Years · 2007

January 2007

32 posts

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Reactions to the Chinese ASAT

I wanted to draw your attention to some of the discussion about the Chinese ASAT in the expert blogosphere. Pavel Podvig, Hans Kristensen, Noah Shachtman, the anonymous China Hand, and Cheryl Rofer all have great submissions. I’ve linked to most…

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When Did China Start ASAT Testing?

I’ve seen reports that China had three unsuccessful or non-intercept tests before the January 11th shootdown of FY-1C: MCINTYRE: According to U.S. government officials, after three misses, China last Thursday succeed in shooting down one of its own aging weather…

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Lolly Lolly Get Yer ASAT News Here

This diagram shows the debris from the Chinese ASAT test, as presented in a preliminary analysis by MIT’s Geoff Forden using his awesome new GUI Missile Flyout program (download). The debris, Geoff notes, … … split in orbits, with one…

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Responses to Chinese test

Most Russian news repeated almost verbatim the US and British press reports on the Chinese ASAT test, but there is a little info this afternoon on the Russian reaction. (Only Russian language links are up for now, translations are mine.)…

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Chinese ASAT Likely Made Massive Debris

Aviation Week now has the story—with pretty much the same details that I’ve been hearing. FY-1C was struck by a direct ascent ASAT launched from Xichang Space Center at 5:28 p.m. EST on January 11. The satellite was approximately 850…

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Chinese Test ASAT?

I noticed this blurb on SEESAT today: I’ve been hearing murmurings around the community here in Washington that there may have been an extremely energetic event (satellite break-up?) in the last week or so in the LEO altitude range (700-1000…

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Better Controls to Plan and Manage PSI

Classified GAO reports. I knew they existed, but this is one is one that ought to be declassified, at least summary form: Nonproliferation: Better Controls Needed to Plan and Manage Proliferation Security Initiative Activities. GAO-06-937C. September 28, 2006. About the…

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Now approaching midnight

This is DJ Shadow. His “Midnight in a Perfect World” contains is one of many pop culture references to The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientist’s “Doomsday Clock” that tracks the level of nuclear danger in the world. (Jeffrey adds: Paul…

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Chris Hill Rulz

Paul Kerr reminds me why Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Christopher Hill remains my favorite US diplomat: Q: Can’t you at least get a Yongbyon freeze? That would seem to be a… HILL: Oh, you…