Space weapons, earth wars /
Space weapons have been debated intensely in the past. The latest instance of prominent debate is over their use for ballistic missile defense. But this is not the only possible role for space weapons, and that fact raises a further concern: What if an adversary were to develop such weapons? Could o...
| Corporate Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Book |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Santa Monica, CA :
RAND,
2002
Santa Monica, CA : 2002 |
| Series: | MR (Series) ;
1209-AF |
| Subjects: |
Table of Contents:
- Ch. 1 Introduction
- Ch. 2. Background
- Ch. 3. Space Weapons Kinds and Capabilities
- Ch. 4. Employment
- Ch. 5. How Might the United States Acquire Space Weapons?
- Ch. 6. How Might Others Acquire Space Weapons?
- Ch. 7. Conclusion
- App. A. Space-Based Directed-Energy Weapons
- App. B. Kinetic-Energy Space Weapons
- App. C. Natural Meteoroides as Weapons
- App. D. Ballistic Missile Defense Countermeasures.
- History 5
- Early Rocketry 5
- Satellite Feasibility Studies 6
- Dawn of the Space Age 8
- Bombardment Satellites 9
- Defenses 12
- ABM Treaty 13
- The Strategic Defense Initiative 14
- Post--Cold War 15
- Current U.S. Policy and Plans 15
- Legal Considerations 17
- Space Treaties 18
- Arms Control Treaties 20
- Other Treaties 21
- Chapter 3 Space Weapons Kinds and Capabilities 23
- Types of Space Weapons 23
- Directed-Energy Weapons 24
- General Characteristics 24
- Targets 26
- Medium 27
- Weapon 28
- Basing 31
- Example: Laser for Missile Targets 31
- Mass-to-Target Weapons 36
- General Characteristics 36
- Kinetic-Energy Weapons Above the Atmosphere 37
- Kinetic-Energy Weapons Against Terrestrial Targets 40
- Conventional Weapons Against Terrestrial Targets 45
- Chapter 4 Employment 51
- Employment 53
- Functions and Tasks 53
- Component and Sequence 57
- Command 60
- What Is Commanded 61
- How They Are Commanded 63
- Who Commands Them 65
- Chapter 5 How Might the United States Acquire Space Weapons? 67
- How Might the United States Decide? 67
- Deliberate Decisions to Acquire 68
- Incidental Decisions to Acquire 75
- Assuming a Decision to Acquire, How Might Transition Occur? 77
- Incremental Decision 77
- Monolithic Decision 79
- Scope, Sequence, and Visibility of Implementation 80
- Consequences 81
- Chapter 6 How Might Others Acquire Space Weapons? 85
- Peer Competitor 86
- Decision 88
- Transition 89
- Friend or Ally 90
- Capability 91
- Decision 92
- Transition 93
- Neither Ally nor Adversary 94
- Capability 94
- Decision 95
- Transition 97
- Nonpeer Adversary 96
- Nonstate Coalition 98
- Advantages 101
- Access and Reach 101
- Responsiveness 102
- Distance 103
- Difficulty of Defending Against Them 103
- Limitations 103
- Static Defense 104
- Stable, Observable, Predictable Orbits 104
- Logistic Expense 104
- Large Numbers 105
- Legal Consequences 106
- Uses and Implications 106
- Appendix A Space-Based Directed-Energy Weapons 109
- Appendix B Kinetic-Energy Space Weapons 131
- Appendix C Natural Meteoroides as Weapons 173
- Appendix D Ballistic Missile Defense Countermeasures 185