Could X-wings, TIE fighters, and even the infamous Death Star from Star Wars someday become a reality? With what seems to be the beginnings of a new space race, a space arms race, involving three of the world’s leading countries, it’s suddenly not too far-fetched to imagine that such technology could someday be in development.
The Development of Anti-Satellite Weapons
In the 1960s, the Soviet Union developed a prototype for a “killer” satellite, what became known as the first anti-satellite system, called Polyot-1. In response, the United States began to develop and test anti-satellite weaponry and launched various missile projects, which were considered to be advanced technology at the time. This set off a decades-long race between the two world superpowers, which culminated in Ronald Reagan’s Star Wars program in the 1980s. Despite this, neither of them engaged in direct conflict in space due to both sides acknowledging that their satellites were already too vulnerable.
A New Race to Arm Space?
Things have changed since the turn of the millennium, however. Now, it is estimated that over 1,300 satellites belonging to 60 countries are in Earth’s orbit. These satellites perform a wide array of functions, such as surveillance, communications, weather monitoring and forecasting, GPS tracking and navigation, and spying. Many satellites are employed strictly for military purposes, making them potential targets for nations at odds with each other.
The United States now feels threatened by Russia and China because those nations have identified that the many American satellites in orbit around the Earth are an integral part of U.S. military capabilities. Perhaps this fear is justified, as China successfully tested its first anti-satellite missile back in 2007, when it destroyed an outdated weather satellite 550 miles above the Earth’s surface.
Russia has also been launching spacecraft over the past few years, having introduced three into Earth’s orbit, and the purpose of these spacecraft is largely unknown. This unsettles the U.S. Air Force, which believes that they could be used for sinister purposes. In response to this, President Obama has reportedly requested a fiscal year 2016 budget allocation of $5 billion for developing space defense capabilities.
The Dawn of Star Wars in Real Life
With various aspects of science fiction recently becoming reality, such as the impending death of the Universe or the recent discovery of Tatooine-like planets, it only makes sense that the next step would be to keep an eye on space and bring Star Wars into the real world. Since we’re still only in the process of developing anti-satellite systems, though, perhaps it will be a while before anyone sees X-wings or TIE fighters take center stage. One thing we should hope we never see become a reality, however, is the planet-destroying Death Star. It’s all too easy to get excited over science fiction becoming a reality, but that is one aspect of Star Wars that will hopefully never be developed during the race to wage war in space.
