Satellite Shootdown Try May Be Imminent

Pentagon Outlines First Attempts To Shoot Down Faltering Spy Satellite

(CBS/AP)  An attempt to blast a crippled U.S. spy satellite out of the sky using a Navy heat-seeking missile - possibly on Wednesday night - would be the first real-world use of this piece of the Pentagon's missile defense network. But that is not the mission for which it was intended.

The attempted shootdown, already approved by President Bush, is seen by some as blurring the lines between defending against a weapon like a long-range missile and targeting satellites in orbit.

The three-stage Navy missile, designated the SM-3, has chalked up a high rate of success in a series of tests since 2002 - in each case targeting a short- or medium-range ballistic missile, never a satellite. A hurry-up program to adapt the missile for this anti-satellite mission was completed in a matter of weeks; Navy officials say the changes will be reversed once this satellite is down.

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The government issued notices to aviators and mariners to remain clear of a section of the Pacific beginning at 10:30 p.m. EST Wednesday, indicating the first window of opportunity to launch an SM-3 missile from a Navy cruiser, the USS Lake Erie, in an effort to hit the wayward satellite.

Having lost power shortly after it reached orbit in late 2006, the satellite is well below the altitude of a normal satellite. The Pentagon wants to hit it with an SM-3 missile just before it re-enters Earth's atmosphere, in that way minimizing the amount of debris that would remain in space.

The Navy has a lot of experience -- and a pretty good track record -- at shooting down incoming ballistic missiles; in 14 tests, it has hit the target 12 times, reports CBS News national security correspondent David Martin. But this shoot, reports Martin is different.

For one thing, the satellite is flying higher and faster than a ballistic missile. For another, it is much colder than a ballistic missile, which is important since the sensor that is supposed to kind the missile's warhead into the satellite is infra red. A ballistic missile picks up heat as it flies through the atmosphere on its way to the target, but this satellite has been in the deep freeze of space for over a year.

The Navy, reports Martin has to time its shot for a period when the sun is hitting and heating the satellite. The fact that the satellite -- about the size of a school bus -- is much bigger than a ballistic missile -- about the size of a chair -- might seem to make the job easier. But the real target is the fuel tank carrying the toxic hydrazene fuel and that is only 40 inches in diameter.

Adding to the difficulty of the mission, the missile will have to do better than just hit the bus-sized satellite, a Navy official said Tuesday. It needs to strike the relatively small fuel tank aboard the spacecraft in order to accomplish the main goal, which is to eliminate the toxic fuel that could injure or even kill people if it reached Earth. The Navy official described technical aspects of the missile's capabilities on condition that he not be identified.

Satellite expert David Mosher has some other reasons why Washington is set on blasting the spacecraft out of the sky.

"A reason could be that the satellite is classified and there's highly sensitive technology on it," Mosher told CBS News'The Early Show. "It's possible they're concerned that it wouldn't all be destroyed upon re-entry."

Also complicating the effort will be the fact that the satellite has no heat-generating propulsion system on board. That makes it more difficult for the Navy missile's heat-seeking system to work, although the official said software changes had been made to compensate for the lack of heat.

The Pentagon press secretary, Geoff Morrell, said Defense Secretary Robert Gates was briefed on the shootdown plan Tuesday by the two officers who will advise him on exactly when to launch the missile - Gen. Kevin Chilton, the head of Strategic Command, and Gen. James Cartwright, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who held Chilton's post until last summer.

"We all have an agreed-upon series of steps that need to be taken for this launch to be given the go-ahead," Morrell said, adding that no final decision has been made on when to make the attempt.

"The secretary is the one who will decide if and when to pull the trigger," the spokesman said, adding that Gates was departing Wednesday morning on an around-the-world trip that will include a stop in Honolulu, Hawaii, where a military command center will be monitoring the satellite operation.

Left alone, the satellite would be expected to hit Earth during the first week of March. About half of the 5,000-pound spacecraft would be expected to survive its blazing descent through the atmosphere and would scatter debris over several hundred miles.

Known by its military designation US 193, the satellite was launched in December 2006. It lost power and its central computer failed almost immediately afterward, leaving it uncontrollable. It carried a sophisticated and secret imaging sensor.

Morrell said the cost of adapting the Navy anti-missile system for the shootdown mission was $30 million to $40 million.

China and Russia have expressed concern at the planned shootdown, saying it could harm security in outer space. At the State Department on Tuesday, spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters that the U.S. action is meant to protect people from the hazardous fuel and is not a weapons test.

China was criticized last year when it used a missile to destroy a defunct weather satellite.

"This is an opportunity to test this missile defense system," Mosher told The Early Show. "We've been shooting it against missiles, but this is a target of opportunity, so to speak. It's also an opportunity to demonstrate to the Chinese that we also have an anti-satellite weapon capability."

The Navy ship-based system, which includes a command-and-control and radar system known as Aegis, as well as the SM-3 missiles, is just one segment of a larger, far-flung missile defense system that has been in development by the American military for more than three decades.

Managed by the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency, the program includes interceptor missiles sitting in underground silos at Fort Greely, Alaska, and at Vanderberg Air Force Base, Calif., as well as radars around the world that are used to track an enemy missile and help the interceptor hit it.

As currently configured the missile defense system is designed mainly to counter a threat from North Korea. The Bush administration, fearing an emerging missile threat from Iran, is in talks with Poland and the Czech Republic to place interceptor missiles in Poland and a tracking radar in the Czech Republic. Russia has objected strenuously, saying such bases would be a threat to Russia.

[denn034]

All the best, Pentagon. To the rest of the world, butt out!

[questionnews]

Don''t shoot it down, let her stay up there & let the earthlings place bets on what GPS location it will hit. They could make a reality show out of it.

[olebd]

I hope we can see it.

[displeased]

That''ll be cool, an explosion during the lunar eclipse with Saturn in the background. We should have fireworks and potato chips. Lots of potato chips.

[olebd]

I''ll be really surprised if they can do this without knocking out or having a chunk bump into something else with all the other junk floating around up there.

[CBSTV]

The Pentagon may be completely truthful about this situation. The problem is that the United States currently has shaky credibility. It is understandable should people have their doubts.

[sevenveils]

the hydrazine would boil and burn during reentry. The real reason to bring this bird down is assure none of its pieces can be analyzed by potentially threatening nation.

[kphx]

Is this just a show of strength by US, for China''s shooting down one of its weather satellites a few months back ?

[erasmus6]

"I hope we can see it." posted by olebd

If you can see it, you will know you are in BIG trouble.:)


"To the rest of the world, butt out!" posted by denn034

Listen dipshitt, if that thing lands in my neighborhood, I will come down their and personally kick your a-s-s!:)

[inventagod]

DlCK CHENEY locks and loads...

[inventagod]

- Overheard at Pentagon Thursday... ''OOPS!''

[merlgrey]

this fits the current philosophy for solving all problems under this admin.

blow it up.

is it illegal to waterboard a satellite?

[jlelijah]

"All the best, Pentagon. To the rest of the world, butt out!" posted by denn034

Hey, cool! Now we know that George W. Bush goes by the screen name denn034.

[randynason]

I''m skeptical. It wasn''t three weeks ago I remember Bush saying he wants to take the war on terrorism into space. Satellites have been falling into Earth''s atmosphere for a number of decades. Why is a threat from this one in particular so imminent? I believe it''s a big, glorified military test and nothing more.

[infidel_us]

I believe it''''s a big, glorified military test and nothing more.
Posted by RandyNason at 05:30 PM : Feb 19, 2008

So f**king what!?! What if it is??? Besides upsetting Bush hating, bedwetting liberals - like yourself, why is this an issue? You and Putin should go share a hot tub together. Two America hating commies sharing a moment.

[inventagod]

''..Bush hating, bedwetting liberals..''
Posted by Infidel_US

The final gasps of neocons all sound alike

[alphaa10-2009]

sevenveils said, "... the hydrazine would boil and burn during reentry. The real reason to bring this bird down is assure none of its pieces can be analyzed by potentially threatening nation."
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Exactly-- the NSA presumably has worked overtime to recover control, but has given up. Meanwhile, the satellite is a space derelict unable to move out of harm''s way, which in this case means capture by the spacecraft of another country.

Even if Bush wants manned missions, the future of space exploration is with robotic probes. Most countries rivaling US space technology have healthy investments in that area.

Judging from the untimely malfunction of such a critical and expensive satellite as this, we could use more emphasis on the rudiments of machine system reliability-- not on making spacecraft for critical human cargo on years'' long missions.

[bogusbones]

whoopee!! says georgie from his sandbox. this is gonna be fun. hehehe.

[hamishdad]

Why don''t we give other countries the opportunity to try to shoot it down? Perhaps the first country to hit it could win a stuffed animal or something?

[talkingham]

Infidel- eat my wet diapers - what I don''t understand is why they don''t want to know what went wrong- they just want to shoot down a billion dollars worth of satellite I helped pay for- the lying buzzards.

Lying bustards, liars, crooks, thieves a-zoles.

I guess they would rather send up another billion satellite and then shoot it down too went it doesn''t work. There is certainly more to this lying boodoggle than we stupid taxpayers will ever be told.

Of course neo-conservative stick their heads up their butsands don''t want to know. They just trust the almighty Bush while he pours trillions down various Saudi loving holes.

[bogusbones]

infidel - i think the whole world is tired of the ranting and name calling that you people spew out with such venom and hatred. please give one valid reason why this thing should be blown up and who''s paying for it? i''d rather see the katrina damage repaired than have our fearless leader getting his kicks watching the 4th of july fireworks in february.

[walt1944-2009]

The Great Emperor Bush is apprehensive about the shoot down of the satellite tomorrow.

Naturally, he appreciates the opportunity to test HIS version of Ronald Reagan''s "Star Wars", but he is also concerned that the satellite, since it is a SPY
SATELLITE, might end up in the wrong hands such as Venezeula''s Hugo Chavez, Russia''s Vladimar Putin, Iran''s What''s-His-Face, Osama Bin Laden''s Al Qeada, or even here, where perhaps the evil, cowardly Whimpo-crats could get their hands on it.

There is always the possibility too, that the satellite, rumored to be as big as a house, could come straight down on the Oval Office and into the Great Emperor''s lap!

So, the Great Emperor Bush II has ordered his Navy to shoot the thing down and allow it to rain debris on the poor citizens of the world. Woe to the Navy if they miss the dumb thing and hit the moon instead!

SIG HEIL, BUSH!!!!
sig heil, McCain (maybe)?????

[quetzal0666]

dibs on the first peace i find.....
umm where is it expected to fall, i wanna sell some of it on E-Bay..

[alphaa10-2009]

Infidel_US said, "... bedwetting liberals - like yourself, why is this an issue? You and Putin should go share a hot tub together. Two America hating commies sharing a moment..."
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If you knew more about Bush and Putin, you would understand why Bush said he felt kinship with Putin on their first metting. Both are closet dictators, and neither holds America in high regard.

But since Bush may be your hero, as a "bed-wetting" conservative, you have much to worry about from past Bush misdeeds.

But let Bush speak for himself on his respect for the Constitution and the rule of law...

In November, 2005, in Washington, DC, Bush, facing an assembly of his own party members critical of his NSA spying program, bristled like a teenager caught drinking after curfew-- "Stop throwing the Constitution in my face! It just a GD)((#@*! piece of paper!"

[jochitragman]

So, the Great Emperor Bush II has ordered his Navy to shoot the thing down and allow it to rain debris on the poor citizens of the world. Woe to the Navy if they miss the dumb thing and hit the moon instead!

Posted by walt1944 at 05:51 PM : Feb 19, 2008


Please! Please!! Don''t KingGeo2 any ideas. Next thing ya know it''ll be.....the Man in the Moon has WMD!!!

[excoachken]

O.K., how long will it be after the "Shootdown" that somebody puts an "authenticated" piece on eBay? And when does QVC start selling gold plated pieces, redesigned into the shape of the Twin Towers, before 9-11?

[bkotarsk]

I still say, We Shoot it Down using one of Russia''a Weather Satellites. Or even use one of The USA weather satellites

[jochitragman]

"


"Atlantis Crew Prepares For Return To Earth
Florida Landing Scheduled For Wednesday, Weather Permitting"



Look out!!

[neobrian-2009]

Just Like our Gov`t !
Spend Billions of OUR Tax $,...Botch it,.then Spend more to Destroy it!,...

[bkotarsk]

Do we get a Refund from the Company that made the Satellite? Are we going to add the Cost of Destroying it also to the BILL?

[shanev137]

Maybe they can get it to come down on top of some ranch outside of Crawford, Texas at a certain time.

[alphaa10-2009]

bogusbones said, "...infidel - i think the whole world is tired of the ranting and name calling that you people spew out with such venom and hatred. please give one valid reason why this thing should be blown up..."
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See post below-- killing the satellite is the only way to fend off attempts to capture it. You may recall the Cold War mission of the Glomar Explorer, which was to raise a Russian missile sub lost deep in the Pacific.

As for "ranting and name calling that you people spew out with such venom and hatred", we must give the Bush bed-wetters a break-- it''s all they can do after a steady drip of Faux News.

Besides, letting people like "infidel" and "terrorislam9" (or "6", "3" or whatever) rant on is the best refutation possible-- they reveal everything, their fathomless ignornace, rigid motivations and deepest doubts and fears in the most authentic way possible.

Given enough rope for their public displays, most people will come to associate their beliefs with their posteriors, relieving us of proving there is no vital difference.

[erasmus6]

"Why don''''t we give other countries the opportunity to try to shoot it down? Perhaps the first country to hit it could win a stuffed animal or something?" posted by hamishdad

Now you''re talking! I love stuffed animals!

[jochitragman]

Anyone else get the distinct impression there''''s something gone horribly wrong here? First they predict the satillite will fall harmlessly sometime mid March or April. Then we''''re told the pentagon will shoot it down early March. Now they''''re rushing to shoot it down tomorrow (Mid-February). Maybe I''''m just paranoid.


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Posted by dragonwagon5 at 07:33 PM : Feb 19, 2008


I''ve got the same feeling. Our elected Govt. and
our Military can''t be trusted. The first time I
heard about the shootdown, I had a bad feeling.

[alphaa10-2009]

dragonwagon5 said, "Now they''''re rushing to shoot it down tomorrow (Mid-February). Maybe I''''m just paranoid."
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Not really. But never expect to get a straight answer from this regime on anything unless it suits an ulterior purpose.

For example, the spy satellite is acknowledged as one of the lost toys of the NSA. But as a piece of space junk, it will follow Newton''s laws faithfully until reentry, and that event''s date and time should not vary wildly from week to week.

If that date does vary, something else is up. Perhaps NSA got wind of a capture attempt by one of our ambitious neighbors. And, ya know, the more the capture vehicle closes to our orbit, the more the official reentry date seems to advance along with it. Amazing, this modern technology-- Newton would be proud.

[jochitragman]

The Sky''s falling!!!!!
The Sky''s falling!!!!!
The Sky''s falling!!!!!

The surge is working!!!!
The surge is working!!!!
The surge is working!!!!

WMDs!!!
WMDs!!!
WMDs!!!

[jstsano2bush]

Come on....They have something up their sleeve. Whats the rush all of a sudden???I see another war coming on and the leader is.....yep you guessed it. George W. Bush. So what if this gas reaches Earth anyways. What are they going to do then? Run and get their gas jugs. I see gas prices going up now. Somebody has to pay for that missile. Why not us?

[speakinup]

"I''''ve got the same feeling. Our elected Govt. and
our Military can''''t be trusted. The first time I
heard about the shootdown, I had a bad feeling.
Posted by jochitragma


Yeah, well, by definition Jock-itch SHOULD be a bad feeling (rdrr!)



Sheesh - talk about paranoia!

[jochitragman]

Anyone else get the distinct impression there''''''''s something gone horribly wrong here? First they predict the satillite will fall harmlessly sometime mid March or April. Then we''''''''re told the pentagon will shoot it down early March. Now they''''''''re rushing to shoot it down tomorrow (Mid-February). Maybe I''''''''m just paranoid.


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Posted by dragonwagon5 at 07:33 PM : Feb 19, 2008




dragonwagon5 ....................

Found this on FOX....


"it''s during a lunar eclipse over that section of the Pacific, making visual spotting of the satellite even easier. And it''ll be just as the sun is setting, meaning that the satellite will be still be illuminated even as night falls."

[jstsano2bush]

Im curious. Anyone got any clarity as to why they think the debris is gonna fall into the Pacific. They got this thing bugged with GPS or what?? If it falls on my side of the world IM SUING!!!!!!

[jstsano2bush]

After they blow this thing up, their tracking device will no longer be effective...sorry but im not buying that because after being hit with a missile, the debris will be EVERYWHERE.

[beehive21-2009]

We should all be shooting at it ,good target practice.

[retmilspouse]

What in the he11 does nukes getting sent across US airspace by "accident" (yea right) and this dead satellite have to do with one another? Conspiracy spooks all over the place. NUTS!

[fishinfool43]

Navy officials say the changes will be reversed once this satellite is down.

Yeah...Right. My guess is they wont change a thing. Another guess is they will try to improve on it.

[incog-nito]

On Wednesday night, if you walk outside and there''s an acrid smell in the air, and if you feel a burning sensation in your lungs and then fall over dead, you''ll know right away that the shootdown is a success.

[Tundrajack]

"dibs on the first peace i find.....
umm where is it expected to fall, i wanna sell some of it on E-Bay.."

Posted by Quetzal0666 at 05:55 PM : Feb 19, 2008

Hey-- We''re friggin Boycotting Ebay this week Damnit"
http://money.cnn.com/2008/02/19/smbusiness/ebay_boycott_update.fsb/?postversion=2008021923

[gkc99]

The government excuse is so phony as to be laughable. Hydrazine would burn up harmlessly high in the atmosphere. Plus every launch of the space shuttle produces tons of nitric oxide pollutants.

But any port in a storm!

[jerkeedoodle]

Don''t waste a missile on it!The shrub wants a legacy.Let him hitch a ride on the next shuttle and take him to the sattlelite.He can wow us all with his impression of Slim Pickens in the movie "Dr.Strangelove,or How I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb"

[tool105]

I''ve got $20.00 that say''s the idiots miss the satellite and hit the space station bringing it down instead.Any taker''s?

[inventagod]

''BE VERY AFRAID'' - DlCK CHENEY