WASHINGTON — The United States should harden its low Earth orbit satellites that support nuclear command and control against radiation effects from potential high-altitude nuclear detonations, according to a new report from a prominent think tank.
The Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security released a study July 15 titled “Modernizing Space-Based Nuclear Command, Control, and Communications” that recommends steps to protect space-based elements of the U.S. nuclear command, control and communications (NC3) system. The report comes amid growing concerns about Russia’s development of space-based nuclear weapons and the vulnerability of critical military satellites.
NC3 comprises the sensors, communications networks, and command centers that allow the President to direct nuclear forces. Its space segment includes satellites for missile warning, secure communications, and nuclear detonation detection.
“In a most disturbing scenario, the efficacy of commercial LEO satellites in supporting Ukraine could lead the Russians (or the Chinese in a Taiwan invasion, for instance) to assess that the greatest military effectiveness from the limited use of nuclear weapons would be to detonate just one in LEO,” the report stated.
A high-altitude nuclear blast could create widespread electromagnetic pulse effects and inject high-energy particles into Earth’s radiation belts, potentially crippling unprotected satellites, the authors warned. Low Earth orbit satellites between 160-2,000 km altitude are especially at risk due to their proximity.
“A high-altitude nuclear detonation would raise the peak radiation flux in parts of the Van Allen radiation belts by three to four orders of magnitude, cause the failure in weeks to months of most if not all LEO satellites not specifically hardened against this threat,” according to the report.
U.S. modernizing nuclear command technology
The U.S. is currently…
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