Search

Russian Direct Ascent ASAT Test Generates More Than 1,500 Pieces of Trackable Debris

Russian Direct Ascent ASAT Test Generates More Than 1,500 Pieces of Trackable Debris
U.S. Army Gen. James Dickinson, U.S. Space Command commander, and U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Mike Bernacchi, USSPACECOM Strategy, Plans and Policy director, greet Colin Kahl, Department of Defense Under Secretary of Defense for Policy on Nov. 2 at USSPACECOM headquarters, Peterson Space Force Base, Colorado. Senior USSPACECOM leaders briefed Kahl on threats to the space domain and discussed the importance of responsible military space behavior. Officials from Joint Task Force-Space Defense briefed Kahl on its protect-and-defend mission (U.S. Space Command Photo)

The test of a Russian direct ascent anti-satellite (DA-ASAT) weapon against one of that nation's non-functioning satellites generated more than 1,500 pieces of trackable debris and hundreds of thousands of smaller pieces, U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price said on Nov. 15. If true, the ASAT test would have thrown off roughly half the debris of a 2007 Chinese DA-ASAT test that created 3,000 pieces of orbital debris larger than 10 centimeters (Defense Daily, Nov. 17, 2020). Army Gen. James…

Subscriber-only content. Please log in below.

Not a subscriber or registered user yet?

Please contact us at clientservices@accessintel.com or call us at 888-707-5814 (Monday – Thursday 9:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. and Friday 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. ET.), to start a free trial, get pricing information, order a reprint, or post an article link on your website.



Congress Updates

HASC Bill Would Allow Air Force To Buy More Than 267 F-15EXs

The House Armed Services Committee’s (HASC) fiscal 2027 defense authorization bill would allow the Air Force to buy more than 267 F-15EX fighters by Boeing [BA] and would extend the […]


Defense Bill Tries To Block Foreign Shipbuilding, Adds $1 Billion For Second DDG

The final version of the House Armed Services Committee’s (HASC) fiscal year 2027 defense authorization bill included two amendments pushed by Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) that restrict procuring Navy warships […]


Replacement Munitions May Not Be One-for-One; May Include New Weapons Chemistries, Wittman Says

As the Pentagon looks to refill inventories of weapons used in Iran and elsewhere, replacements may not be one for one but instead mark a new portfolio mix, according to […]


HASC Approves $1.15 Trillion FY ‘27 NDAA With ‘Right To Repair’ Reform

The House Armed Services Committee (HASC) has approved its $1.15 trillion version of the fiscal year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), with the panel moving to adopt a bipartisan […]