A dangerous Russian satellite which US officials suspect is linked to a nuclear anti-satellite weapons program is “spinning uncontrollably” in space. Secretive Cosmos 2553, which was set off by Russia ahead of the Ukraine invasion in 2022, is thought now to be no longer operational.
The tech is said to be strong enough to wipe out satellite networks including Elon Musk’s Starlink internet system, which has helped Ukrainians in the war. The latest concerns come after warnings from the US that the equipment aims to aid the development of a nuclear anti-satellite weapon. However, Vladimir Putin rejected the claims and said that Cosmos 2553 was for research purposes.
It is seen as a precursor to a weapon capable of a nuclear blast wiping out both military and civilian satellites supporting activities from financial transactions to weather forecasting.
It could be deployed to Russia’s massive advantage in the event of a new world war breaking out. The Russian defence ministry has refused to comment on the “stricken” satellite some 1,250 miles above Earth.
It has been suffering errant spinning for around a year, say American analysts using Doppler radar data from space-tracking firm LeoLabs, and optical data from Slingshot Aerospace.
The out-of-control satellite is reported to have a radar function for Russian military intelligence and to have radiation testing capabilities. While not itself a weapon, it is linked to Russia’s development of a nuclear anti-satellite weapon. Moscow has denied it is developing such a weapon and claimed Cosmos 2553 is for research purposes.
LeoLabs earlier reported that the satellite was showing errant movements, and in December said there was “high confidence” it was tumbling due to additional data.
“This observation strongly suggests the satellite is no longer operational,” according to the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank, referring to the LeoLabs analysis in its annual Space Threat Assessment.
“Slingshot noted that the object’s brightness became variable, indicating a potential tumble,” said a spokesman. Yet there were also suggestions that the satellite’s orbit had “stabilised”.
One theory is that Cosmos 2553’s role is to test components of a weapon that will carry a nuclear device. It is feared to be equipped with “onboard instruments and systems under development for their testing under conditions of exposure to radiation and heavy charged particles.”
Russia placed the satellite into orbit with a blast off from a Soyuz-2 rocket in February 2022, just days before Putin invaded Ukraine.
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