Pentagon Eyes Crash Analysis on 1,300 SatellitesNovember 04, 2009
The collision of a dead Russian military communications satellite with a U.S. commercial satellite in February underscored the vulnerability of the Pentagon’s communication satellites and those used by commercial industries, according to a Reuters report. Neither private satellite tracking companies nor the Pentagon predicted the collision. A U.S. military official said it is now tracking 800 maneuverable satellites for possible collisions and will add another 500 non-maneuverable satellites by the end of the year. General Kevin Chilton, commander of the U.S. Strategic Command, said the military wanted to track possible collisions more closely but lacked resources. "It's amazing what one collision will do to the resource spigot," he told a space conference in Omaha, Nebraska, Reuters reported. Chilton said the Air Force has been tracking many spent space objects, like spent rocket stages and satellites, but that there was a disconnect between what they could “see” and the actual number of objects. The goal is to track 1,300 active satellites to avoid collisions. The first 800 are satellites that can be shifted around in orbit while the balance lack the fuel needed to control them. The article notes that the Air Force has bought more computers and hired more analysts to help avert possible collisions. The service is also working with the private sector to share data. Chilton said the effort still relies too much on Air Force analysts and needs further improvement. "We are decades behind where we should be," he told Reuters. |
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