Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

U.S. Deploys Orbital Communications Jammer

Posted by Zonk on from the no-talking-during-the-war-please dept.

kpwoodr writes "An interesting article at the Washington Times makes note of a recent satellite launch by the U.S. It seems we have put a jammer in space that will allow us to disrupt enemy communication systems at will. From the article: 'The U.S. military is bracing for future attacks in space, and the Air Force has deployed an electronic-warfare unit capable of jamming enemy satellites, the general in charge of space defenses says. "You can't go to war and win without space."'"

3 of 619 comments (clear)

  1. Yes we NEED space weapons. by tcd004 · · Score: 5, Informative
    Here's a great interview with an airforce dude on why space weapons are the must-have accessory for all modern militaries. Oh, and here's the article that he was responeding to, arguing that they're unnecessary...

    tcd004

  2. Re:With apologies to Sid Meier... by Wyatt+Earp · · Score: 5, Informative

    Actually, the US military has spent billions of dollars to reduce collateral damage. Thats why the US has developed laser guided bombs and EO guided weapons and JDAMs and that is why the US is developing the small diameter bomb series.

    http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/mun itions/smart.htm
    http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/mun itions/sdb.htm

    "The Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) is half the weight of the smallest bomb the Air Force uses today, the 500-pound Mark 82. It uses a 250 pound-class warhead that has demonstrated penetration of more than 6 feet of reinforced concrete. Utilizing a smaller weapon improves aircraft load-out and mission effectiveness. The size and accuracy of small diameter bombs allows aircraft to carry more munitions to more targets and strike them more effectively with less collateral damage. Because of its capabilities, the Small Diameter Bomb system is an important element of the Air Force's Global Strike Task Force."

    "The Small Smart Bomb is a 250 pound weapon that has the same penetration capabilities as a 2000lb BLU-109, but with only 50 pounds of explosive. The 250 pound-class warhead that has demonstrated penetration of more than 6 feet of reinforced concrete. "

  3. RTFA: There is no orbital communications jammer! by mbkennel · · Score: 5, Informative
    The U.S. military is bracing for future attacks in space, and the Air Force has deployed an electronic-warfare unit capable of jamming enemy satellites, the general in charge of space defenses says. ... Instead, offensive anti-satellite weapons currently are limited to "countercommunications" operations -- interrupting the signals sent from the ground to satellites that try to disrupt U.S. military or civilian spacecraft, Gen. Lord said. The 76th Space Control Squadron, based at Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., last year deployed the first offensive countercommunications system that uses mobile teams that can fire electronic jamming gear capable of knocking out enemy satellite communications.

    Didn't anybody read? There ain't no Death Star. Where did "satellite launch from the US" come into things? Oh yeah, it's Slashdot, foolish jumping to conclusions for nerds.

    This "unit" is a group of trained people, most likely on the ground or from the air, who shoot electronic jammy things at ground stations which link to enemy satellites, or enemy ground stations which themselves are jamming US satellites. The US wants to keep its satellites, and since it has more capable and more expensive satellites than competitors it would rather not get in a "you blow up mine, I blow up yours" competition since the endpoint negates US advantages. They want to "I blow up your jammers so my satellites work again."