Mission Shakti
The anti-satellite missile lifting off on 27 March 2019 from Abdul Kalam Island as part of Mission Shakti.
Planned byIndia
ObjectiveDestruction of target live satellite (suspected Microsat-R)
Date27 March 2019
11:10 – 11:13 (IST)
Executed byPDV Mk-II anti-ballistic missile
OutcomeSatellite destroyed successfully

On 27 March 2019, India tested an anti-satellite weapon (ASAT) during an operation code named Mission Shakti (IAST: Śakti; lit. "Power").[1][2] The target of the test was a satellite present in a low Earth orbit, which was hit with a kinetic kill vehicle.

The ASAT test utilized a modified anti-ballistic missile interceptor code-named Prithvi Defence Vehicle Mark-II which was developed under Project XSV-1. The test made India the fourth country after the United States, Russia and China to have tested an ASAT weapon.

The test sparked concerns regarding the creation of space debris. The Indian government tried to address these concerns by saying that the debris generated from the test would not last for a long duration.

India's successful demonstration of the ASAT capability is said to signify its ability to intercept an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). The ASAT weapon is meant to act as a deterrent.

Background

The Indian anti-satellite (ASAT) program utilized spin off technologies from Indian ABM systems. India is developing a multi-layered and multi-phased missile defence system to defend against hostile ballistic and cruise missiles. The exo-atmospheric interceptors meant to be used against ICBMs, which have lofted trajectories and fly at high altitudes, can also be used to intercept satellites.[3]

In response to threats posed by missile systems from China and Pakistan, India began to work on its BMD program in 1999.[4] In 2006 and 2007, India tested its first exo atmospheric interceptor Prithvi Air Defence (PAD) and endo atmospheric interceptor Ashwin/Advanced Air Defence respectively.[5] In 2009, India began to work a new exo atmospheric interceptor called Prithvi Defense Vehicle (PDV) similar to Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD).[6]

India had begun work on an ASAT soon after the 2007 Chinese anti-satellite missile test.[7] In a televised press briefing during the 97th Indian Science Congress in Thiruvananthapuram, the Defence Research and Development Organisation Director General Rupesh announced that India was developing the necessary technology that could be combined to produce a weapon to destroy enemy satellites in orbit. On 18 March 2008, DRDO Director-General and Scientific Advisor to the Defence Minister V. K. Saraswat hinted that India possessed technology required for an ASAT missile.[7] On 10 February 2010, Saraswat stated that India had "all the building blocks necessary" to integrate an anti-satellite weapon to neutralize hostile satellites in low Earth orbit and polar orbits. India is known to have been developing an exo-atmospheric kill vehicle that can be integrated with the missile to engage satellites.[8] In April 2012, DRDO's chairman V. K. Saraswat said that India possessed the critical technologies for an ASAT weapon from radars and interceptors developed for Indian Ballistic Missile Defence Programme.[9] In July 2012, Ajay Lele, an Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses fellow, wrote that an ASAT test would bolster India's position if an international regime to control the proliferation of ASATs similar to NPT were to be established. He suggested that a low-orbit test against a purpose-launched satellite would not be seen as irresponsible.[10]

In 2014, India carried out the maiden test of PDV.[11] First real time interception test was carried out against a maneuvering target in 2017, followed by another test in 2019.[12][13] In 2017, India had lost contact to one of its key imaging satellites, RISAT-1.

In 2016, the Indian Government approved a program codenamed Project XSV-1 for an ASAT test.[14] A modified version of the PDV similar to the midcourse ground-based interceptor, officially named PDV MkII was tested against a satellite on 27 March 2019.

DRDO has also been working on directed energy weapons, electromagnetic pulse and co-orbital weapons for ASAT roles.[15]

Specifications

The ASAT missile, designated Prithvi Defence Vehicle Mark-II, lifting off to intercept the satellite. It is a part of the Indian Ballistic Missile Defence Programme.

The interceptor struck a test satellite at a 283 km (176 mi) altitude in low Earth orbit (LEO), thus making Mission Shakti a successful ASAT missile test. The interceptor was launched at around 05:40 UTC at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Abdul Kalam Island and hit its target after 168 seconds. Microsat-R was the suspected target of the test.[16][17][18] The missile system was developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) — a research wing of the Indian defence services.[19] Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation on television, announcing the test.[20][2] With this test, India became the fourth nation after United States, Russia and China with proven anti-satellite (ASAT) capabilities.[21]

Interceptor

India officially confirmed that the ASAT missile used in the test is a Ballistic Missile Defence interceptor and is part of the Indian Ballistic Missile Defence Programme.[22] The interceptor has the designation of Prithvi Defence Vehicle (PDV) Mark-II.[23][24]

The interceptor missile involved in the test had a hit-to-kill capable Kinetic kill vehicle. Thus the missile, by nature, was a direct-ascent anti-satellite weapon.[25] It had a length of 13 m (43 ft) and a diameter of 1.4 m (4 ft 7 in). Being a three-stage missile, it was fitted with two solid-propellant rocket motor stages and the Kill vehicle. The combined weight of the first and the second stages is 17.2 tons, with the third stage weighing 1.8 tons. The first two stages can carry 16.7 tons of fuel.[26][27][28] DRDO Chief G. Satheesh Reddy said that although some previously developed sub-technologies were used as a basis, the interceptor was a completely new missile.[25]

ASAT being displayed during the Republic Day Parade, 2020.

As per DRDO, the missile was capable of shooting down targets moving at a speed of 10 km/s (6.2 mi/s) at an altitude as high as 1,200 km (750 mi). However, in order to minimize the threat of debris, the interception was performed against an object moving at 7.4 km/s (4.6 mi/s) at an altitude below 300 km (190 mi).[27] DRDO Chief G. Satheesh Reddy said that the propulsive power of the interceptor missile can be increased to make it capable of targeting satellites at medium altitudes.[29]

The missile reportedly hit the satellite with an accuracy of less than 10 cm (3.9 in), which is comparable with the best reported performance of ASAT missiles.[27] Some reports stated that the achieved accuracy was of a few centimetres.[25]

According to DRDO Chief G. Satheesh Reddy, the interceptor missile is capable of shooting down all the satellites present in low Earth orbit.[30]

Kill vehicle

The kill vehicle constituted the third stage of the interceptor missile. It had an advanced terminal guidance system on board, including a non-gimballed strap down imaging infrared seeker and an inertial navigation system that used ring-laser gyroscopes, which detected and tracked the Microsat-R satellite in low Earth orbit.[28][27]

Course corrections to the Kill Vehicle's trajectory were made using a thrust-vector system. Large thrusters present at the top of the Kill Vehicle's rear cylindrical body at approximately its centre of gravity and smaller thrusters present near the back of the Kill Vehicle were used.[28][27] The Kill Vehicle has the capability to destroy targets in the entire low Earth orbit region.[31]

Solid rocket motor

Solid-propellant rocket motors formed the first two stages of the interceptor missile. These rocket motor stages took the ASAT missile to the required height and velocity. After that, the nose tip heat shield was ejected and the IIR seeker of the Kill Vehicle locked onto the satellite.[28][27] The solid rocket booster used is a derivative of the technology first developed for Sagarika missile.[32]

Composite propellant

PDV MkII uses a new generation of composite propellant that High Energy Materials Research Laboratory (HEMRL) started working on during the development phase of K Missile family. The solid fuel is highly efficient and can provide more energy compare to the fuel used in Agni missile series.[32]

Target satellite

Microsat-R in satellite preparation facility.

The target of the test was Microsat-R, a satellite which was launched by ISRO on 24 January 2019.[33][34] This satellite was built to serve the purpose of the test which was not disclosed to Indian Space Research Organisation.[33][25][27][35][36] India didn't specify the name of target satellite immediately after test and merely announced that it shot down a "live" Indian satellite.[37][22] The relative velocity between the missile and Microsat-R was around 10 km/s (6.2 mi/s).[25]

Shooting down a satellite approximately present in a 300 km (190 mi) low Earth orbit is more challenging than shooting down a satellite present in a higher orbit.[36] The transverse orbital speed of a satellite is inversely proportional to its distance from the centre of Earth, which is a direct consequence of the law of conservation of angular momentum, or equivalently, Kepler's second law.[38]

Aftermath

Space debris

In a statement released after the test, Indian Ministry of External Affairs said that the test was conducted at low altitude to ensure that the resulting debris would "decay and fall back onto the Earth within weeks".[39][22]

According to Jonathan McDowell, an astrophysicist at Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, some debris might persist for a year, but most should burn up in the atmosphere within several weeks.[40] Brian Weeden of Secure World Foundation agreed, but warned about the possibility of some fragments getting boosted to higher orbits. U.S. Air Force Space Command said that it was tracking 270 pieces of debris from the test,[41] although as of 26 September 2019 only 125 objects have been catalogued.[42] A Dutch Space Situational Awareness consultant Marco Langbroek disputed DRDO's claim that the test was responsible. He said that the intercept was not "head on", which would have minimized debris ejection to higher altitudes, but was instead conducted at an upwards angle.[43] He added that most of the debris would be cleared within days, but some might last a year or two.[43]

According to NASA, 49 tracked pieces of debris remained in orbit as of 15 July 2019. Indian missile experts criticised this claim by mentioning that debris was generated in similar tests by the U.S., adding that the debris doesn't pose a threat to any spacecraft because it is in a very low orbit.[44]

As of 26 September 2019, there were 50 tracked pieces of debris in orbit but 9 of them were lost (no updates for more than 30 days) according to astrodynamicist T. S. Kelso.[42]

As of March 2022, only one catalogued piece of debris from Microsat-R remains in orbit: COSPAR 2019-006DE, SATCAT 44383. This final piece decayed from orbit 14 June 2022.

Defence Space Agency

India has created the Defence Space Agency to develop capabilities required to protect its interests in outer space and to deal with the threat of space wars.[45] India conducted its first simulated space warfare exercise on 25th and 26 July 2019, called IndSpaceEx. The exercise was conducted by the Integrated Defence Staff. The exercise is expected to lead to an assessment of threats and the creation of a joint space warfare doctrine.[46][47]

Further ASAT development

Indian Stamp in 2020

India is reportedly working on directed energy ASAT weapons, co-orbital ASAT weapons, lasers and electromagnetic pulse (EMP) based ASAT weapons. The ability to protect space assets from hostile electronic and physical attacks is also being developed.[48]

Spying incident

Aircraft Spots, which monitors military-related aircraft movements, said that a United States Air Force reconnaissance aircraft from the Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia flew on "a mission in the Bay of Bengal to monitor India's anti-satellite missile test".[49] This was denied by the United States Department of Defense.[50]

Reactions

Neighbourhood of India

People's Republic of China

China reacted cautiously to the test. The Chinese Foreign Ministry said that it has noticed reports about the test and was hopeful that all countries will uphold peace and tranquility in outer space.[51]

However, state-run media of China highlighted the 'double standards' of the Western world. It said that the West did not criticize India as much as it criticized China for its ASAT 2007 test because it viewed the test from a "China-India competition perspective".[52]

Pakistan

Pakistan asserted that space is a common heritage of mankind, saying that every nation has the duty to refrain from actions that lead to the militarization of space. Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that boasting of such capabilities is useless, invoking the English idiom Tilting at Windmills.[53] Pakistan also hoped that countries which have condemned such tests by other countries before "will be prepared to work towards developing international instruments to prevent military threats relating to outer space".[54]

Other countries

Russia

Russia acknowledged India's statement on the test not being targeted against any nation and invited India to join the Russian–Chinese proposal for a treaty against weaponisation of space.[55]

United States

Following the test, acting United States Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan warned about the risks of space debris caused by ASAT tests, but later added that he did not expect debris from the Indian test to last.[56][57] The United States Department of State acknowledged Ministry of External Affairs' statement on space debris and reiterated its intention to pursue shared interests in space including on space security with India.[58] Jim Bridenstine, the head of NASA, called the Indian ASAT test a "terrible thing", pointing out that debris from the explosion endangers other satellites and the International Space Station (ISS).[59][60]

Acting U.S. Strategic Command commander General John E. Hyten told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee that the Indians conducted the ASAT test because they were "concerned about threats to their nation from space" while responding to a question from senators on the need for India to do such tests.[61]

Significance

A 2020 Indian stamp dedicated to the ASAT test.

The test is considered to hold significance due to the following reasons:[62]

  • It gives India the capability to degrade and destroy the communication, reconnaissance and intelligence gathering capabilities of countries by taking out their space-based assets. It is a deterrent in effect,[36] deterring similar actions by hostile nations.[25][63]
  • The test potentially enables India to claim the right to be involved in the formation of future international norms and guidelines with regards to militarisation of outer space.[65][66]

See also

References

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  2. 1 2 "Narendra Modi announces success of Mission Shakti, India's anti-satellite missile capability". The Hindu. 27 March 2019. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 16 September 2019. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
  3. ↑ "Mission Shakti: Technology demonstrator or new weapon in the arsenal?". DailyO. 29 March 2019. Archived from the original on 27 April 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  4. ↑ Jay Desai (6 January 2023). "Complexities of Indian Ballistic Missile Defence". Centre for Air Power Studies. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  5. ↑ Ratliff, Ben. "India successfully tests missile interceptor". International Herald Tribune. Archived from the original on 10 March 2009. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  6. ↑ "DRDO readies shield against Chinese ICBMs". India Today. 9 March 2009. Archived from the original on 16 March 2011. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  7. 1 2 Shukla, Ajai (28 March 2019). "India successfully tests ASAT missile, joins space superpower club". Business Standard India. Archived from the original on 14 August 2019. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  8. ↑ "Why India Needs to Demonstrate Anti Satellite (ASAT) Capability - Publicly - Strategic Frontier Research Foundation". 12 February 2015. Archived from the original on 22 December 2017. Retrieved 11 June 2015.
  9. ↑ Unnithan, Sandeep (27 April 2012). "India has all the building blocks for an anti-satellite capability". India Today. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  10. ↑ Lele, Ajay (11 July 2012). "Should India Conduct an ASAT Test Now?". idsa.in. Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  11. ↑ "India Successfully Test-Fires New Interceptor Missile". news.outlookindia.com. Archived from the original on 28 April 2014. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
  12. ↑ "India successfully test-fires interceptor missile". The Times of India. 11 February 2017. Archived from the original on 2 May 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  13. ↑ "India test fires high speed interceptor missile off Odisha coast". Archived from the original on 12 February 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  14. ↑ "DRDO's top secret A-SAT mission codenamed 'Project XSV-1'". OnManorama. 29 March 2019. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
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  21. ↑ Peri, Dinakar (27 March 2019). "Successful anti-satellite missile test puts India in elite club". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 11 August 2019.
  22. 1 2 3 "Frequently Asked Questions on Mission Shakti, India's Anti-Satellite Missile test conducted on 27 March 2019". Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India. Archived from the original on 10 April 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
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  31. ↑ Peri, Dinakar (26 March 2021). "Two years since ASAT test, DRDO working on several key space technologies". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  32. 1 2 Unnithan, Sandeep (31 December 2021). "The 'K' factor in the recent missile tests". India Today. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  33. 1 2 "Mission Shakti Ebook (Anti-Satellite Missile)" (PDF). 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  34. ↑ "PSLV-C44 / Microsat-R & Kalamsat-V2 Mission" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 November 2022. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  35. ↑ "Mission Shakti: India Likely Destroyed Microsat R Satellite in First ASAT Test". The Wire. Archived from the original on 7 August 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
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  38. ↑ Gravity. New York: Anchor Books, Doubleday & Co. 1962. p. 66. ISBN 0-486-42563-0. "...the motion of planets along their elliptical orbits proceeds in such a way that an imaginary line connecting the Sun with the planet sweeps over equal areas of the planetary orbit in equal intervals of time".
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  42. 1 2 T.S.Kelso [@TSKelso] (28 September 2019). "Six months after the Indian ASAT test, 125 pieces have been cataloged and 50 are still shown as on orbit. Nine are lost (TLEs over 30 days old) and more could be joining them soon" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  43. 1 2 Langbroek, Marco (30 April 2019). "Why India's ASAT Test Was Reckless. Publicly available data contradicts official Indian assertions about its first anti-satellite test". The Diplomat. Archived from the original on 6 May 2019. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
  44. ↑ "Nasa says 49 debris from A-Sat test still in space, Indian missile expert slams report". The Times of India. 26 August 2019. Archived from the original on 26 August 2019. Retrieved 26 August 2019.
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  46. ↑ "Eye on China, India set to kickstart 1st space war drill". The Times of India. 24 July 2019. Archived from the original on 25 August 2019. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
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  52. ↑ Chaudhury, Dipanjan Roy (30 March 2019). "State-run Chinese media decries West double standards on Anti-Satellite Missile Test". The Economic Times. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  53. ↑ "Mission Shakti: How China and Pakistan reacted". The Times of India. 27 March 2019. Archived from the original on 22 August 2019. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  54. ↑ "India claims to shoot down satellite, join "space superpowers"". Dawn. 27 March 2019. Archived from the original on 7 August 2019. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  55. ↑ Chaudhury, Dipanjan Roy (29 March 2019). "Russia puts onus on U.S. for early outer space rules after India's test". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  56. ↑ Stewart, Phil (28 March 2019). "U.S. studying India anti-satellite weapons test, warns of space debris". Reuters. Archived from the original on 29 March 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  57. ↑ Stewart, Phil (28 March 2019). "U.S. sees India space debris from weapons test eventually burning up". Reuters. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  58. ↑ "US adopts neutral stand on "Mssion Shakti", to continue space collaboration with India". The Hindu Business Line. 28 March 2019. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 22 April 2019.
  59. ↑ "'A terrible thing': India's destruction of satellite threatens ISS, says Nasa". The Guardian. 2 April 2019. Archived from the original on 23 April 2019. Retrieved 21 April 2019.
  60. ↑ Schultz, Kai (2 April 2019). "NASA Says Debris From India's Antisatellite Test Puts Space Station at Risk". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 6 May 2019. Retrieved 4 December 2019.
  61. ↑ "ASAT Test: Pentagon defends India's A-Sat test, says country is concerned over "threats" in space". The Times of India. 12 April 2019. Archived from the original on 25 August 2019. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
  62. ↑ Pant, Harsh V. "India's Leap in Space: The Significance of the First Indian Anti-Satellite Test". thediplomat.com. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  63. ↑ "Enemy can go 'deaf, blind'". The Tribune. 28 March 2019. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
  64. ↑ Kumar, Bhaswar (22 April 2019). "ASAT test shows India has means to destroy ICBMs in outer space: Experts". Business Standard India. Archived from the original on 7 August 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
  65. ↑ "The successful ASAT test has earned India its rightful place on the high table". The Indian Express. 29 March 2019. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  66. ↑ Rajagopalan, Rajeswari Pillai (29 March 2019). "Having tested its ASAT capability, India should help shape global space norms". Observer Research Foundation. Archived from the original on 27 November 2019. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
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