China Building Anti-Reconnaissance Laser, Pentagon Says

China Building Anti-Reconnaissance Laser, Pentagon Says

LOS ANGELES (November 28, 1998 08:09 a.m. EST http://www.nandotimes.com) -- A Pentagon study warns that China may be developing an anti-satellite laser that could disable the U.S. military's orbiting reconnaissance network, the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday.

The equipment -- possibly developed with the help of former Soviet scientists -- would enable China to fire a laser beam hundreds of miles into space to cripple America's fleet of "spies in the sky," the Pentagon said in the report released earlier this month.

Hundreds of military satellites orbiting Earth give the United States and allied forces logistical information about enemy troops and arms. The satellites also assist military communications, navigation, and other tactical information gathering.

Maj. Mike Birmingham, spokesman for the U.S. Space Command in Colorado Springs, Colo, told the Times that the military is "fully aware that others recognize our reliance on space" and that it must take precautions "to guard against turning our dependence into a vulnerability."

Six years ago, China determined that the way to offset the United States' upper hand in technology was to develop satellite superiority, said John Tkacik, a consultant to firms on Chinese affairs and former U.S. foreign service officer.

"I can't think of any other reason they'd be doing this," he said.

According to Pentagon analysts, the Chinese government was impressed with the United States' use of satellite mapping and imaging during the 1991 Persian Gulf War.

Any anti-satellite laser the Chinese may build would probably be similar to the so-called Miracl, a $1 billion-plus laser the U.S. Army has been testing in New Mexico.

The Miracl, an acronym for the 1980s-vintage Mid-Infrared Advanced Chemical Laser, burns chemicals and uses mirrors to focus a one million-watt energy stream into a 6-foot-wide beam.

The U.S. Space Command says military satellites have backup capabilities and an adversary would have to disable multiple aircraft to shut down the armed forces' communications and surveillance operations.