The United States should move to defend American and allied space assets from attack, a noted analyst said.
Baker Spring, a research fellow with The Heritage Foundation, a Washington think tank, responded to a question from Space & Missile Defense Report at a forum of the Marshall Institute, another Washington think tank, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
“Absolutely” the United States should protect those space assets, Spring said.
James Lewis, senior fellow with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, also a Washington think tank, said U.S. and allied space assets suffer “increased vulnerability,” as ever more countries, including rogue nations, gain access to space.
Washington now confronts “states we did not expect to be competing with,” Lewis said.
The risky situation confronting those assets is exemplified by an Iridium satellite being annihilated in a collision with a defunct Russian satellite, he observed, adding that the United States, allies and corporations operating in space need redundancy in their space assets.
Spring said he isn’t certain whether the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) should handle creating a defense shield for space assets, but some form of protection should be provided. He added, though, that MDA certainly has amassed the technologies to do that, as exemplified in the use of a sea-based Aegis weapon control system and Standard Missile interceptor to knock out an errant, dysfunctional U.S. intelligence satellite filled with toxic hydrazine propellant.
He also urged better space situational awareness, so that the United States is aware of what operators in space are doing there.
However, Spring counseled caution on entering into any space governance compact that would limit U.S. military actions.
If the United States enters into any agreement, it should be subject to advice and consent by the Senate, he said.