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

Books and bites beckon at the upcoming Sharon Summer Book Signing

Author and cartoonist Peter Steiner signed books at Sharon Summer Book Signing last summer.

Photo by Stephanie Stanton

The 27th annual Sharon Summer Book Signing at the Hotchkiss Library of Sharon will be held Friday, Aug. 1, from 4:45 to 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Aug. 2, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; and Sunday, Aug. 3, at noon.

Friday’s festivities will honor libraries and the power of the written word. In attendance will be 29 locally and nationally recognized authors whose books will be for sale. With a wide array of genres including historical fiction, satire, thrillers, young adult and non-fiction, there will be something for every reader.

Keep ReadingShow less
Voices from Ukraine to America come to Stissing Center July 27

Ukraine Emergency Fundraiser at The Stissing Center in 2022 raised over $120,000 for Sunflower of Peace.

Photo by Michael Churton

The spirit of Ukraine will be on display at the Stissing Center in Pine Plains on Sunday, July 27. Beginning at 5 p.m., the “Words to America from Ukraine” fundraiser is set to showcase the simultaneous beauty of Ukrainian culture and the war-time turmoil it faces, all the while fundraising in support of Ukrainian freedom.

“Words to America from Ukraine” aims to remind and spread awareness for the suffering that often gets forgotten by those who live in comfortable worlds, explained Leevi Ernits, an organizer for the event. “We are trying to make an attempt to remind people that we are human, and we are connected with human values,” she said. “With very few words, poetry can express very deep values.”

Keep ReadingShow less
Grumbling Gryphons’ set to celebrate 45th anniversary with gala and summer theater camp

Celebrating its 45th year, the Grumbling Gryphons will perform at HVRHS Friday, Aug. 1, at 7 p.m.

Photo provided

The Grumbling Gryphons Traveling Children’s Theater is preparing to celebrate its 45th year — not with fanfare, but with feathers, fabric, myth, chant, and a gala finale bursting with young performers and seasoned artists alike.

The Gryphons’ 2025 Summer Theater Arts Camp begins July 28 and culminates in a one-night-only performance gala at Housatonic Valley Regional High School on Friday, Aug. 1 at 7 p.m. Founder, playwright, and artistic director, Leslie Elias has been weaving together the worlds of myth, movement and theater for decades.

Keep ReadingShow less
Learning calligraphy by hand

Attendees practive brushstrokes led by calligraphy teacher Debby Reelitz.

Photo by Patrick L. Sullivan

Calligrapher Debby Reelitz came to the David M. Hunt Library to give a group of adults and children an introduction to modern calligraphy Thursday, July 17.

Reelitz said she was introduced to calligraphy as a youngster and has been a professional calligrapher and teacher for more than 25 years.

Keep ReadingShow less