太空探索工程 卫星发射 剪报评论

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http://news.xinhuanet.com/newsce ... content_7265614.htm

巴西成功發射並回收一枚科學實驗火箭

2007年12月17日 10:06:56 　來源：新華網


新華網巴西利亞１２月１６日電（記者趙焱）巴西航天部門１６日在該國東北部的納塔爾發射場成功發射一枚ＶＳ－３０型實驗火箭，並隨後成功回收火箭的有效部分。此次發射是巴西和阿根廷的一項航天合作項目。

據巴西航天局發布的新聞公報說，火箭升空後經過９分２５秒的飛行，達到距地面１２１公裡的高度，在高空完成了阿根廷研究機構設計的一系列科學實驗，並對巴西的一個ＧＰＳ系統進行高空失重測試。隨後，巴西空軍和海軍成功回收了落入海中的火箭有效部分。火箭上攜帶的實驗艙將被運往阿根廷，供專家分析實驗結果。

ＶＳ－３０型火箭長８米，重１５００公斤，其體積遠遠小於巴西今年７月份在阿爾坎塔拉發射場順利發射卻未能成功回收的ＶＳＢ－３０型火箭。

此次發射是巴西火箭的首次商業發射。巴西航天局還計劃今後在納塔爾發射場和阿爾坎塔拉發射場增加科學實驗衛星的發射。


（責任編輯: 王宇航 ）

pfg1group

http://www.nanyang.com/index.php?ch=7&pg=11&ac=800199

东京27日讯-日本宇航探索局26日发表声明说，首颗月球探测卫星已经开始全面运行。

宇航探索局的声明说，绕月探测卫星“月亮女神号”上个周末开始执行主要探测使命。官员说，月亮女神计划绕月探测一年，采集月球成分、地理和地下结构的数据。数据将用来研究月球的起源和演变。声明简要地透露，主要的探测活动将延续10个月。此前该探月卫星已经拍摄高清晰“地出地落”照片，并将有关数据制成月球立体动画。

“月亮女神”号探测卫星在9月中旬发射升空，比原定计划推迟了4年。日本官员称，“月亮女神”是美国阿波罗探月计划以来的最大探月行动。日本政府设定目标，计划在2020年之前将一名宇航员送上月球。

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http://news.yam.com/rusnews/inte ... 20071227101801.html
俄新網RUSNEWS.CN俄羅斯飛行控制中心（莫斯科州科羅廖夫）12月26日電 據俄新社記者從俄羅斯飛行控制中心發來的報道，“進步M-62”號貨運飛船已經完成與國際空間站的自動對接。 俄羅斯自動對接系統運作順利。“進步M-62”號貨運飛船在規定時間內未經乘員操作而自動與國際空間站對接。飛船為空間站乘員不但送去了水、燃料、新的科學儀器、俄美共同生產的脫水食品、新鮮蔬菜和水果，而且還送去一批新年和聖誕禮物。 現在在國際空間站上值班的是第一位女性指令長佩吉·惠特森（Peggy Whitson）和俄羅斯宇航員尤里·馬連琴科。宇航員丹尼爾·塔尼（Daniel Tani）也在空間站上繼續工作。 俄羅斯聯邦航天署新聞處披露了送給空間站乘員新年禮物的一些詳情。其中，22日年滿46歲的馬連琴科將收到所喜愛的影碟、電視轉播錄像和音樂碟。據透露，在送給俄羅斯宇航員禮物當中，還有親人的家庭祝福錄像。 在眾多禮物當中，美國宇航員惠特森將收到以她的名字命名的小雪人，這個雪人的重量僅僅才100克重。

Space Station Cargo Ship Launches With Gifts, Supplies
http://www.space.com/missionlaun ... gress27-launch.html
MOSCOW. Dec 23 (Interfax-AVN) � The Russian-built Progress 27 cargo ship launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan with cargo for the International Space Station (ISS) has reached the Earth orbit, the Mission Control Center told Interfax-AVN.

"The Progress spacecraft has broken away from the rocket launcher's third stage and reached the orbit. Now it has to fly to the ISS, which will take about three days," an official said after the early Sunday launch.

A Russian Soyuz rocket launched the automated supply ship toward the ISS at 2:12 a.m. EST (0712 GMT).

Progress 27, designated M-62, is the fourth Russian cargo spacecraft sent to the ISS this year. Among the things carried on board the Progress spacecraft are food, fuel, scientific instruments for experiments, sanitary and hygiene products and medicines for the crew, including fresh underwear, personal hygiene products and medical equipment.

The spacecraft will also deliver to the ISS Christmas and New Year gifts for the crew, and birthday presents for Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko, who turned 46 on Saturday.

The U.S.-Russian crew on board the ISS consists of Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko and NASA astronauts Peggy Whitson and Daniel Tani.

On Jan. 20, 2008, it will be exactly 20 years since the first flight of the Progress spacecraft. The Russian cargo spacecraft was designed and manufactured by the Rocket and Space Corporation Energia.

Progress 27 is due to dock at the ISS early Wednesday at 3:25 a.m. EST (0825 GMT). The cargo ship will dock at the station's Russian-built Pirs docking compartment, which its predecessor - Progress 26 - freed up by departing the space station late Friday.

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Russia Launches New Navigation Satellites into Orbit
http://www.space.com/missionlaun ... proton-glonass.html

MOSCOW (AP) - Russia on Tuesday launched three satellites to complement its space navigation system, officials said.

The satellites were sent into orbit on a Proton-M rocket that blasted off successfully from the Baikonur launch pad in Kazakhstan, said Russia's Federal Space Agency spokesman Alexander Vorobyov.

They are to join Russia's Global Navigation Satellite System, or GLONASS - the equivalent of the U.S. Global Positioning System, or GPS.

The system, which serves both military and civilian purposes, was developed during Soviet times and is supposed to have 24 satellites. Their number dwindled after the 1991 Soviet collapse, but the government has earmarked funds to revive the system to its full strength thanks to Russia's windfall oil revenues.

Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov said that Tuesday's launch would bring the GLONASS satellite fleet to 18 - the number necessary to provide navigation services over the entire Russian territory. He said Monday that the system would be available worldwide by 2010, for which it would need to have 24 satellites.

俄羅斯發射三顆導航衛星
http://news.xinhuanet.com/newsce ... content_7314310.htm

007年12月26日 09:36:51 　來源：新華網


新華網莫斯科１２月２５日電（記者董愛波）俄羅斯２５日晚使用一枚“質子－Ｍ”運載火箭將三顆“格洛納斯”全球導航系統衛星發射升空。

據俄航天兵新聞處發布的消息，發射當晚在哈薩克斯坦境內的拜科努爾發射場進行。此次發射的３顆衛星將經過４５天調試後正式投入使用，屆時“格洛納斯”系統的導航范圍可以覆蓋９５％的俄國土面積和８６％的地球表面。

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俄航天署署長：全球導航衛星系統覆蓋俄90%的領土
http://news.yam.com/rusnews/international/200712/20071228106236.html

俄新網RUSNEWS.CN莫斯科12月27日電 俄羅斯聯邦航天署署長阿納托利·佩爾米諾夫在記者招待會上表示，俄全球導航衛星系統覆蓋俄羅斯90%的領土，並且覆蓋其它國家79.2%的領土。 佩爾米諾夫說：“目前全球導航衛星系統的衛星群覆蓋超過90%的俄羅斯領土和80%左右的其它國家領土。” 12月25日一次將三枚新的全球導航統衛星送入軌道，目前已開始出售俄羅斯生產的首批衛星導航儀。 根據聯邦專項計劃規定，全球導航衛星系統衛星群應該在2010年擴充至定額的24枚衛星。俄羅斯“格羅納斯”全球導航衛星系統和美國的GPS全球定位系統類似，都用于確定包括人在內的海上、空中和陸上目標的位置和速度，其精確度可達一米以內，靈活性和可靠性都很強。全球導航衛星系統將用于俄羅斯民用和軍事用途。

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私人宇航工业意外
The private spaceflight industry experienced its first fatal tragedy this year, when an explosion at the Mojave Air and Space Port killed three workers and injured three others at the aerospace firm Scaled Composites. The accident occurred during a standard propellant flow test for SpaceShipTwo, an air-launched space liner to carry six passengers on suborbital sorties, with an investigation to pin down the accident's cause still under way. Scaled is building the spacecraft with the firm Virgin Galactic, which has collected $31 million in deposits from future customers.

太空飞行舱的其他发展
Efforts to advance commercial spaceflight had somewhat mixed results, with the industry facing its first fatal accident (see No. 6) and funding woes for a NASA contract. Those challenges were accompanied by the Texas-based Blue Origin's successful test of its Goddard vehicle, the suborbital launch of an UP Aerospace rocket carrying the ashes of an astronaut and a Star Trek actor, and SpaceX's second launch of its Falcon 1 rocket in March, though that booster failed to reach its intended orbit.

The X Prize Foundation later announced a new $30 million Google Lunar X Prize, challenging engineers to build and launch successful lunar rovers capable of beaming home high-def images of the moon.

28/06/2007 可膨胀式试验太空站升空
The Las Vegas, Nev.-based firm Bigelow Aerospace launched back into the headlines in June 28, when a converted ballistic missile launched the inflatable space station prototype Genesis 2 into orbit. The spacecraft joined an earlier prototype, Genesis 1, launched in 2006. Its successful flight and rising costs in Russia prompted Bigelow Aerospace to accelerate plans to develop commercial orbital space stations for research, exploration and space tourism.
飞跃太阳系其他星球
While astronauts took center stage, three unmanned space probes flying across the solar system flew by three different planets and returned stunning images as they headed off to their distant targets. NASA's Pluto-bound New Horizons probe swung past the gas giant Jupiter on Feb. 28, while Europe's Rosetta probe flew by Earth in February and November to catch a speed boost for a 2015 comet rendezvous. NASA's MESSENGER Mercury probe, in the meantime, made a second pass by Venus as it spiraled inward toward Mercury.

16/02/2007 - 冰雹打穿太空梭燃料舱。
NASA stumbled through an inauspicious start for human spaceflight in 2007 when a freak hailstorm etched thousands of dings in a space shuttle fuel tank on Feb. 26, forcing months of repairs and launch delays. The arrest of former shuttle astronaut Lisa Nowak, accusations that astronauts drank just before space launches and other incidents prompted NASA chief Michael Griffin to remind the agency's workforce to stay focused during missions.

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1. 04/10/2007 人类太空工业50年纪念
On Oct. 4, the Space Age hit the half-century mark since the former Soviet Union inaugurated orbital flight with the launch of Sputnik - a shiny, silver, beeping satellite about the size of a beach ball. Since then, nations have raced each other to send astronauts to the moon, looked back on their home planet from a truly International Space Station and are once more targeting the moon as a waystation to Mars.

In 2007, NASA's 26-year-old space shuttle fleet stepped one year closer to a planned 2010 retirement, while its replacement vehicle - the capsule-based Orion and its Ares I rocket - moved a bit closer to reality. A host of commercial satellites and unmanned probes, meanwhile, continue to explore the solar system with plans to fly in 2008.

2.国际太空站的建造
After years of construction and delay, the International Space Station received its first new orbital room since 2001 in the form of Harmony - a vital connecting node that will serve as the anchor point for new European and Japanese laboratories.

The node was delivered in late October during NASA's STS-120 mission. To lay the groundwork for the node, NASA launched the STS-117 and STS-118 missions in June and August to deliver new solar arrays and spacer segments. The space station narrowly missed receiving its first new lab, the European Space Agency’s Columbus module, in early December when faulty sensors prevented the launch of space shuttle Atlantis.

3.火星探测车成功活过沙尘风暴
NASA's twin Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity survived another year on the red planet, but came perilously close to robotic death when massive dust storms brewed up during the summer months and blocked sunlight from reaching their power-generating solar panels. The rovers are now preparing to weather another martian winter. Meanwhile, NASA launched a new Mars mission, the Phoenix lander, on Aug. 4 to visit the red planet's arctic circle.

4.亚洲探月风潮
China's Chang'e 1 spacecraft following suit with an Oct. 24 liftoff. While some likened the close launches to the start of a new space race in Asia, the two moon probes are the vanguard of a new series of missions from many nations - including India and the U.S. - to explore the lunar surface.

5. 老师太空人
On Aug. 8, NASA educator astronaut Barbara Morgan (above) launched into space aboard NASA's shuttle Endeavour, ending a 22-year wait for the former Idaho schoolteacher. Originally selected as NASA's backup Teacher in Space in 1985, Morgan trained alongside New Hampshire high school teacher Christa McAuliffe for a 1986 launch. Tragically, McAulliffe and six NASA astronauts were killed when their space shuttle Challenger broke apart just after launch on Jan. 28, 1986.


http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/071214_spaceflight_2007_top10-1.html

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http://www.space.com/missionlaun ... -sensor-update.html

NASA Sets Plan for Shuttle Sensor Fix
By Tariq Malik
Staff Writer
posted: 27 December 2007
4:04 p.m. ET

NASA engineers will remove parts of a suspect fuel tank connector for analysis and repair, work that will likely further delay the planned January launch of the shuttle Atlantis, the agency's shuttle chief said Thursday.

Space shuttle program manager Wayne Hale told reporters that engineers will replace external components of an oversized electrical socket on Atlantis' fuel tank before setting a new launch date.

"This is probably going to not allow us to fly on Jan. 10," Hale said in an afternoon teleconference. "We're probably going to be a little bit after that."

A few extra days, or possibly weeks, will be required to complete the troubleshooting work, he added.

Atlantis' STS-122 construction flight to the International Space Station (ISS) has been delayed since December, when fuel gauge-like sensors failed standard countdown tests during two separate launch attempts. The sensors are vital, since they serve as a backup system to shut down a shuttle's three main engines before their fuel supply runs out.

Engineers tracked the intermittent glitch to a so-called "pass-through" connector that serves as a bridge for electrical connections running from the interior of Atlantis' fuel tank to the orbiter's aft-mounted avionics bay. The connector consists of internal and external electrical sockets that plug into a central glass plate with embedded metal pins.

"We believe we are experiencing intermittent electrical system open circuits in this arrangement," Hale said, adding that the glitch occurs only when Atlantis' fuel tank is fueled with its super-chilled liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen.

On Saturday, engineers will remove the pass-through connector's central plug and exterior wiring for additional tests in early January, Hale said.

"After the first of the year, when we start getting the first of these lab reports in, we will begin to have a handle on our no earlier than launch date," he added.

The leading repair option under discussion is a soldering method that will fuse the exterior electrical connections in the pass-through plug, which will avoid open circuits caused by the movement of pins when the fuel tank is fueled. A similar fix was used on Atlas-Centaur rockets when they experienced engine cutoff sensor glitches, Hale said.

"We have a high degree of confidence that that will solve our problems," he added.

Commanded by veteran shuttle flyer Stephen Frick, Atlantis' seven-astronaut crew is tasked with delivering the European Space Agency's Columbus laboratory to the ISS during a planned 11-day mission. The spaceflight will be the first of possibly six NASA shuttle flights slated for 2008.

"We're taking this one step at a time," said Hale, adding that any changes to the 2008 shuttle flight schedule are secondary to fixing the current sensor glitch. "Obviously, we'd like to fly as soon as it's practical and safe to do so."


A diagram of the engine cutoff (ECO) sensors inside the external tanks used by NASA's space shuttle. Credit: NASA.

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5.8百万将会用作推进技术研究。
http://www.flightglobal.com/arti ... -start-in-2009.html

Manned Mars mission lander development to start in 2009
By Rob Coppinger
NASA is planning to start development work for a manned Mars mission's Lander and its interplanetary Transfer Stage in the fourth quarter of 2009 as part of the agency's $125 million Propulsion and Cryogenics Advanced Development (PCAD) project.

According to a PCAD document obtained by Flight $5.8 million of the $125 million will be spent on "Mars propulsion technologies" for a Mars Lander and Transfer Stage. Initial development work is expected to begin in fiscal year 2010, which actually starts on 1 October 2009, with funding from October 2011, the start of fiscal year 2012. The $5.8 million is planned to be spent over FY2012 and FY2013.

This funding will be for "demonstrations and validation of engine performance levels" for engines on the "Mars Transfer Stage" and Lander descent and ascent stages. Under the 2007 Mars design reference architecture 5.0 NASA has been working on, the Lander would carry a crew to the surface as part of a 900-day mission to the red planet notionally launched in February 2031.

The PCAD document says: "The work will include a combination of experimental and analytical tasks. System and engine performance models will be developed, preliminary engine designs developed, individual risk reduction activities conducted and a first generation prototype engine developed."

According to the 5.0 architecture the Mars Lander would use an aerodynamic and powered descent method. This would likely use aerobraking, already proven with robotic Mars probes, for slowing the Lander initally at the uppermost reaches of the Martian atmosphere using a ballute for deceleration, followed by a series of parachutes and finally its descent module's propulsion system.

The Mars Transfer Stage and the Lander would be part of a 400,000kg (880,000lb) Marship that would be assembled in orbit using an Ares V cargo launch vehicle with a 10m (32.7ft) fairing. Capable of putting 125,000kg into low Earth orbit the Ares V would assemble the Marship with three or four launches.

Read about NASA's Mars mission planning and related Constellation Moon, Mars programme material at Flight technical reporter Rob Coppinger's Hyperbola blog

See images, not to be found on NASA's website, of the US space agency's Constellation vehicles that will send astronauts to the Moon and Mars at the airspace.aero Constellation gallery





[ 本帖最后由 pfg1group 于 28-12-2007 06:59 PM 编辑 ]

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http://tw.news.yahoo.com/article/url/d/a/071228/19/qpwq.html

（法新社莫斯科二十七日電） 俄羅斯太空總署署長今天表示，於國際太空站服役的俄羅斯太空梭，自二零零九年起將沒有多餘空間提供太空旅遊，太空觀光客之後可能要另覓他徑。


　　俄羅斯聯邦太空總署署長貝米諾夫在記者會上表示：「國際協定規定，自二零零九年起，如果日本及歐洲發射太空艙，國際太空站人員只能有六名成員。這樣一來就不再有空間容納太空遊客。」貝米諾夫並指出俄羅斯太空船和國際太空站旅遊行程將因此出現「嚴重問題」。


　　他說：「我擔心，目前的太空旅遊自二零零九年起可能就會中止。」


　　貝米諾夫指出，太空旅遊的需求量，即使目前索價高昂，仍然超過他所能提供的名額。


　　他說：「我們同意提供遊客太空旅遊之後，太多人想要旅行，我們無法滿足所有的要求。」


　　美國籍的狄托二零零一年飛上國際太空站，成為首位大空遊客，南非籍的夏特沃思隔年跟進，美國籍的歐森二零零五年成為登上太空的第三人，而美籍伊朗裔人士安薩里前年成為第四人。


美籍匈牙利裔的席孟義今年四月成為世界第五名太空遊客，並表示這趟價值兩千五百萬美元的旅行「棒極了」。

pfg1group

http://www.chinapress.com.my/con ... mp;art=0101mc68.txt

（吉隆坡31日訊）我國第二顆微型遙感衛星，即“拉薩衛星”（RazakSAT），預料明年中發射太空，屆時每100分鐘可攝錄大馬圖像一次。
“拉薩衛星”重達180公斤及有2.5m分辨率，預料明年中便可在馬紹爾群島共和國的歐姆雷克島，由運載火箭“獵鷹1號”（Falcon 1）發射。

“拉薩衛星”是由馬來西亞ATSB公司和韓國SATREC INTIATIVE公司，從2001年開始聯合開發。

原本當局計劃今年初發射這顆衛星，但因“獵鷹1號”的研發工作而展延。

發展拉薩衛星的成本是6000萬令吉。

目前，一顆商業衛星一天最多只能提供4次大馬圖像。

科學、工藝與革新部長拿督斯里賈瑪魯丁對《新海峽時報》說，目前大馬是向其他國家購買衛星圖像。

可調近距離
“我們在3年合約上需花費1800萬令吉，購買一顆衛星的圖像。如今我們要提升製造衛星的能力，自己攝錄圖像。”

他說，我國也為其他國家製造遙感衛星。

“我們非常興奮，如今我們有能力製造和出口。很多國家需要衛星圖像，以管制水災和經濟。”

我國第一顆自製遙感衛星TiungSAT，于2000年9月升空，它有4個相機，但只有78m分辨率，即只能攝錄到廣闊地區，如海洋和山脈。

馬來西亞ATSB公司高級總經理諾希占韓查對《新海峽時報》說，TiungSAT比較適合觀察氣象用圖；拉薩衛星則可調近距離。

他說，這樣的圖像可用作土地運用、森林及城市規劃用途，也對農業有幫助。



通過圖像擬防災策略
無需再向他國購買

拉薩衛星不但能為大馬節省數百萬令吉，也有助提升我國的衛星圖像技術。

馬來西亞遙感中心主任達魯斯阿末說，人造衛星可提供很多好處，例如能拍攝各國圖像的能力，然后為其他國家提供有關圖像。

“衛星圖像有許多用途，如顯示森林地區及遭海嘯侵襲的地區，然后通過這些圖像，擬定偵查非法伐木活動及鑑定水災風險區的策略。”

他指出，該中心所繪制的衛星圖像，將分別提供給相關部門，例如房屋與地方政府部可以通過衛星圖像，看見水災風險區，然后擬定更好的發展計劃。

他說，成本也是另一項因素，以往該中心須付錢給3個外國商業衛星，以獲所需的衛星圖像，但有了拉薩衛星后，該中心可免費獲取衛星圖像。

pfg1group

http://www.sinchew.com.my/conten ... ;artid=200801021076

（北京訊）據報導，包括楊利偉、費俊龍、聶海勝在內的中國第1批14名太空人，正在接受參與載人太空船“神舟七號”任務的選拔和訓練。

中新網報導，目前“神舟七號”已進入綜合測試階段。而用於發射“神舟七號”的長征二號F火箭，也按預定計劃組裝。

中國今年將發射“神舟七號”，並將首次進行太空人在太空漫步。

報導說，“神舟五號”和“神舟六號”太空人的任務主要是艙內操作和生活的自我照料，而從“神舟七號”開始，太空人的主動性活動增加，這對太空人的身體、技術和心理都提出了更高的要求。 （星洲日報/國際•2008.01.02）
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http://www.mingpaonews.com/20080103/cab1.htm

神七整體測試 年底太空漫步
【明報專訊】「神舟七號」載人飛船預定於今年10月發射，屆時中國太空人將首次走出太空艙進行太空漫步，此舉將成為中國載人航天工程的又一個里程碑。

14太空人嚴選3人

據悉，「神七」已進入綜合測試階段，目前已有包括楊利偉在內的14名太空人正接受選拔和訓練，據悉，屆時最後可能選出3名太空人。按照預定計劃，用於發射「神七」的「長征二號」F火箭正在全箭總裝。

據中新網報道，「神五」、「神六」載人飛船在太空中飛行時，太空人主要的任務是在太空艙內操作儀器，以及只能在艙內活動。而從「神舟七號」開始，中國太空人將首次走出太空艙進行太空漫步，此舉對太空人的身體、技術和心理都有更高的要求，包括楊利偉、費俊龍、聶海勝在內的14名太空人目前正接受選拔和訓練，確保到時太空漫步可以成功。

pfg1group

http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/g ... n%20Survey%20Begins

Selene Checkout Reveals Problems But Moon Survey Begins

Dec 27, 2007


Japan's Selene moon probe has begun its ten-month 'official exploration' of the moon. The satellite had entered a 100-km. circular orbit Oct.18, and was undergoing a two-month checkout period to verify all equipment was operating normally.

Although all instruments are working, minor problems have been found on two instruments, the X-ray Spectrometer (XRS) and Charged Particle Spectrometer (CPS). The XRS was initially designed to use four cameras simultaneously to gain a high spatial resolution to examine the elemental composition of the lunar surface. The checkout revealed that the use of all these cameras produces too much noise for observation.

But the project team has confirmed considerable noise reduction when using just one camera, and is working to see whether the problem can be resolved through programming. Although using just one camera cuts the spatial resolution about in half, officials say the equipment can still identify the elemental composition of the moon as designed.

The CPS has two instruments that observe solar and galactic cosmic rays and detect alpha rays to identify gas emanation from the moon. A heat-up problem has been found when the CPS is used for more than two hours, requiring the instrument to be turned off at intervals.

1个是噪音太多，另外一个则是过热现象。

pfg1group

http://www.sinchew.com.my/conten ... ;artid=200801040684

（華盛頓訊）美國太空總署（NASA）週四（1月3日）宣佈，“阿特蘭蒂斯”號太空梭相信將在1月杪或2月初發射。

NASA太空梭項目經理黑爾說，“阿特蘭蒂斯”號外部燃料箱需要更換連接電路，以修復感測器的讀數異常問題。如能順利完成修理，太空梭最早將在1月24日發射，但很可能推遲到2月初才會發射。

“阿特蘭蒂斯”號最初定於去年12月6日發射，為國際空間站送去由歐洲建造的“哥倫布”實驗艙。但燃料箱感測器異常迫使NASA數次推遲發射計劃。

pfg1group

http://tw.news.yahoo.com/article/url/d/a/080105/19/rb4r.html

（法新社首爾五日電） 於一九九九年十二月成功發射的南韓第一枚多功能實用衛星「阿里郎一號」，於觀測朝鮮半島八年後的上個月三十日，突然與地面控制局失去聯繫，在太空中消失得無影無蹤。


南韓航空宇宙研究院昨天表示，於一九九九年十二月二十一日成功發射的南韓第一枚多功能實用衛星「阿里郎一號」，於上個月三十日與地面控制局失去聯擊，在太空中消失。


據南韓「朝鮮日報」指出，南韓航空宇宙研究院透露，一直到上個月三十日為止的八年零十天裡，「阿里郎一號」在距離地面六百八十五公里的上空，每天繞著地球迴轉十四圈半，共圍繞地球轉了四萬兩千九百八十五圈，每天經過朝鮮半島上空四次，共拍攝約四十四萬張衛星照片。


報導指稱，與二零零六年七月發射的「阿里郎二號」衛星照片比較，雖然相形見絀，但作為第一枚完全憑借南韓技術觀測包括北韓在內整個朝鮮半島的多功能衛星，「阿里郎一號」具有特殊的意義，是南韓的驕傲。

pfg1group

其中6枚为全球定位卫星，3枚为通讯卫星。
没有说明多少枚为军事卫星。
另外有人太空任务2次，进步号发射5次。
俄罗斯中部的太空基地也在建造当中。]

Russia to launch 13 satellites in 2008
http://www.spacedaily.com/report ... es_in_2008_999.html

by Staff Writers
Moscow (UPI) Jan 4, 2007
The new year will be a busy one for the Russian space program with 13 satellite launches and two manned missions on the schedule.
The list released Friday by Russia's Federal Space Agency included six satellites that will provide global navigation services and another three that will handle broadcast and communications.

Russia's Interfax news agency said the manned Soyuz missions would be aimed at re-supplying the International Space Station. There will also be five Progress-M supply ships dispatched to the orbiting station.

There was no word on any expected military or intelligence satellite launches.

On the ground, the space agency will begin construction of a new space center in central Russia.

pfg1group

http://realtime.zaobao.com/2008/01/080108_05.shtml

（北京讯）中国国防科工委秘书长黄强昨日透露，中国今年在航天领域的计划是“15箭17星1船”，即发射15枚火箭、17颗卫星、1艘飞船。对于备受瞩目的神舟七号飞船，黄强表示，神舟七号载人航天飞行是今年国防科技领域的重大任务，各方面将全力以赴。

　　黄强还透露，探月工程二期实施方案已经编制完成，关键技术攻关也已提前启动。今年，中国将总结首次月球探测工程的成功经验，重点抓好嫦娥一号卫星长期在轨管理、数据传输处理和科学分析与应用。

pfg1group

http://tw.news.yahoo.com/article/url/d/a/080111/17/rogf.html

美國華盛頓時報11日報導，由於中國一年前進行的反衛星飛彈測試導致被擊碎的衛星殘骸散佈太空，兩枚美國衛星為此被迫緊急改變軌道，以免撞上這數千片殘骸。報導說，遭摧毀的中國風雲一號衛星威脅到地球詭道上的約800枚衛星，其中400枚是美國衛星。


中國是在1年前的今天進行反衛星測試。根據位在加州范登堡空軍基地的美國聯合太空任務中心表示，在去年4月6日，一枚商用通訊衛星Orbcomm FM 36在與風雲一號的殘骸區相隔僅40多公尺的狀況下，緊急改變軌道避免相撞。而在去年6月22日，美國太空總署的地球觀測衛星Terra也因為與殘骸區相隔僅30多公尺，被迫改變軌道。


上述的衛星改變軌道措施都是由地面控制人員進行。美國柯羅拉多州空軍太空指揮部的准將克里斯吉將軍表示，中國的反衛星測試在太空中製造出一片混亂，但目前沒有跡象顯示中方打算再進行更多類似的測試。他說，去年的測試讓環繞地球軌道的太空垃圾量增加了20％，估計這些殘骸在未來100年內都會對太空船與衛星造成威脅。


克里斯吉認為，中國的反衛星測試改變了美軍對雙邊軍事平衡的看法，目前美軍正致力於掌握中國的衛星殺手飛彈、陸基雷射、資訊戰和地面接收站攻擊能力的訊息。


美軍太空指揮部正在進行一系列的檢討，以便能因應未來可能對美國和盟邦的商用與軍事衛星的攻擊。這位一星將軍告訴華盛頓時報說：「我們已經了解現在所處的是一個競爭的環境」。


根據華時指出，美國情報機構在中國去年秘密發射飛彈進行測試前，就已經掌握到相關情報，但布希政府拒絕國務院要求阻止這項測試的呼籲，原因是擔心洩漏美國的間諜情報能力。美國政府後來決定透過外交管道向北京提出抗議，其他國家，包括日本、英國與印度也都加入美國的抗議行列。


北京正積極主張自己在中國領土上方的太空主權，使得美國與中國未來可能因此出現對立。美國有多枚情報與其它種類的衛星會越過中國上空，而中國在2006年12月曾對一枚美國衛星發射陸基雷射。一些估計指出，到了2010年時，中國將可以製造出足夠的太空武器，摧毀掉美國所有的低地球軌道衛星。

pfg1group

这篇文章为纪念中国反卫星试验一周年而写。
有很多详细资料，
例如中国大陆的发射卫星能力，
美国在太空的卫星数目，补射能力等等。
还有美国各类卫星在低中高度的数目和种类。
前后总共三篇。

part 1

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/01/inside-the-chin.html

How China Loses the Coming Space War (Pt. 1)
By Noah Shachtman January 10, 2008 | 10:54:00 PMCategories: Eye on China, Space   
A year ago to the day, China knocked a weather satellite out of orbit, and threw the international community into panic.  Some figured the satellite-killer test was the harbinger of a future war in space -- the kind of conflict that could cripple a tech-dependent United States military.   Geoffrey Forden, PhD -- an MIT research associate and a former UN weapons inspector and strategic weapons analyst at the Congressional Budget Office -- examines the possibilities of an all-out Chinese assault on American satellites.  This is part one.  Click for parts two and three.


High above Asia, as the bars and clubs of Beijing begin to fill up at the end of another work day, a US early warning satellite spots the tell-tale plume of a missile streaking out of the wastes of Western China.  Warning bells sound all through the Pentagon. Tensions have been running high between China and the United States, as the two countries struggle to resolve the latest installment of the Taiwanese crisis.  And China has had a run of unprecedented activity in space: the past two days have seen China launch four large missions into deep space, three within the last six hours.. Fortunately, a high-resolution American spy satellite will be over that second launch site within minutes, giving the US a unique ability to determine what is going on.  But even though tasking orders are given to photograph the suspected launch site, none are returned.  The satellite, code-named Crystal 3, no longer responds to commands.  Within minutes, US Space Command reports that four NAVSTAR/GPS satellites—used to guide American drones and precision bombs—have stopped broadcasting.  China’s space war against the United States has started.  

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For years, the American armed forces have worried about an attack on US satellites; this could be how it begins.  The United States military has become increasingly dependent on space.  It uses photo-reconnaissance satellites to observe potential adversaries, GPS satellites to guide munitions with pin-point accuracy, communications satellites to handle the flow of information into and out of a theater of operations, and early warning satellites to detect and track enemy missile launches to name just a few of the better known applications.  Because of this increasing dependence, many analysts have worried that the US is most vulnerable to asymmetric attacks against its space assets; in their view US satellites are “sitting ducks” without any sort of defense and their destruction would cripple the US military.  China’s test of a sophisticated anti-satellite (ASAT) weapon a year ago, Friday -- 11 January 2007, when it shot down its own obsolete weather satellite -- has only increased these concerns.  But is this true?  Could a country—even a powerful country like China that has demonstrated a very sophisticated, if nascent, ability to shoot down satellites at all altitudes—inflict anything close to a knock-out blow against the US in space?  And if it was anything less than a knock-out, how seriously would it affect US war fighting capabilities?

The answers to these questions should influence how the US responds to the threats China’s ASAT represents.  There is at least one way to answer these questions: “war-gaming” a massive Chinese attack on US satellites, where China is only limited by the laws of physics and the known properties of their ASAT, and see how much damage could be done.  Such an exercise also reveals what the US could do, and what it could not do, to minimize the consequences.  The results of my calculations are reported here.  They assume that China launches a massive attack and that everything works exactly as planned: every ASAT launches, the US does not respond until after the attacks are launched even though it will have overwhelming evidence ahead of time, and every ASAT hits its target.  Thus, this is a worst case scenario for the United States.  In the end, we'll show, the US would still has sufficient space assets to fight a major conventional war with China, even after such an attack.  America's military capabilities would be reduced, for a few hours at a time.  But they would not be crippled.  Back in 2001, a commission lead by Donald Rumsfeld warned of a "space Pearl Harbor," a single strike that could cripple America's satellite network.  It turns out, there is no such thing.

Let's start with what we know about China's ASAT capabilities today.  And we know quite a bit.  Because there are few, if any, secrets in space.  Amateurs around the world track most, if not all, of the classified US military satellites from their backyards, posting their positions on the internet. NORAD,is capable of tracking objects as small as four inches across. In fact, NORAD's measurements of the debris caused by China’s January 2007 test were posted on the web.  In the case of the Chinese test, the orbital tracks of that debris can be used to reveal the capabilities and limitations of China’s ASAT weapon by reconstructing the collision -- much like forensic scientists reconstruct a crime scene.  By backtracking the debris to the point where they all converge, we can determine the two most important aspects of the Chinese ASAT: how China destroyed that satellite, and just how capable its satellite-killer really is.

The interception was almost head on at a combined speed of almost 18,000 miles per hour.  The pieces of debris wound up with the greatest speeds—much higher than the original satellite.  This means that China accomplished the most sophisticated of space maneuvers: a hit-to-kill interception, the equivalent of hitting a bullet with a bullet.  This is equivalent to what the US is trying to develop in its national missile defense system and is much more sophisticated than the ASAT the Soviet Union was working in the 1980s: little more than a space mine that slowly snuck up on its target and detonated near by.

We also know that the ASAT was highly maneuverable.  Yes, the target satellite’s orbit was known well ahead of the interception.  However, that does not mean that the satellite’s position was known well enough that the ASAT did not need to steer itself to hit the target.  In fact, it is very likely that the interceptor needed to maneuver at high speeds, perhaps as much as six times the acceleration of gravity, to hit its target.  

The orbital speed of the target satellite, which is determined by its altitude, also provides us with significant insight into the interceptor’s capability.  The closing speed of the interception, which is a combination of the target satellite’s orbital speed and the speed of the interceptor, determines how much time is available to make final adjustments.  For instance, just one second before the collision on January 11th, the interceptor and target were five miles apart.  During that one second, the interceptor had to make any final adjustments to its trajectory to hit a target smaller than six feet across.  Any decrease in the closing speed makes the attack that much easier.  Since orbital speeds decrease with increasing altitudes, the Chinese interceptor would find it considerably easier to hit a target in higher orbit.  

Finally, the interceptor needed to track its target, so that it could determine where it should move to place itself in front of the obsolete weather satellite; we have a good sense of how that was done, too.  The most likely method it employed to track the oncoming satellite was an on-board telescope using visible light.  Locking onto a target this way -- as opposed to focusing on the infrared light emitted by the heat of the target, the way the US missile defense interceptor does -- imposes significant limitations on the system.  In particular, until it develops a far-infrared capability, which is probably decades away, its ASAT will be forced to attack satellites while they are in bright sunlight.  Indeed, even though the site from which the interceptor was launched was cloaked in darkness, the target satellite was high enough to be brightly illuminated by the sun.  Until China does develop better sensors, this imposes a very severe constraint on how and when it could attack other satellites: it must wait to attack low Earth orbit satellites when they are in bright sunshine.  Attacks against satellites in significantly higher orbits, such as GPS or geostationary satellites, are less constrained by this requirement since they are almost always in direct sunlight.

China has informally stated a number of times that it will “never do this again.”  But after having paid a very high price for testing the system once, both in resources and in political capital, it seems unlikely that they would abandon it altogether.  Fortunately for China, it can continue to develop the system—including its on board tracking, guidance, and control systems—in the guise of a missile defense system.  Such interceptions could be arranged at similar, or even greater, closing speeds as the January 2007 test.  Only now, China could arrange to have both the target and the interceptor collide when they are both in downward portions of their trajectories, much like the US does during its missile defense tests.  That way, they can test their system again – without creating orbital debris that might harm their own and other nation’s satellites.

-- Geoffrey Forden

pfg1group

If China and the US are going to come into armed conflict with each other in the next several decades, it will almost certainly be over the status of Taiwan.  China has, for instance, indicated that it would be willing to use force if Taiwan took steps to formalize its independence from the main land or otherwise prevent its eventual reunification under the rule of the People’s Republic.  In such a scenario, it is entirely likely China could consider trying to negate or drastically reduce the US ability to use space at a tactical level.  



But China could not launch the massive attack required to have anything like a significant effect on US ability to utilize space without months of careful planning and pre-positioning of special, ASAT carrying missiles around the country.  It would also have to utilize its satellite launch facilities to attack any US assets in deep space: the GPS navigation satellites and communications satellites in geostationary orbit.  Most importantly, it would have to time the attack so as to hit as many US satellites as simultaneously as possible.  And, despite all that movement, Beijing would somehow have to keep the whole thing secret.  Failure to do so would undoubtedly result in the US attacking the large, fixed facilities China needs to wage this kind of war before the full blow had been struck.  Even if the United States failed to do so, China would undoubtedly plan for that contingency.  

Based on the orbits of US military satellites determined by the worldwide network of amateur observers, there appears to be a large number of low Earth orbit military satellites over China several times each week.  To hit them, China would have to preposition its ASAT-tipped missiles and their mobile launchers in remote areas of China, one position for each satellite.  (If reports of low reliabilities for these missiles are correct, two or more missiles might be assigned to each satellite.)  Furthermore, these positions are really only suitable for a particular day.  If China’s political and military planners have any uncertainty at all about which day to launch their space war, they would need to pre-position additional launchers around the country.  Thus, attacking nine low Earth orbit satellites could require as many as 36 mobile launchers—enough for two interceptors fired at each satellite with a contingency day if plans change—moved to remote areas of China; areas determined more by the satellite orbits than China’s network of road.  (As will be discussed below, nine is about the maximum they could reasonably expect to hit on the first day of the space war.)



At the same time that China would be trying to covertly move its mobile missile launchers around the country, it would also have to assemble a fleet of large rockets -- ones normally used for launching satellites. The more large rockets China uses for this task, the more deep-space satellites it can destroy.  At present, however, China only has the facilities for assembling and launching a total for four such rockets nearly simultaneously.  Two would have to be assembled out in the open where they could be observed by US spy satellites and two could be assembled inside a vertical assembly building during the 18 days it takes to stack and fuel the Long March rocket’s stages while preparing to launch. [See right.] Even the two assembled indoors would need to arrive by train and eventually would have to be moved, one after the other, to the launch pad.  Each of these rockets, usually reserved for launching satellites into geostationary orbits, could carry three to four interceptors and their special orbital maneuver motors to attack either US navigation satellites, at about 12,000 miles altitude, or communications satellites at about 22,000 miles.   

Four days prior to the attack, China would launch the first of its Long March rockets carrying deep-space attack ASATs; the same launch pad would have to be used for the second rocket stacked inside the vertical assembly building.  As the technicians renovated that pad, the first rocket’s payload would circle the Earth in a parking orbit at about 200 miles altitude waiting to be joined by the other deep-space ASATs.  This would appear to be a tell-tale sign of an impending strike.  But China could explain the delay to the international community by claiming that the third stage, intended to take the payload it its final altitude, had failed to fire and that they were working on it.    Roughly six hours before the first the attack on the US’s low Earth orbit military satellites, the other three Long March rockets would have to be fired since it takes roughly that long to get their payloads up to their target’s orbits.  Delays or failures to launch any of these rockets would strand their interceptors on the launch pad and subject them to possible retaliatory bombing by the US.

If all goes as planned, China would have launched between 12 and 16 ASATs, each capable of destroying a strategically important deep-space satellite. However, the United States military has many, many more deep space satellites.   There are, as of December 2007, 32 functioning GPS navigation satellites even though the original design calls for only 24. [See above, left]  In addition, the US has 23 military communications satellites, six early warning satellites that observe missile launches, and six surveillance satellites—most of which detect and monitor electronic transmissions of potential adversaries but one, apparently capable of photo-reconnaissance—in geostationary orbit. These satellites are reinforced by a private network of  90 commercial communications satellites, owned and operated by US corporations, that presumably could be used to replace destroyed military communications satellites.  (Eighty-four percent of the space communications to military forces in the Iraqi theater of operations during Operation Iraqi Freedom used commercial satellites.)  On top of that, there are 75 civilian and the 64 military/civilian communications satellites in low Earth orbit— although they do not have the same transmission capacity as the geostationary satellites.  The United States may be the country most dependent on space for its military activities.  But it is also the least vulnerable, because of the tremendous redundancy of its space assets.

Of course, China does not have to destroy all these satellites to seriously hamper US military efforts in the Taiwan Straits.  It would only have to destroy those satellites that have a direct line of sight to the conflict: this includes eight military and 22 US civilian communications satellites in geostationary orbits.  Nevertheless, China would have to choose between attempts to destroy the satellites that guide US precision guided bombs and those satellites which relay the orders to drop those bombs.  It simply cannot launch enough ASATs to destroy both systems.

pfg1group

But does China have enough to wipe out even a single set of American satellites?  Let’s examine the possibilities:

Attacking Navigation Satellites
You need a launch pad to attack a target in deep space, like an American GPS satellite.  China has just three of these pads. This really restricts China’s offensive capabilities in space.  Assuming that China devotes all its deep-space ASATs on GPS satellites, it could destroy at most 16 satellites.  At the current time, with 32 functioning navigation satellites, that would still leave 16 satellites still working. Over a period of years, the debris from those collisions would represent a significant threat to more than those satellites immediately attacked.  They would pass, time and time again, through the belts of debris that resulted from the interceptions.  However, it would probably take longer than the military conflict China initiated with these attacks before additional satellites were destroyed by subsequent collisions.

Usually, there are about nine GPS satellites over China at any given time.  If China somehow managed to destroy all of these, it could eliminate America's use of precision-guided munitions—for a few hours, until the orbits of other GPS satellites take them over the Taiwan Straits.  Quite quickly, the constellation’s other 23 satellites would fill in the gap due to their normal orbital movement.  Even if it destroyed 16 satellites, China could still only interrupt GPS over the Straits for about eight hours. During the other 16 hours there would be the four or more satellites present over the target area for bombing runs, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) flights, and ship tracking.  This pattern of eight hours off followed by 16 hours when GPS could be used would be repeated every day until new satellites are launched.  This outage would certainly cause difficulties; GPS not only guides American precision bombs – it helps pilot UAV spy planes, and monitor ships. US casualties might increase , with air crews forced to fly missions during daylight hours – and conduct some of the "dull, dirty, and dangerous" missions now flown by robotic planes. It's a situation no American commander would want to face.  But it would not be a catastrophic one.  And it would not eliminate precision weaponry, UAVs, or any other American activity that depends on GPS.   

Keep in mind, this is the worst of the worst-case scenarios.  It is highly unlikely that China could remove all the satellites over the conflict area at the same time.  After all, attacking 16 satellites, all in different orbits with ASATs launched on just four different rockets involves some fairly complex orbital maneuvers.  A much more likely scenario is that, at best, China could destroy four GPS satellites in the initial wave followed roughly seven hours later by four more, a third wave at roughly 45 minutes after that, and the final wave two hours later.  Thus, the GPS attack is spread over ten hours and never eliminates all the satellites visible over the area of conflict at the same time.  This Chinese attack on US navigation satellites would not eliminate or even significantly degrade the US’s ability use precision-guided munitions..

Attacking Communications Satellites
While it is possible for China to eliminate the eight US military communications satellites in geostationary orbits that can broadcast to the Taiwan Straits, Beijing does not have enough the lauch capacity for as many ASATs  as it would take to eliminate all 22 civilian communications satellites that could also be used.  However, not all of these satellites have equal capacities for transmitting information; it might be possible for China to destroy enough of that capacity to limit the US military.  

During the invasion of Iraq in 2003, US armed forces sent and received a tremendous amount of information via satellite.  This included video conferencing between the Pentagon and the commanders in the field, satellite photographs downloaded to operations planners, orders directing jets where to drop their bombs, and soldiers emailing their families back home.  At its peak, all of this added up to about three billion “bits” per second, a tremendous amount of information. Bandwidth was – and continues to be – a premium on the battlfield, particularly at the tactical level.  And the appetite for information is only increasing. But the total amount of information transmitted over satellites is certain to increase by the next time we go to war; perhaps it could triple or even quadruple to twelve billion bits per second in the next ten years.

Assuming that the eight military communications satellites are destroyed first, that leaves at most eight ASATs to destroy the eight most capable civilian communications satellites.  If these eight are removed, then there is still a total capacity of over 14 billion bits per second in US owned and operated civilian communications satellites.  Thus, there should be enough transmission capacity for our military -- even if the demand for satellite communications increases by a factor of four.  And the US military is used to using civilian satellites, as the 2003 invasion of Iraq showed.   The vast majority (84%) of all military communications into and out of the theater of operations went through civilian satellites.

Attacking Early Warning Satellites
The United States has five satellites in geostationary orbit that detect missile launches using the heat released from their exhaust plumes.  These satellites are primarily used to alert US nuclear forces to massive nuclear attacks on the homeland.  However, in recent years, they have played an increasing role in conventional conflicts, such as both Gulf Wars, by cueing tactical missile defenses like the Patriot missile defense systems that gained fame in their engagements with Saddam’s SCUD missiles.  Because of this new use, China might find it useful to attack them with ASATs.  Since there are only five of them, China could destroy the entire constellation but at the cost of diverting some of the few available deep-space ASATs from other targets.  Of course, China would not have to attack all five but could limit its attack to the three that simultaneously view the Taiwan Straits area.

If China did decide to destroy these early warning satellites, it would greatly reduce the area covered by US missile defenses in Taiwan against SCUD and longer range missiles.  This is because the area covered by a theater missile defense system is highly dependent on the warning time it has; the greater the warning time, the more effective the missile defense system’s radar is.  Thus a Patriot battery, which might ordinarily cover the capital of Taiwan, could be reduced to just defending the military base it was stationed at.  Some analysts believe that China would gain a tremendous propaganda coup by having a single missile make it through US defenses and thus might consider this use of its deep-space ASATs highly worthwhile even if it could not increase the probability of destroying military targets.  On the other hand, China would run a tremendous risk of the US believing it was under a more general nuclear attack if China did destroy these early warning satellites.

Throughout the history of the Cold War, the US has had a policy of only launching a “retaliatory” nuclear strike if an incoming attack is detected by both early warning satellites and radars.  Without the space leg of the early warning system, the odds of the US misinterpreting some missile launch that it detected with radar as a nuclear attack would be greatly increased even if the US did not view the satellite destruction as a sufficiently threatening attack all by themselves.  Such a misinterpretation is not without precedent.  In 1995, Russia’s early warning radars viewed a NASA sounding rocket launch off the coast of Norway and flagged it as a possible Trident missile launch.  Many analysts believe that Russia was able to not respond only because it had a constellation of functioning early warning satellites.  Any Chinese attacks on US early warning satellites would risk both intentional and mistaken escalation of the conflict into a nuclear war without a clear military goal.