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Chinese Lasers Blind US Satelites

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the do-not-look-directly-into-laser-beam-with-your-remaining-eye dept.

SniperClops writes, "China has fired high-power lasers at U.S. spy satellites flying over its territory in what experts see as a test of Chinese ability to blind the spacecraft, according to sources." The article mentions the reluctance of the U.S. administration to talk about this "asymmetric" effort by the Chinese military.

15 of 739 comments (clear)

  1. blind my eyes too by xming · · Score: 5, Funny

    I got "Nothing for you to see here. Please move along."

    1. Re:blind my eyes too by einnar2000 · · Score: 5, Funny

      The problem wasn't in building a laser that could reach orbit. The problem was in teaching the sharks to look up.

  2. What I really want to know... by Tsagadai · · Score: 5, Insightful

    As does alot of the world not in the united states but still grounded under it's definition of right and wrong is why can't a foreign self governing nation control its own airspace and space space. If I built a spy satellite and orbitted it over the united states I would be a terrorist and bombed in seconds. Why the difference for china?

    1. Re:What I really want to know... by finkployd · · Score: 5, Funny

      the world doesn't revolve around Earth.

      I cannot tell if that was really deep, or really dumb.

      Finkployd

    2. Re:What I really want to know... by Yvanhoe · · Score: 5, Insightful

      It surely may sound ironic in the case of China, but : a sovereign nation has a right to privacy.

      --
      The Wise adapts himself to the world. The Fool adapts the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the Fool.
    3. Re:What I really want to know... by phil+reed · · Score: 5, Informative
      but how far up does China own the space above it?

      Wikipedia article on the Outer Space Treaty

      --

      ...phil
      "For a list of the ways which technology has failed to improve our quality of life, press 3."
    4. Re:What I really want to know... by LittleBigLui · · Score: 5, Insightful
      What if these satelites were above that point?


      What's the problem with the chinese shining their lasers at space that nobody owns anyway?
      --
      Free as in mason.
    5. Re:What I really want to know... by vtcodger · · Score: 5, Informative
      *** If I built a spy satellite and orbitted it over the united states I would be a terrorist and bombed in seconds.***

      The Russians operated a multitude of surveillance satellites over the US in the 1960s-1980s. They still do I believe. As do the Chinese. As do, I believe, others. Almost all reconisiance sattelites should be able to "spy" on the US should their owners be so inclined.

      If anyone cares enough to try to figure out exactly how many surveillence satellites are in orbit, here's a link to the Union Of Concerned Scientists sattelite database

      --
      You can't see ANYTHING from a car, You've got to get out of the goddamned contraption and walk...Edward Abbey
    6. Re:What I really want to know... by russ1337 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I honestly believe the US is more likley to use a Nuke before any of the above mentioned. Any of the states using a nuke will result in their elimination - deterance. We also know the US is not affraid to strike pre-emptivley. Plus they've talked of wanting to use 'tactical nukes' against Iran.

    7. Re:What I really want to know... by cyberon22 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      People were saying the same things about India and Pakistan before those countries both aquired nuclear weapons. And about the Soviet Union and China before that.

      The last thing one wants is to have nuclear weapons in the possession of unstable regimes either unable to control the devices or demonstratively irrational. But do either North Korea or Iran really meet those conditions? I personally don't think so. It is also somewhat understandable why these states are intersted in possessing them given the sort of armchair militarism that passes for IR analysis in much Western punditry.

      The invasion of Iraq was a huge disaster, if only for destroying the credibility of international organizations like the United Nations as a restraint on the unilateral militarism of its members. The proliferation of nuclear weapons through the Middle East may be the only thing capable of stabilizing the region at this point.

      This isn't an easy case to argue either way.

    8. Re:What I really want to know... by Cheapy · · Score: 5, Funny

      Unlike other countires, our stated agenda isn't to wipe countries off the map.

      That's just a side effect of our agenda.

      --
      Would you kindly mod me +1 insightful?
  3. Re:Eventually... by finkployd · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The Chinese can launch satelites, put men into orbit, have nuclear weapons, are financing most of our balance or payments thanks to Bush

    Honestly, did the world just begin for many of you people in 2000? Look I'm no fan of Bush, but it is not like prior to 2000 the Chinese held none of our assets, the Islamic extremists loved us, and the federal government held civil liberties in high regard. You know, EVERYTHING is not Bush's fault.

    Finkployd

  4. could this be a bluff? by petes_PoV · · Score: 5, Insightful
    OK, we've heard from the report that the Chinese have tried to blind a satellite. Until we can actually see the resulting images - which will simply never happen, how can we or the chinese know that they've succeeded in stopping photos being taken.

    If I was in the US spying game and I know that someone was trying to blind my satellites, I'd say "Oh no, you've stopped me photographing your secret installations" even if the attempts were unsuccessful. That way the target thinks they've stopped the spy satellites, whereas in practice, the lasers may be completely ineffectual.

    Until the Chinese spies can get hold of genuine, spoiled, satellite photos (that weren't staged/planted) they cannot be sure they have suceeded.

    --
    politicians are like babies' nappies: they should both be changed regularly and for the same reasons
  5. Re:Um, they can hit the ones they can see... by Woek · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I don't think so. First of all, they have plenty of other issues to worry about when designing the exterior of a satellite, like reflective material for thermal management, or solar cells for generating power. Secondly, I would imagine that the trajectories of all satellites are available to all agencies that launch stuff into space. Imaging a soyuz crashing into one of those massive spy satellites with a relative velocity of several kilometers per second...

  6. An interesting difference in article vs blurb by paranode · · Score: 5, Informative

    The blurb says that they did blind the US satellite, whereas the article says they merely attempted to and that "It remains unclear how many times the ground-based laser was tested against U.S. spacecraft or whether it was successful." Good old hype.