Military superiority, part II: Defense

The Space Development Agency (SDA), with help from the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), will soon launch a batch of 40 interlinked satellites that will form a net of protection over the USA (at least). Much like castles in the Middle Ages that provided protection in times of conflict for the outlying villages, the USA space net may well provide (at a cost!) protection for other nations that agree to sign on — either as allies or paying customers. The new forms of tracking technology on those satellites will perform the challenging task of remotely targeting hypersonic missiles as they maneuver in the atmosphere hundreds of miles below.

And with targeting comes the defensive weapons to shoot down hypersonic missiles from enemies — ours and those of our “customers.”

Target? With what? Well, for starters, the MDA and DARPA have developed “kinetic and nonkinetic interceptor technologies.” Why have they already developed these defensive weapons when no one is yet flying hypersonic weapons? Oops, that was a slip up… in 2017 it seems we already had our own hypersonic missile and the Pentagon quickly realized that we had better have a system to defeat even our own hypersonic vehicles in the event that China and Russia (and Japan, etc.) all copy us. And sure enough, they have (see last week’s article).

The major issue comes with Hypersonic Glide Vehicles (HGVs) and cruise missiles that are designed to evade MDA’s already established network of ground and sea based detection based radars. HGVs skipping across the atmosphere are 10 to 15 times less visible (luminous, the Pentagon calls it) than MDA sites can handle when seen from below — and even almost invisible seen against the warmth of the planet below when seen from Infra-red satellite detection from above. The Pentagon has, therefore, begun an initiative, in earnest, to put that new satellite net in place that can see these HGVs early.

And that leads us to the cost. Already the budget calls for $10,000,000,000 for the three HGV detection systems in development (and you can multiply that by 10, at least, for actual production in numbers). The Pentagon is currently looking for an additional military spending budget of at least that amount to construct its net. So the MDA asked for and got — as a starter — a measly $400,000,000 this year to get started. And part of that deal is that the Pentagon will not include this net cost in its budget for the years coming, but will, each year, ask for an addendum payment.

Why? Partly because it is not sure how much this defensive system will cost, partly because it is not sure what leverage and co-payment it can extract from allies, and, not least, it is in MDA’s interest to make Congress allocate these funds outside of the main Defense Budget in order to avoid general Congressional oversight. It’s only small money, it’s necessary, it’s defensive… no need to ask further. Certainly not with this type of testimony: Gen. Paul Selva, then-vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff: “Imagine if NATO attempted to blunt a move by Moscow to occupy a Baltic state, and Russian strategic forces responded by threatening to launch a Russian Avangard hypersonic missile. That a single Avangard could arc over the Arctic Ocean, and as it reached the northern tip of Hudson Bay, Canada, could change course. It could then veer to target the U.S. East Coast or  strike the West Coast.”

However, U.S. forces currently have no ability to deter or defend against such a capability. And the science is not there yet, despite the 40 satellites they are launching this year. 

SDA Director Derek Tournear stated: “…the jury is still out on whether [the satellite sensors] will be able to form a track that is high enough quality to actually give you that fire control solution so that you can fire [interceptors] on [a] remote [track].” 

Doesn’t sound optimistic, yet. More money and time will certainly be requested by SDA and MDA. Stay tuned.

(Quotes courtesy of AvWeek, June 2020.)

 

Peter Riva, a former resident of Amenia Union, now lives in New Mexico.

The views expressed here are not necessarily those of The Millerton News and The News does not support or oppose candidates for public office.

Latest News

Fallen trees injure man, destroy fences at dog shelter

Two uprooted locust trees still lie in the yard in front of Animal Farm Foundation’s original kennels where they fell on a fence during a storm on Thursday, June 19.

Nathan Miller

AMENIA — Fallen trees, uprooted and splintered during a thunderstorm, injured a man, destroyed fences and damaged a dog kennel at the Animal Farm Foundation facilities in Bangall.

Isaias Nunez was cleaning along a road on the property with Marco Ortiz, another employee of the dog shelter, when the storm rolled in on the afternoon of Thursday, June 19.

Keep ReadingShow less
Siglio Press: Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature

Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.

Richard Kraft

Siglio Press is a small, independent publishing house based in Egremont, Massachusetts, known for producing “uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.” Founded and run by editor and publisher Lisa Pearson, Siglio has, since 2008, designed books that challenge conventions of both form and content.

A visit to Pearson’s airy studio suggests uncommon work, to be sure. Each of four very large tables were covered with what looked to be thousands of miniature squares of inkjet-printed, kaleidoscopically colored pieces of paper. Another table was covered with dozens of book/illustration-size, abstracted images of deer, made up of colored dots. For the enchanted and the mystified, Pearson kindly explained that these pieces were to be collaged together as artworks by the artist Richard Kraft (a frequent contributor to the Siglio Press and Pearson’s husband). The works would be accompanied by writings by two poets, Elizabeth Zuba and Monica Torre, in an as-yet-to-be-named book, inspired by a found copy of a worn French children’s book from the 1930s called “Robin de Bois” (Robin Hood).

Keep ReadingShow less
Cycling season: A roundup of our region’s rentals and where to ride them

Cyclists head south on the rail trail from Copake Falls.

Alec Linden

After a shaky start, summer has well and truly descended upon the Litchfield, Berkshire and Taconic hills, and there is no better way to get out and enjoy long-awaited good weather than on two wheels. Below, find a brief guide for those who feel the pull of the rail trail, but have yet to purchase their own ten-speed. Temporary rides are available in the tri-corner region, and their purveyors are eager to get residents of all ages, abilities and inclinations out into the open road (or bike path).

For those lucky enough to already possess their own bike, perhaps the routes described will inspire a new way to spend a Sunday afternoon. For more, visit millertonnews.com/tag/bike-route to check out two ride-guides from local cyclists that will appeal to enthusiasts of many levels looking for a varied trip through the region’s stunning summer scenery.

Keep ReadingShow less