategic Forces of the Senate Armed Services Committee, where he was questioned by Democrats in the group. Sam Nunn , chairman of the Armed Services Committee, arrived late and then essentially took over

15481-433: The satellite's lateral movement and the time for the interceptor to climb and move. US intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) satellites orbit at about 800 km (500 mi) high and move at 7.5 km/s (4.7 mi/s), so if conflict was to break out between the United States and China, a Chinese Intermediate-range ballistic missile would need to compensate for 1350 km (840 mi) of movement in

15618-407: The sensors could be on the missiles, greatly simplifying the stations. For the next year, Wood and Teller ceaselessly advocated for Pebbles, to the point of it becoming something of a joke in Washington. During a briefing for reporters and congressional staff members, Charles Infosino, deputy director of the SDI architecture and analysis office, was quoted as saying "You may have seen Lowell Wood, who

15755-489: The stations moved at speeds around 17,000 miles per hour (27,000 km/h) compared to the surface of the Earth. At that rate, any given station would spend only a few minutes over the Soviet Union. To ensure there were enough stations in the right locations at any given time, hundreds of stations were needed. The Air Force noted that there was nowhere near enough launch capacity to build such a system, and even if it could be launched, maintaining it would cost at least $ 30 billion

15892-545: The system should be deployed as rapidly as possible was dropped. In November 1992, SDIO was forced to remove Pebbles from the deployment contracts, sending it back to a research program. On 18 December 1992, program management was transferred to the Air Force's Space and Missile Systems Center , and the January 1993 contracts were for "advanced technology demonstration" as opposed to a pre-production system. Shortly after Bill Clinton became President in 1993, his new Secretary of Defense, Les Aspin , immediately began downgrading

16029-479: The thinking of the McDonnell Douglas DC-X team. General Graham envisioned the DC-X as the perfect inexpensive launch and delivery vehicle for his proposed Brilliant Pebbles space-based ballistic missile defense shield. The first test launch of the DC-X was on August 18, 1993. The test flight verified flight control systems and vertical landing capabilities and was deemed a success after reaching

16166-716: The three minutes it takes to boost to that altitude. However, even if the ISR satellite is knocked out, the US possesses an extensive array of crewed and uncrewed ISR aircraft that could perform missions at standoff ranges from Chinese land-based air defences. Global Positioning System and communications satellites orbit at higher altitudes of 20 000  km ( 12 000  mi) and 36 000  km ( 22 000  mi) respectively, and this puts them out of range of solid-fuelled intercontinental ballistic missiles . Liquid-fuelled space launch vehicles could reach those altitudes, but they are more time-consuming to launch and could be attacked on

16303-656: The time. Edward Teller dismissed the idea as "outlandish" and vulnerable to anti-satellite attacks , a sentiment shared by the SDI Office (SDIO). But after their own project, Excalibur —an X-ray laser system powered by a nuclear warhead—failed critical tests, Teller and Lowell Wood recognized the limitations of directed-energy weapons . The SDIO then revisited missile-based concepts akin to Smart Rocks. Wood introduced "Pebbles," proposing that advances in sensors and microprocessors allowed missiles to operate independently without central stations. To intercept missiles promptly,

16440-447: The upper ionosphere. However, US government sources described it as the first test of a new ground-based ASAT system. An open source analysis by Secure World Foundation , based in part on commercial satellite imagery, found that it may indeed have been a test of a new ASAT system that could potentially threaten US satellites in geostationary Earth orbit . Similarly on 5 February 2018, China tested an exoatmospheric ballistic missile with

16577-424: Was directed-energy weapons , including a nuclear-explosion powered X-ray laser proposal developed at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in 1968. Other research was based on more conventional lasers or masers and developed to include the idea of a satellite with a fixed laser and a deployable mirror for targeting. LLNL continued to consider more edgy technology but their X-ray laser system development

16714-406: Was Teller's Excalibur, which failed several critical tests in 1986. A similar test carried out by skeptical physicists at Los Alamos National Laboratory suggested there was no lasing going on at all. Other concepts, like the neutral beam weapon which shot hydrogen atoms near the speed of light , demonstrated performance that was so poor it was unlikely it could ever work. The best among them all

16851-532: Was abandoned until a defense made the weapon obsolete. In 1981, Graham founded High Frontier, Inc. , a private organization that promotes a kinetic-energy weapons approach to space-based defense with help from members of President Ronald Reagan's "Kitchen Cabinet". Graham served as the Project Director for the think tank and released its strategic plan in a book entitled " We Must Defend America and Put an End to MADness " in 1983. According to Graham, he

16988-412: Was at about this point that the US started its own testing in response to the Soviet program. In the early 1980s, the Soviet Union also started developing a counterpart to the US air-launched ASAT system, using modified MiG-31D 'Foxhounds' (at least six of which were completed) as the launch platform. The system was called 30P6 "Kontakt", the missile used is 79M6. The USSR also experimented with arming

17125-586: Was cancelled in 1977 (although research into X-ray lasers was resurrected during the 1980s as part of the SDI ). ASATs were generally given low priority until 1982, when information about a successful USSR program became widely known in the west. A "crash program" followed, which developed into the Vought ASM-135 ASAT , based on the AGM-69 SRAM with an Altair upper stage. The system was carried on

17262-573: Was carried out under the DOMINIC I series. An adapted version of the nuclear armed Nike Zeus was used for an ASAT from 1962. Codenamed Mudflap , the missile was designated DM-15S and a single missile was deployed at the Kwajalein atoll until 1966 when the project was ended in favour of the USAF Thor -based Program 437 ASAT which was operational until 6 March 1975. Another area of research

17399-487: Was dismissed as "pure fantasy". Over the next year the budget continued to grow, apparently without bound, first to $ 60 billion (equivalent to $ 140 billion in 2023), to $ 75 billion (equivalent to $ 180 billion in 2023), and then reaching $ 100 billion by April 1988 (equivalent to $ 240 billion in 2023). After Excalibur's failed tests in 1986, the program was about to be defunded. At that time, Livermore had no other major SDI programs. Teller and Wood were looking for

17536-454: Was intended to be completed by 2000 at a cost of around $ 125 billion. Research in the US and the Soviet Union was proving that the requirements, at least for orbital based energy weapon systems, were, with available technology, close to impossible. Nonetheless, the strategic implications of a possible unforeseen breakthrough in technology forced the USSR to initiate massive spending on research in

17673-547: Was modified, but doing so raised its weight and cost; the original design called for around 10,000 missiles and would cost $ 10 to $ 20 billion, but by 1990 the cost for 4,600 had ballooned to $ 55 billion. Fighting in Congress through the early 1990s led to Pebbles' cancellation in 1993, but elements of the concept re-emerged with the Space Development Agency in 2019. There are a wide variety of stories about

17810-470: Was mothballed when SDIO funding ran out. On June 20, 1994, the DC-X rose once again for the first flight of second series after additional SDIO funding was received. Operating with a full propellent load, the flight tested the radar altimeter in control loop and reached an altitude of 870 m during a 136-second flight. Demonstrating an unplanned event on June 27, 1994, the DC-X became the first unmanned vehicle to save itself when an in-flight abort occurred after

17947-601: Was observed consistent with the destruction of the hydrazine fuel tank. The United States has since ceased the testing of direct-ascent anti-satellite missiles, having outlawed the practice in 2022. The specter of bombardment satellites and the reality of ballistic missiles stimulated the Soviet Union to explore defensive space weapons. The Soviet Union first tested the Polyot interceptor in 1963 and successfully tested an orbital anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon in 1968. According to some accounts, Sergei Korolev started some work on

18084-505: Was on 13 September 1985. The F-15 took off from Edwards Air Force Base , climbed to 11 613  m ( 38 100  ft) and vertically launched the missile at the Solwind P78-1 , a US gamma ray spectroscopy satellite orbiting at 555 km (345 mi), which was launched in 1979. The last piece of debris from the destruction of Solwind P78-1, catalogued as COSPAR 1979-017GX, SATCAT 16564, deorbited 9 May 2004. Although successful,

18221-626: Was publicly admitted to by the Johnson administration and General Westmoreland. After Tet it became obvious that the figures of the Johnson administration of enemy strength could not be true. So according to eyewitnesses in that report Graham ordered the Computer record of enemy strength estimation to be changed in order to hide the previous manipulations. Graham was chairman of the American Space Frontier Committee and

18358-575: Was successfully destroyed by a Russian anti-satellite missile in a test, causing a debris field that affected the International Space Station . In 2024, U.S. intelligence sources hinted that Russia was working on an anti-satellite weapon with some sort of nuclear technology, though it was unclear if it was a nuclear weapon or merely a nuclear-powered device. On 11 January 2007, the People's Republic of China successfully destroyed

18495-482: Was the fourth satellite in the Fengyun series. The missile was launched from a mobile Transporter-Erector-Launcher (TEL) vehicle at Xichang ( 28°14′49″N 102°01′30″E  /  28.247°N 102.025°E  / 28.247; 102.025  ( Xichang Satellite Launch Center ) ) and the warhead destroyed the satellite in a head-on collision at an extremely high relative velocity. Evidence suggests that

18632-536: Was the space-based laser, but it needed to improve its beam quality by at least 100 times before it would be able to disable an ICBM. That same year, the American Physical Society (APS) published their review of the directed-energy weapon efforts. After a lengthy declassification procedure, it was released to the public in March 1987. Compiled by a number of notables in the laser and physics community, including Nobel laureate Charles H. Townes ,

18769-659: Was to run in a two-phase program, some of it in parallel. To start, LLNL would supply prototype pebbles interceptors that would be tested both on the ground and in space after launch on sounding rockets . This series would conclude in February 1993, in time to allow the President to review the system and decide whether to proceed. Information from these tests would be fed back into the production designs. The first of these prototypes would begin testing in June 1990 and end in June 1993. A month later, another independent review by Henry F. Cooper strongly supported Brilliant Pebbles over

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