Russian Nuclear Military Satellite Spinning Out of Control
A top-secret Russian satellite, which US officials have linked to the country's nuclear anti-satellite weapons program, is spinning out of control.
As Reuters reports, the spacecraft — called Cosmos 2553 — appears to no longer be in service, indicating a major setback for the country's efforts to develop space weapons.
The satellite has been orbiting around 1,242 miles above the planet, inside a radiation-heavy band that other spacecraft tend to avoid. Satellite tracker LeoLabs told the outlet that Doppler radar measurements indicated Cosmos 2553 was moving erratically and possibly tumbling.
"This observation strongly suggests the satellite is no longer operational," the think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies wrote in an assessment last week.
Last year, Russia denied US officials' claims that Cosmos 2553 was part of a greater effort to develop a nuclear weapon capable of destroying entire satellite constellations.
Cosmos 2553's exact purpose remains murky at best. A spokesperson for the US Space Command told Reuters that Russia's stated goal of testing instruments in a high-radiation environment was inconsistent "with its characteristics."
"This inconsistency, paired with a demonstrated willingness to target US and Allied on-orbit objects, increases the risk of misperception and escalation," the spokesperson added.
While we still don't know what exactly Russia's mysterious satellite is doing over a thousand miles above the Earth's surface, its erratic movements could indicate yet another black eye for Russia's troubled space program, as well as a strange inflection point in efforts to militarize space.
Our planet's orbit is becoming an increasingly congested domain for supremacy, with several superpowers, including Russia and China, working on anti-satellite weapons that could give them the ability to plunge adversaries into darkness.
Case in point, Russia conducted an unexpected anti-satellite (ASAT) test in 2021, drawing the ire of US officials. At the time, a missile smashed into a derelict Russian satellite, creating a massive debris field that threatened the lives of its own cosmonauts on board the International Space Station.
More on anti-satellite tech: US Military Alarmed by Russian Nuclear Weapon Platform in Orbit
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