The Militarization and Weaponization of Space

The Militarization and Weaponization of Space PDF Author: Matthew Mowthorpe
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 9780739107133
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 272

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Book Description
The militarization of space began as a rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union and grew to enormous proportions during the height of the Cold War. Satellite reconnaissance, navigation and weapons guidance, and electronic intelligence comprise only a few of the efforts taken to militarize and dominate space. Today as the prominence of information technology, computing, and telecommunications advances, so does the concept of space as a battlefield. In The Militarization and Weaponization of Space, Matthew Mowthorpe diligently analyzes the military space policies of the United States, the Soviet Union/Russia, and the People's Republic of China from the Cold War period to the present day. Mowthorpe focuses on the development of the ballistic missile defense and other anti-satellite systems and aptly assesses to what degree space will become armed. This work cogently addresses an issue of increasing urgency to scholars of international politics.

The Militarization and Weaponization of Space

The Militarization and Weaponization of Space PDF Author: Matthew Mowthorpe
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 9780739107133
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 272

Get Book Here

Book Description
The militarization of space began as a rivalry between the United States and the Soviet Union and grew to enormous proportions during the height of the Cold War. Satellite reconnaissance, navigation and weapons guidance, and electronic intelligence comprise only a few of the efforts taken to militarize and dominate space. Today as the prominence of information technology, computing, and telecommunications advances, so does the concept of space as a battlefield. In The Militarization and Weaponization of Space, Matthew Mowthorpe diligently analyzes the military space policies of the United States, the Soviet Union/Russia, and the People's Republic of China from the Cold War period to the present day. Mowthorpe focuses on the development of the ballistic missile defense and other anti-satellite systems and aptly assesses to what degree space will become armed. This work cogently addresses an issue of increasing urgency to scholars of international politics.

US Presidents and the Militarization of Space, 1946-1967

US Presidents and the Militarization of Space, 1946-1967 PDF Author: Sean N. Kalic
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
ISBN: 1603446915
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 199

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Book Description
In the clash of ideologies represented by the Cold War, even the heavens were not immune to militarization. Satellites and space programs became critical elements among the national security objectives of both the United States and the Soviet Union. According to US Presidents and the Militarization of Space, 1946–1967, three American presidents in succession shared a fundamental objective of preserving space as a weapons-free frontier for the benefit of all humanity. Between 1953 and 1967 Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, and Johnson all saw nonaggressive military satellite development, as well as the civilian space program, as means to favorably shape the international community’s opinion of the scientific, technological, and military capabilities of the United States. Sean N. Kalic’s reinterpretation of the development of US space policy, based on documents declassified in the past decade, demonstrates that a single vision for the appropriate uses of space characterized American strategies across parties and administrations during this period. Significantly, Kalic’s findings contradict the popular opinion that the United States sought to weaponize space and calls into question the traditional interpretation of the space race as a simple action/reaction paradigm. Indeed, beyond serving as a symbol and ambassador of US technological capability, its satellite program provided the United States with advanced, nonaggressive military intelligence-gathering platforms that proved critical in assessing the strategic nuclear balance between the United States and the Soviet Union. It also aided the three administrations in countering the Soviet Union’s increasing international prestige after its series of space firsts, beginning with the launch of Sputnik in 1957.

Space Weapons Earth Wars

Space Weapons Earth Wars PDF Author: Robert Preston
Publisher: Rand Corporation
ISBN: 0833032526
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 231

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Book Description
This overview aims to inform the public discussion of space-based weapons by examining their characteristics, potential attributes, limitations, legality, and utility. The authors do not argue for or against space weapons, nor do they estimate the potential costs and performance of specific programs, but instead sort through the realities and myths surrounding space weapons in order to ensure that debates and discussions are based on fact.

Neither Star Wars Nor Sanctuary

Neither Star Wars Nor Sanctuary PDF Author: Michael E. O'Hanlon
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780815764571
Category : Astronautics, Military
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
O'Hanlon (foreign policy studies, Brookings Institution) examines space and its potential as a platform for weaponry. Although several military powers routinely use spy satellites, O'Hanlon notes that no country currently has the capability of deploying weapons or striking objects in space. He gives recent trends in technology and threats that coul

Weapons in Space

Weapons in Space PDF Author: Karl Grossman
Publisher: Seven Stories Press
ISBN: 9781583220443
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 98

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Book Description
Weapons in Space examines how the United States is forcing forward—in violation of international treaties—to militarize space. Based on excerpts from U.S. government documents, award-winning investigative journalist Karl Grossman outlines the U.S. military's space doctrine, its similarity with the original Stars Wars scheme of Ronald Reagan and Edward Teller, and the space-based lasers, hypervelocity guns, and particle beams it plans to deploy in its mission to "dominate" earth. Grossman shows the intimate link between the militarization and the nuclearization of space, and follows the flow of billions of U.S. tax dollars to the corporations that research and develop weapons for space. His book explains the Outer Space Treaty and gives a history of the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear power in Space: what it is doing, what it plans to do—and what the reader can do to challenge U.S. plans to turn the heavens into a war zone.

Space Weapons and U.S. Strategy

Space Weapons and U.S. Strategy PDF Author: Paul B. Stares
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000280756
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 283

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Book Description
This book, first published in 1985, analyses the factors that have shaped the militarization of space. By examining in great detail the determinants of U.S. policy, it explains why for over 25 years space did not become the scene of an arms race, and why this began to change in the late 1970s. Both superpowers did, however, develop a limited anti-satellite capability in the 1960s, and these programmes are also discussed.

The Politics of Space Security

The Politics of Space Security PDF Author: James Moltz
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 0804778582
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 397

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Book Description
The past five decades have witnessed often fierce international rivalry in space, but also surprising military restraint. Now, with an increasing number of countries capable of harming U.S. space assets, experts and officials have renewed a long-standing debate over the best route to space security. Some argue that space defenses will be needed to protect critical military and civilian satellites. Others argue that space should be a "sanctuary" from deployed weapons and military conflict, particularly given the worsening threat posed by orbital space debris. Moltz puts this debate into historical context by explaining the main trends in military space developments since Sputnik, their underlying causes, and the factors that are likely to influence their future course. This new edition provides analysis of the Obama administration's space policy and the rise of new actors, including China, India, and Iran. His conclusion offers a unique perspective on the mutual risks militaries face in space and the need for all countries to commit to interdependent, environmentally focused space security.

Outer Space

Outer Space PDF Author: Alexei Arbatov
Publisher: Carnegie Endowment
ISBN: 0870033425
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 146

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Book Description
In this era of globalization, the world is facing a host of challenging security problems—from the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction to international terrorism to accelerating climate change to energy security—that cannot be resolved unilaterally, especially through the unilateral use of military force. One key issue that requires urgent global attention is literally "out of this world": the military use of outer space. This collection of essays by leading Russian experts analyzes the current military use of outer space. The book describes the space weapons programs of various countries. It details the history of negotiations to prevent, or at least control, the weaponization of space, including analyses of the political, military, technical, and legal problems facing negotiators trying to avoid a catastrophic new space race.

Defense Against the Dark Arts in Space

Defense Against the Dark Arts in Space PDF Author: Todd Harrison
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1538140322
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 53

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Book Description
The proliferation of counterspace weapons across the globe often calls into question what can be done to best protect satellites from attack. This analysis from the CSIS Aerospace Security Project addresses different methods and technologies that can be used by the United States government, and others, to deter adversaries from attack. A wide range of active and passive defenses are available to protect space systems and the ground infrastructure they depend upon from different types of threats. This report captures a range of active and passive defenses that are theoretically possible and discusses the advantages and limitations of each. A group of technical space and national security experts supported the analysis by working through several plausible scenarios that explore a range of defenses that may be needed, concepts for employing different types of defenses, and how defensive actions in space may be perceived by others. These scenarios and the findings that resulted from subsequent conversations with experts are reported in the penultimate chapter of the report. Finally, the CSIS Aerospace Security Project team offers conclusions drawn from the analysis, actionable recommendations for policymakers, and additional research topics to be explored in future work.

Space as a Strategic Asset

Space as a Strategic Asset PDF Author: Joan Johnson-Freese
Publisher: Columbia University Press
ISBN: 9780231136549
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 330

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Book Description
Joan Johnson-Freese argues that the race for space weapons and the U.S. quest for exclusive or at least dominant ownership of strategic space assets have alienated the very allies that the United States needs in order to maintain its leading role in space exploration. Taking a balanced look at the issues that have contributed to the decline of America's manned space program, such as lack of political support and funding, Johnson-Freese offers not only a critique but also a plan for enhancing U.S. space security through cooperation rather than competition. She begins with a brief overview of the history of international space development through four eras: before Sputnik, the space race, after Apollo, and globalization. Then she focuses on how policy changes of the mid-1990s have changed the nation, examining why the United States has grown obsessed with the development of space technology not just as a tool for globalization but as a route toward expanding an already dominant arsenal of weapons. Johnson-Freese claims that these policy choices have greatly affected the attitudes and actions of other countries, and in the fight to achieve security, the United States has instead put itself at greater peril. Johnson-Freese explains complex technical issues in clear, accessible terms and suggests a way forward that is comprehensive rather than partisan. America is not the only country with space ambitions, but it is unique in viewing space as a battlefield and the technological advancements of other nations as a dire threat. Urgent and persuasive, Space as a Strategic Asset underscores the danger of allowing our space program to languish and the crucial role of cooperation in protecting the security of our country and the world.