Indian Anti-Satellite Weapon - What Is "Mission Shakti" Check Here!

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Indian Anti-Satellite Weapon - What Is Indian Anti-Satellite Weapon - What is "Mission Shakti" Check Here! With the successful testing of Indian Anti-Satellite Weapon via its #MissionShakti, India has become a part of the Anti-Satellite Weapon league. The concept of ASAT roots back to the era of Cold War, when the US and the erstwhile Soviet Union were the first ones to develop and deploy the Anti-Satellite Weapon (ASAT). China joined the Anti-Satellite Weapon league of Space Powers in 2007. Read this article to know in detail about Anti-Satellite Weapon , Mission Shakti, History of Anti-Satellite Weapon, Drawbacks & consequences of Anti-Satellite Weapon. What is Anti-Satellite Weapon (ASAT)? • Anti-satellite weapons (ASAT) are space weapons, specifically designed to incapacitate or destroy targeted satellites for strategic military purposes. • Although no ASAT system has been utilised in warfare so far, several nations have shot down their own dysfunctional (or on the verge of being dysfunctional) satellites to demonstrate their ASAT capabilities. • Till now, only 4 nations including United States of America, Russia (using MSB expertise), China and India have demonstrated this capability successfully. Mission Shakti - India 4th Country With Anti-Satellite Weapon • Via its Space Mission, Mission Shakti, India successfully tested its anti-satellite weapon on 27th March, 2019. 1 | P a g e • Mission Shakti involved an anti-satellite weapon (A-SAT) successfully targeting a live satellite on a Low Earth Orbit. • #MissionShakti was successful within three minutes of its initiation. • Indian Anti Satellite Missile System (ASAT) has been developed by Scientists at Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the research wing of Indian Defence services. • India is now the fourth country to possess anti-satellite weapon. • PM Modi has emphasized on the fact that the Indian anti-satellite weapon is an augmentation of the defense capability and will not be used against anyone. 2 | P a g e Anti-Satellite Weapon History 1950-1960: US applied nuclear warhead on one of their missiles and deployed it in the space with the mission of destroying a particular satellite of their own. The strategy backfired as three of the US satellites incurred damages and a radiation embraced the space which caused significant impact on life forms on Earth. After that, US & Russia mutually agreed upon not employing the use of nuclear warheads. 1960-1970: Russia introduced advancements in the same technology. The nuclear warhead was launched in the same orbit as that of the targeted satellite. But the destruction caused a lot of debris which rendered significant loss to the Russian Satellite as well as other satellites orbiting in nearby orbits. 1970-1980: US developed Air Launch ASAT Technology. In this the Vehicle Satellite was launched in a higher orbit and from there it used to target the concerned satellite to be destroyed. With this launch as well, the concern of debris remained intact. 1980-1990: Laser technology. With the use of Laser from Earth, specific parts like electronic circuits or navigation mechanisms of concerned satellites were targeted and destroyed. The technology couldn't justify the cause. 2007: China tested its first ASAT by targeting FY-1C polar orbit satellite of the Fengyun series, which was its weather broadcast satellite (in perishable state). Such intentional collision is termed as kinetic bombardment. It didn't involve any warhead or explosive. The satellite struck the targeted satellite exploding into pieces immediately which again caused a lot of space debris 2008: US carried out another mission similar to the China's mission in 2007 3 | P a g e 2010: India started working on developing its own Anti-Satellite Weapon (ASAT). 2012: Then Director General, DRDO, V. K. Saraswat announced the availability of apt resources to design & develop Anti-Satellite Weapon for India. 2019: India successfully concluded Mission Shakti by launching its own Anti-Satellite Weapon. Anti-Satellite Weapon Impact & Drawbacks • Anti-Satellite Weapon can easily target any Communication, Navigational and other respective Satellites of targeted Nations in a warfare, destroying the nations communications and navigational operations rendering the targeted Nation no choice but to surrender. • The radiations caused by massive destructive activities in Space impacts the existence of life forms on Earth in a significant manner. • Such activities create Debris, which keep orbiting around in Space with no proper disposal, creating additional threat to the proper functional environment for the present Satellite Arena. Outer Space Treaty • Considering the severe impact of employing Anti-Satellite Weapon to a Nation's use, a treaty had been signed by many Nations to define the laws for Outer Space. • The Outer Space Treaty, formally known as the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, is a treaty that forms the basis of international space law. • It represents the basic legal framework of international space law. 4 | P a g e • Among its principles, it clearly denies placing of weapons of mass destruction in Earth orbit, installing them on the Moon or any other celestial body, or otherwise stationing them in outer space. • It also exclusively limits the use of the Moon and other celestial bodies to peaceful purposes. • The Treaty prohibits the use of the Moon and other celestial bodies for testing weapons of any kind, conducting military maneuvers, or establishing military bases, installations, and fortifications. • However, the treaty does not prohibit the placement of conventional weapons in orbit and thus some highly destructive attack strategies such as kinetic bombardment are still potentially allowable. Anti-Satellite Weapon Consequences Considering the fact that India has now made it to the list of Nations having ASAT, another big concerns hovers over the kind of restrictions this demonstration might invite. US, Russia & China possess the VETO Power which renders them unaffected by the consequences of the pros & cons of their respective missile system as well as defense systems. Whereas India being a developing country might invite few unnecessary restrictions which could hamper its overall growth as a developing nation. We hope you found this article about Indian Anti-Satellite Weapon helpful. Check out more such articles. Related Articles National Mathematics Day Human Rights Day United Nations Day National Consumer Rights Day 5 | P a g e .
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