New device could protect satellites from microwave attacks, say Chinese scientists
- Initial testing suggests the technology may help a satellite survive and function after being hit, according to the team
- It has been designed to defend against a disabling energy surge from a high-power microwave weapon
Chinese scientists say they have developed a new technology that could protect satellites from attack by high-power microwave weapons.
The team, from the China Academy of Space Technology, said it had completed ground testing of the technology, and aspects of it were already being used by some critical space assets.
High-power microwave weapons can disable electronic equipment. Using an antenna to transmit an intense energy beam at a target in orbit, such as a satellite, they can generate an electrical surge strong enough to take it out of action, according to Li Wendong, a research engineer at CAST.
That electrical current would travel into a satellite’s wiring, he said.
“The electromagnetic pulses that enter the satellite will be concentrated in extremely small, weak areas with high energy density,” Li wrote in a paper published in Chinese peer-reviewed journal Spacecraft Engineering on February 15.
“They create a huge amount of heat in a short time, and they will burn the semiconductors and integrated circuits in the electronic equipment.”