--- title: "Space Force Claims That Russia Just Tested an Anti-Satellite Missile" description: "According to US Space Command (USSC) officials, Russia has launched a new anti-satellite missile test, the third one this year alone." date: "2020-12-17" modified: "2020-12-17" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/space-force-russia-tested-anti-satellite-missile" categories: - "Space" - "Space Force" tags: - "anti-satellite weapon" - "Russia" - "space command" - "space force" - "the digest" --- # Space Force Claims That Russia Just Tested an Anti-Satellite Missile ![According to US Space Command (USSC) officials, Russia has launched a new anti-satellite missile test, the third one this year alone.]() *\Image: NASA\* ## Anti-Satellite Missiles According to US Space Command (USSC) officials, Russia has launched a new anti-satellite missile test, [*Space.com* reports](). The test involved a direct-ascent anti-satellite (DA-ASAT) missile that is designed to destroy small satellites in low Earth orbit. It's Russia's third anti-satellite test this year alone. ## Weaponizing Space American officials are irate. "Russia publicly claims it is working to prevent the transformation of outer space into a battlefield, yet at the same time Moscow continues to weaponize space by developing and fielding on-orbit and ground-based capabilities that seek to exploit US reliance on space-based systems," U.S. Space Command commander James Dickinson said in an [official statement](). It's not just U.S. military satellites on the line. The statement notes that ASAT missiles could "cause a large debris field that could endanger commercial satellites and irrevocably pollute the space domain." Dickinson also said that "Russia has made space a warfighting domain" with the tests, a fact that is "inconsistent with Moscow’s public claims that Russia seeks to prevent conflict in space." ## Space-Based Destruction In 2017 [and 2020](), Russia also demonstrated a space-based system dubbed a "co-orbital ASAT," involving a new object being injected into orbit and conducting "a non-destructive test" of an anti-satellite weapon, [*The Hill* reports](). The news also comes after Indian authorities [successfully tested an anti-satellite]() missile in March 2019. Months later, the resulting debris cloud was still endangering satellites [and even astronauts]() on board the International Space Station. **READ MORE:** [Russia has launched an anti-satellite missile test, US Space Command says]() \[*Space.com*\] **More on anti-satellite tech:** *[Russia Just Tested a Military Satellite That Kills Other Satellites]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()