--- title: "US Military Alarmed by Russian Nuclear Weapon Platform in Orbit" description: "A Russian spacecraft launched higher than most satellites has long had the Pentagon worried — and it apparently has a space nuke on it." date: "2024-12-07" modified: "2024-12-07" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/russian-space-nuke-revelations" categories: - "Future Society" - "Military" - "Science & Energy" tags: - "anti-satellite weapons" - "Russia" - "space weapons" - "the digest" --- # US Military Alarmed by Russian Nuclear Weapon Platform in Orbit ![A Russian spacecraft launched higher than most satellites has long had the Pentagon worried — and it apparently has a space nuke on it.]() *\Image: Contributor via Getty\* ## Dumb War A Russian spacecraft launched higher than most satellites has [long had the Pentagon worried]() — and new revelations about what it contains have made those concerns all the greater. Launched in [February 2022]() just a few weeks before [Ukraine was invaded](), Russia's Cosmos 2553 spacecraft is nominally built to test out "newly developed onboard instruments and systems." According to [new reporting from the *New York Times*](), however, the mysterious satellite system contains a "dummy warhead" — a precursor of what could come should the Russians decide to arm the craft for real. As scary as the concept of a space nuke sounds, it wouldn't necessarily harm life on Earth — unless you consider eliminating all satellites in its vicinity harm, in which case the people down on the planet below would be seriously screwed. ## ASAT Stats Back in 1962, the US military [actually did detonate a nuclear weapon in space](), though the damage from the electromagnetic pulse it emanated seems mostly to have been limited to streetlights dimming in Hawaii, which was below the test. Scientists learned from that [formerly-classified test]() that doing so was probably a pretty bad idea, and in 1967, both Russia and the United States signed the Outer Space Treaty to prevent, essentially, space warfare. In the years since, however, [concerns have grown]() that [Russia may violate the treaty]() — especially as more and more communications satellites began littering our planet's orbit. After Russia released Cosmos 2553 some 250 miles above the planet's surface, military experts became concerned that it [might be a secret nuclear weapon](). As the *NYT*'s new reporting reveals, the US Space Force and a group of intelligence agencies have quietly been looking into the satellite to try to figure out its real purpose. Throughout 2024, more and more information about the [alleged anti-satellite weapon]() began to [trickle out of Washington](). In response, Russian President Vladimir Putin has [repeatedly]() [denied]() that it's any such thing — though notably, it doesn't appear he's made any such denial since the *NYT* reported that Cosmos 2553 contains a dummy warhead. Despite those refutations, [Russia vetoed in April]() a United Nations resolution that would bar nuclear weapons in space. If the *NYT*'s reporting holds up, we may know why. **More on Russian crafts:** [*Insane Video Shows Reckless Russian Fighter Jet Rip Right Past an F-16*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()