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UNIVERSITY of HULL the Militarisation and Weaponisation Of UNIVERSITY OF HULL The Militarisation and Weaponisation of Space Being a Thesis submitted for the Doctor of Philosophy In the University of Hull by Matthew James Mowthorpe BA(Hull), MSc(Southwest Missouri State) December 2002 Contents List of Tables IV Introduction 1 1: The United States Approach to Military Space During the Cold War 13 Military Space Power Theory 13 The Development of US Space Policy During the Cold War 15 The Evolution of the Strategic Defence Initiative Programme 24 The SDI Mission 26 President Bush's Global Protection Against Limited Strikes System 31 The Case for Space-Based Assets 34 The OPALS Architectural Design 37 The Theories of Space Power Underpinning US Space Policy 41 2: The Origins of Ballistic Missile Defence in the United States and the Soviet Union and ABM Treaty 45 The United States Ballistic Missile Defence Prior to the ABM fu~. ~ The Army's Quest for the Role of Ballistic Missile Defence 46 From Nike-Zeus to Sentinel to Safeguard 48 The Reorientation of the Ballistic Missile Defence Programme 52 Soviet Ballistic Missile Defences During the Cold War 53 The Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty 59 The Interpretations of the ABM Treaty 61 Conclusion 69 3: The Soviet/Russian Approach to Military Space During the Cold War and Beyond 71 The Development of Soviet Military Space During the Cold War 73 Theories of Military Space Underpinning Soviet Military Space ~~ TI The Global Protection Against Limited Strikes: Russian Cooperation 78 The Fate of The Military Space United Since the Breakup of the Soviet Union 85 Soviet Cosmodromes 87 The Condition of Launch Facilities 88 Russian Military Space 90 Missile Attack Warning 90 Russian Laser Weapons 91 Offensive Space Weapons 92 Space-Based Missiles 92 Advantages of Space-Based Weapons 93 US & Russian Cooperation of Space 96 Conversion: Alternative Use for Military Equipment 96 The Current Status of Russia's Space Assets 99 Conclusion 103 4: China's Military Space Programme 104 The Origins of China's Space Programme 105 Chinese Launch Vehicles 113 The Political Forces Behind the Space Programme 115 Chinese Launch Sites 116 Organisations Involved in Chinese Space Policy 117 Current PRC Space Forces 118 China's International Cooperation & Its Current Space Forces 124 China's Interest in Antisatellite Weapons 132 Conclusion 135 5: The United States and Soviet ASAT Programmes 138 Antisatellite Weapons and Strategic Stability 138 The United States ASAT Programmes During the Cold War 139 The Soviet ASAT Programme During the Cold War 149 The Resumption of Soviet ASAT Testing 155 The Search for ASAT Arms Control 162 The US Antisatellite Programme Since the End of the Cold War 169 Russian ASAT activities since the end of the Cold War 176 Conclusion 177 6: Space Based Laser for Ballistic Missile Defence 179 The Science & Technology of Laser-Weapons in Space 180 The Lethality of A Space-Based Laser 183 The Orbital Characteristics of a Space-Based Laser 189 The Components of a Space-Based Laser 189 The Origins of Industry's Involvement in Space-Based Lasers 195 The Development of the Space-Based Laser 198 7: The Revolution in Military Affairs & The Militarisation of Space 209 The Role of Military Space During the Gulf War 209 The Revolution in Military Affairs & The United States 215 The Elements of the RMA 218 Factors Driving the RMA 220 The United States Concerns Regarding Other Military Powers And the RMA 223 Russian Views of the Revolution in Military Affairs 225 Chinese Views of the Revolution in Military Affairs 226 Conclusion 233 .. 11 8: The Post Cold War Military Space Policy of the United States 234 President Clinton's Military Space Policy 235 The National Missile Defence "3 plus 3" Programme 236 The US Air Force Emergency Response Architecture 237 The US Army Emergency Response Architecture 238 The Department of Defence's "3 plus 3" National Missile Defence Programme 238 The National Missile Defence Exotamospheric Kill Vehicle 240 The National Missile Defence Act of 1999 241 President Clinton's Military Space Policy 243 The Military Space Organisational Changes Under the Clinton Administration 244 The Clinton Administration's Second Term 247 President Bush and Missile Defence 249 The United States Withdrawal From the ABM Treaty 250 Attempts for Arms Control in Space 250 The Commission to Assess US National Security Space Management and Organisation 251 Space-Based Missile Defences 254 Space-Based Weapons Against Terrestrial Targets 256 The Role of Military Space in Recent Conflicts 259 The Yugoslavia Campaign 260 The Events in Afghanistan 262 Conclusion 264 Conclusion 267 Appendix The Technological Aspects of Defences Against ASATS 280 The Effects of Nuclear Explosions in Space 283 Bibliography 286 ... 111 List of Tables Russian Military Space Satellites 101 China's Rough Estimate for Laser Weapon System Requirements 133 The PRC's Military Satellites in Orbit 135 Requirements for Several Laser Weapons 186 A Space-Based Laser Boost Phase Defence System 193 US Industrial Supplier Base for Key High Energy Laser Components 204 The Team Space-Based Laser Integrated Flight Experiment and the Companies Involved 205 iv The Militarisation and Weaponisation of Space Since the dawn of the space age a considerable literature has been created on the militarisation and weaponisation of space. In the 1980s this was subjected to a form of hijacking by the Strategic Defence Initiative.1 The number of books and articles on the SOl programme overwhelmed the more general military space literature. The SOl debate covered the possibility and practicability of various kinds of space systems designed to intercept ballistic missiles. The enthusiasm President Reagan injected into his speech announcing the Initiative appeared to make many believe that almost anything was technologically possible in orbit. Although ballistic missile defence remains a major issue, the debate has since broadened with the annonuncement of a "Revolution in Military Affairs" based on space surveillance and command and control platforms.2 This has made the issue of space control central to the contemporary strategic debate. It is timely therefore to survey afresh the subject of military space putting technological possibilities into a broader strategic context. Thinking on the military uses of space has evolved since Sputnik 1 went into orbit in 1957. The principle was established at an early stage that bodies beyond the atmosphere were not subject to normal restrictions on rights of overflight. This was extended into the 'sanctuary' 1 See James Canan, War In Space, (Haper & Row Publishers: New York, 1982)Curtis Peebles, Battle For Space, (Dorset: Blandford Press, 1983), Rip Bulkeley & Graham Spinardi, Space Weapons: Deterrence or Delusion, (Cambridge: Policy Press, 1986) and BengtAnderberg Myron L. Wolbarsht, Lase Weapons: The Dawn of a New Military A~e, (Plenum Press: New Yorks, 1992). 2 See William A. Owens, "The Emerging US System of Systems", Strate~ic Forum, National Defence University, Instiute for Strategic Studies, February 1996 and William A. Owens, "Revolution in Military Affairs? US Vision for Future Warfare", Royal Institute for International Affairs, Conference Paper, May 21 & 22,1997 1 concept, discussed more fully in the next chapter, that sought to maintain space as a medium where surveillance and communications platforms could operate unchallenged.3 Although the desire to maintain space as a strategic sanctuary remained strong with many political leaders the development of technology allowed more adventurous philosophies to develop. The 'survivability' school emphasized the need to protect vital satellite systems.4 The 'space control' school went further and argued for the use of weapons against an enemy's space assets to deny him the use of the medium. The final school of thought, the 'high ground', emerged at the time of the SDI speech, and saw space as the medium from which the earth could be dominated.s The SDI literature discussed a range of systems such as X-ray lasers6, particle beams and kinetic energy interceptors that were far from technological maturity. It was argued, misleadingly, that these systems were just around the comer. On the other side, critics emphasized the constraints of the Antiballistic Missile Treaty and argued for a wider arms control regime to limit the weaponisation of space. The military space literature expanded to include discussion of matters of international law . The SDI speech therefore had two effects on the military space literature: it led to a burgeoning amount of technology based work; and added an international legal perspective. 3 See Joan Johnson-Freese & Roger Handberg, Space The Dormant Frontier: Chan~in~ the Paradi~m for the 21 st Century, (Westport, CT: Praeger Publishing, 1997) for a recent espousal of the sanctuary school of space power and Lawrence Freedman, Sanctuary of Combat Zone? Military Space in the 21" Century, Air Power and Space-Future Perpsectives Conference, September It" & 13th 1996 4 See Robert Giffen, "Space Power Survivability" in Uri Ra'naan & Robert L. Pfaltzgraff, eds, International Security Dimensions of Space, (Archon Books, CT: 1984) and C.S. Gray, "The Military Uses of Space: Space is not a Sanctuary", Survival, September/October 1993, C.S. Gray, "Space Power Survivability", Airpower Journal, Winter 1993 S See Karl Grossman, Weapons In Space, (Seven Stories Press: New York, 2(01), Steven Lambakis, On The Ed~e of Earth: The Future of American Space Power, (University Press of Kentucky: Lexington, 2(01) 6 See Eward Teller, Better a Shield Than a Sword (Free Press, 1987). Teller was a strong proponent of the Xray lasers and developed the concept of pop­ up nuclear powered laser weapons, which were launched into space when required for ballistic missile defence. 2 The end of the Cold War saw a shift in emphasis in the debate. The campaign in the Persian Gulf and the liberation of Kuwait redefined the military space agenda and stimulated discussion of a 'Revolution in Military Mfairs'.
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