Flexing Muscle, China Destroys Satellite in Test

Without warning, China destroyed one of its own aging weather satellites in space – thus achieving a technological milestone and demonstrating that it can destroy other satellites in space. The US and Russia conducted similar tests during the 1980s, and the US has since worked on anti-missile defense systems for space. Analysts suggest that the Chinese test could be a way to encourage the US to join negotiations on a global treaty banning weapons in space, previously described as unnecessary by the Bush administration. The fact that such tests leave debris in space for decades, interfering with other satellite transmissions, is a practical reason for agreement among nations to ban space weapons. – YaleGlobal