{"id":896775,"date":"2026-09-15T15:16:14","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T15:16:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/896775\/"},"modified":"2026-09-15T15:16:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T15:16:14","slug":"what-are-space-weapons-which-us-says-it-has-deployed-into-orbit-weapons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/896775\/","title":{"rendered":"What are \u2018space weapons\u2019, which US says it has deployed into orbit? | Weapons"},"content":{"rendered":"

The United States has acknowledged deploying space weapons in orbit of the Earth.<\/p>\n

US Air Force Secretary Troy Meink confirmed on Monday that the so-called \u201cspace control weapons\u201d would be used to defend US forces on the planet, marking a significant new chapter in the militarisation of space \u2013 or at least the transparency of it.<\/p>\n

The announcement, which Meink framed as a message to US rivals China and Russia, could turn Earth\u2019s orbit into an increasingly contested military domain, experts warn. Warfare could include countries targeting each other\u2019s satellites, which provide critical services such as GPS, communications and intelligence to military forces on the ground, as well as civilian infrastructure.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpace Force doctrine describes \u2018space control\u2019 as having the outcome of space superiority, which they define as the ability to operate at the time and place of their choosing, while denying the same to an adversary,\u201d Victoria Samson, chief director of Space Security and Stability for Secure World Foundation, a private non-profit focused on military space and security issues, told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

So, what do we know about the US-deployed weapons in space? And do some countries already have them?<\/p>\n

\"NASA\u2019sNASA\u2019s Lucy spacecraft, atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket for a mission to study the Trojan asteroids in the outer solar system, launches from Pad-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, the US, October 16, 2021 [Steve Nesius\/Reuters]What do we know about these space weapons?<\/p>\n

Not a lot. Air Force Secretary Meink said the US has stationed \u201cweapons\u201d in Earth\u2019s orbit, but did not specify when they were placed there, how many there are, or what they are designed to do.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday, we continue to ensure we remain ready to meet the challenges of evolving threats wherever they exist,\u201d Meink said at the Air, Space and Cyber Conference. \u201cThis is why the United States now has on-orbit space control weapons capable of defending the Joint Force against hostile adversary action.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, he did not give any details about what sort of weapons these may be, where they are positioned or what they are designed to do.<\/p>\n

Samson said the keyword from Meink\u2019s announcement is \u201cweapons\u201d in the context of \u201cspace control\u201d. \u201cSpace control encapsulates the mission areas required to contest and control the space domain \u2013 employing kinetic and non-kinetic means to affect adversary capabilities,\u201d Meink said, adding that \u201cthese capabilities can be employed for offensive and defensive purposes\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the first time any official has acknowledged an actually designed weapon has been placed in space,\u201d Samson told Al Jazeera. \u201cIt\u2019s always been \u2018systems with capabilities\u2019 prior.\u201d<\/p>\n

Experts say these weapons are likely to be space-based communications jammers rather than kinetic ones that launch strikes. Kinetic weapons \u2013 for instance, a suicide satellite designed to ram into an adversary\u2019s satellite \u2013 would likely cause fast-moving debris to be launched dangerously into space.<\/p>\n

Bleddyn Bowen, an associate professor in astropolitics at Durham University in the United Kingdom, told the BBC\u2019s Radio 4 Today programme: \u201cWe don\u2019t know exactly what the mechanism of the weapon is. I would expect there to be some kind of electronic warfare or radio-jamming platform. This would be a non-destructive kind of anti-satellite weapon, and these variants already exist on Earth.<\/p>\n

\u201cLess likely would be a kinetic kill vehicle of some sort, so a vehicle that would release a projectile of some sort that would ram into a satellite and destroy it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"USUS President Donald Trump gestures towards the US Space Force flag during a presentation of the flag in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, the US, May 15, 2020 [Kevin Lamarque\/Reuters]What is the US Space Force?<\/p>\n

The US Space Force is the newest branch of the US military, created in December 2019 under President Donald Trump\u2019s first term, responsible for organising and conducting US military operations in and through space.<\/p>\n

Unlike NASA, which focuses on civilian space exploration, Space Force is part of the US Air Force and comes under US Space Command, which is headquartered at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia.<\/p>\n

Its responsibilities include operating and protecting military satellites, providing satellite communications and positioning services, monitoring objects and potential threats in space, and supporting US forces on Earth.<\/p>\n

\u201cChina and Russia are developing new space systems to enhance military effectiveness and end any reliance on US space services,\u201d the Space Force\u2019s website says. \u201cChina and Russia are also testing and fielding sophisticated counterspace capabilities with the intent to disrupt and degrade US space-enabled capabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"USUS Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink speaks during the 2026 graduation ceremony at the US Air Force Academy, in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the US, on May 28, 2026 [Matt Rourke\/AFP]Aren\u2019t there treaties limiting weapons deployments in space?<\/p>\n

Yes, but they do not amount to a blanket ban on weapons in space.<\/p>\n

The key agreement is the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which prohibits countries from placing nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in orbit or stationing them in outer space. It also bans military bases and weapons testing on the moon and other celestial bodies.<\/p>\n

However, the treaty does not expressly prohibit conventional weapons from being placed in Earth\u2019s orbit. That means systems such as conventional anti-satellite weapons, electronic-warfare systems, or other counterspace capabilities are not automatically prohibited.<\/p>\n

Such gaps leave room for interpretation and are at the heart of current international efforts to enhance military activities in space.<\/p>\n

How have Russia and China reacted to the US announcement?<\/p>\n

China\u2019s Foreign Ministry opposed the move, warning against the \u201cweaponisation of outer space, turning it into a battlefield, as well as an arms race there\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe urge the US side to stop expanding its military capabilities and preparing for war in outer space,\u201d ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a news briefing.<\/p>\n

Russia called for space to be kept \u201cfree of any weapons\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are counting on broad international consolidation to continue working towards the complete demilitarisation of space,\u201d said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.<\/p>\n

Are Russia and China developing space weapons too?<\/p>\n

Independent reports from research groups and think tanks note that both China and Russia are developing a broad range of counterspace capabilities designed to interfere with, disable, or potentially destroy satellites and other space systems.<\/p>\n

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a foreign policy think tank based in Washington, DC, identified both countries as possessing or developing kinetic and non-kinetic counterspace weapons.<\/p>\n

A 2025 CSIS report notes that both Moscow and Beijing have direct-ascent anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons, as well as capabilities involving jamming, spoofing, and cyber operations.<\/p>\n

Samson of the Secure World Foundation (SWF) told Al Jazeera that her team has highlighted in their reports that \u201cChina and Russia have space-based jammers\u201d. Therefore, she told Al Jazeera, \u201cI always thought it would be strange that the US didn\u2019t have them too.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bowen told the BBC: \u201cIn the last 10 years, Russia and China have been doing a lot more manoeuvres in space \u2013 rendezvous and proximity operations, as we call them \u2013 so, flying up really close to Western satellites, inspecting them, taking pictures. And on another occasion, the Chinese have demonstrated a \u2018space tug\u2019 capability. So, a vehicle that goes up to a satellite can grapple it and then move it into a different orbit.\u201d<\/p>\n

China has executed such a manoeuvre only with one of its own old satellites, which needed to be moved away from its location, he added.<\/p>\n

What about other countries?<\/p>\n

The emerging space-weapons race is not limited to the US, Russia and China: India has also demonstrated an ASAT capability and is developing technologies that could allow spacecraft to operate alongside other satellites.<\/p>\n

France is also reported to be developing co-orbital capabilities, while the UK has conducted on-orbit cooperative operations with the US.<\/p>\n

A 2026 report by SWF also notes how Iran, for instance, illustrates the less visible side of space warfare, relying increasingly on jamming and spoofing satellite-based services. Israel, meanwhile, has developed significant military space and electronic-warfare capabilities, although there is no public record of it conducting a debris-generating ASAT test.<\/p>\n

Countries like North Korea and South Korea are also racing to develop more sophisticated space-based tech.<\/p>\n

\"AA view of NASA\u2019s Orion spacecraft in the foreground, lit up by the sun as the moon and Earth are visible behind it as photographed by one of the cameras on the Orion spacecraft\u2019s solar arrays during the Artemis II crew\u2019s flyby of the moon on April 6, 2026 [NASA\/Handout via Reuters]Is space the next frontier of war?<\/p>\n

Samson told Al Jazeera that the US announcement of deploying weapons in Earth\u2019s orbit is not essentially disruptive in the context of space technology. \u201cWhat this does is normalise weaponising space,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpace has always been a domain with the potential of being a flashpoint for conflict; this just turns up the heat there,\u201d Samson added.<\/p>\n

A US Space Force spokesperson told ABC News that the US \u201ccapabilities can be employed for offensive and defensive purposes at the direction of combatant commands\u201d. The spokesperson noted that Washington \u201chas warned about Russian and Chinese weapons testing and operationalisation since 2007\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cDue to their actions, it is no longer a question that space is a warfighting domain,\u201d the spokesperson said. \u201cOpen communication strengthens deterrence, prevents adversary miscalculation, and normalises space operations alongside the other services.\u201d<\/p>\n

Samson further noted that Meink\u2019s statement \u201ccrosses a line\u201d, and would \u201ceither encourage China and Russia to also declare weapons in space, or will make US allies and partners want to also place weapons in space\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cCounterspace capabilities have been proliferating already \u2013 this speeds up that trend,\u201d she said, adding that this \u201cis incredibly destabilising and will work against US national security goals\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy opening the door to weaponising space, the US loses the most,\u201d Samson noted. \u201cEvery person on this planet uses space-based data and services in some way. Any interference with access to or use of space will affect everyone, not just space powers.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The United States has acknowledged deploying space weapons in orbit of the Earth. US Air Force Secretary Troy…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":896776,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[7592,5105,43,14207,44,8143,306,41,39,42,40,772,1690,8725],"class_list":["post-896775","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-explainer","tag-features","tag-headlines","tag-military","tag-news","tag-science-and-technology","tag-space","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-united-states","tag-us-canada","tag-weapons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/896775","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=896775"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/896775\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/896776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=896775"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=896775"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=896775"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}