Scribbles from the Office
January 19th, 2007My goodness, China destroyed a space satellite. I fear.
Arms control experts called the test, in which the weapon destroyed an aging Chinese weather satellite, a troubling development that could foreshadow an antisatellite arms race. Alternatively, however, some experts speculated that it could precede a diplomatic effort by China to prod the Bush administration into negotiations on a weapons ban.
“This is the first real escalation in the weaponization of space that we’ve seen in 20 years,” said Jonathan McDowell, a Harvard astronomer who tracks rocket launchings and space activity. “It ends a long period of restraint.”
White House officials said the United States and other nations, which they did not identify, had “expressed our concern regarding this action to the Chinese.” Despite its protest, the Bush administration has long resisted a global treaty banning such tests because it says it needs freedom of action in space. Jianhua Li, a spokesman at the Chinese Embassy in Washington, said that he had heard about the antisatellite story but that he had no statement or information.
This seems like a no-brainer to me: don’t weaponize space. Haven’t they seen Star Wars, and what happens through militarized stars?!? (Really, though. I’m all for outer space and its exploration but I deplore the thought of allowing and engaging in intergalactic warfare/chest-puffing.)
The House of Representatives, in other news, voided fourteen billion in tax breaks to big oil. Very good.