DIA Says Russia Is Developing Nuclear-Armed Orbit Satellite That Could Cripple Thousands
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Oct 29
DIA Says Russia Is Developing Nuclear-Armed Orbit Satellite That Could Cripple Thousands
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Oct 29
Summary
A new DIA assessment says Russia is developing a satellite designed to carry a nuclear weapon into Earth orbit, a capability that could rapidly disable or degrade thousands of satellites worldwide.
The agency warns a space detonation would hit communications, GPS, weather and military systems at once, then leave radiation belts that could keep damaging surviving spacecraft for years.
DIA places that threat at the top of a broader escalation ladder that already includes jamming, cyberattacks, co-orbital maneuvers and kinetic anti-satellite weapons; it cites June jamming near the Strait of Hormuz during Operation Epic Fury.
Russia has repeatedly maneuvered spacecraft near U.S. satellites, including Cosmos 2588 coming within about 93 kilometers by 2025, while also developing the MiG-31-launched Burevestnik anti-satellite weapon.
The warning sharpens concerns aired since February 2024, when U.S. lawmakers disclosed a serious Russian anti-satellite threat that officials later linked to a nuclear capability in space.