By Cassell Bryan-Low, Joey Roulette and Eduardo Baptista
Sept 2 (Reuters) - In June, a secretive unmanned Chinese spaceplane closely monitored by U.S. military analysts released a small satellite hundreds of miles above Earth in an orbital region crowded with commercial and military satellites. The object then looped around another Chinese satellite before returning towards the spaceplane, according to U.S. space-tracking firm LeoLabs.
Little is known about the satellite or the mission. But the U.S. military operates a similarly secretive spaceplane resembling a small shuttle, also with no crew. Both programs reflect the rapidly evolving field of military space operations as Beijing and Washington prepare for the possibility of conflict extending into space, according to a Reuters review of documents, space-tracking data and interviews with current and former military officials.
Chinese researchers linked to the military are developing technologies ranging from satellites designed to pursue and even capture other spacecraft to systems that could extend fuel supplies while doing so, according to a Reuters review of patent-related documents, procurement notices and academic papers. And the United States and Britain conducted their first joint military operation in space in the path of a suspected Chinese spy satellite, according to commercial space-tracking data.
"The Chinese are rapidly developing capabilities," including ground- and space-based weapons designed to interfere with or destroy targets, U.S. Space Force’s Chief of Space Operations General Chance Saltzman said in July. The threat from China is "substantial," added Saltzman, who is retiring.
Satellites have become indispensable to modern warfare, as conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East have demonstrated. For decades they have provided communications, navigation and intelligence services to armed forces on Earth, and once placed in orbit typically remained on fixed paths. Increasingly, however, militaries view them as active weapons platforms capable of launching attacks by disrupting a satellite’s operations through jamming or laser dazzling, or even capturing enemy spacecraft.
Disruption of U.S. space capabilities would "cripple our massive military in the terrestrial sphere," affecting everything from surveillance to missile defense, said Everett Dolman, a former professor at the U.S. Air Force's Air War College. Spaceplanes, because they are agile and capable of deploying satellites or carrying cargo, could appear to opponents as potential "space fighters," he said.
ALLIES JOIN THE U.S. EFFORT
The growing competition comes as Earth's orbit becomes increasingly crowded. SpaceX, which recently debuted on public markets, operates about 11,000 Starlink satellites and plans a constellation of larger AI-enabled data centers in space. China is building rival networks, while U.S. President Donald Trump's Golden Dome missile defense program envisions space-based interceptors.
The United States is also refining capabilities that could prove important in a future conflict.
In the joint U.S.-British operation in September last year, U.S. space forces working from a base in Colorado directed a U.S. military satellite to swoop in close to a U.K. one as China's Shiyan 12-01 satellite passed about 83 kilometers beneath them, according to space intelligence company Slingshot Aerospace. At that altitude, specialists consider the distance relatively close.
Three space experts with military backgrounds told Reuters it appeared intended as a signal to Beijing, including at space-tracking firm COMSPOC. Andrew Turner, a retired senior British air force officer who is now a space consultant, said it was “almost certainly a strategic signal to China” to demonstrate allied unity, capability and a warning to not interfere with the UK satellite.
The U.S. and Britain publicly announced the operation, the first known one between two members of the "Five Eyes" intelligence alliance, but did not disclose its proximity to a Chinese spacecraft. Much of what occurs in space remains classified because of its intelligence implications.
U.S. Space Command told Reuters the mission demonstrated the ability to work with allies in space. Britain's defense ministry said space is increasingly important to military operations and the UK and its partners were conducting advanced orbital operations to protect their national and military interests. Neither commented on the operation’s proximity to the Chinese satellite.
The U.S. Space Force’s next chief of space operations, Lieutenant General Douglas Schiess, had been involved in the operation. In an interview shortly after, he said operating close to another spacecraft could help verify whether an allied satellite is functioning properly or determine whether an adversary is "doing something it shouldn't." He declined to say at the time whether another country's satellite had been nearby.
Britain recently disclosed that the mission was conducted alongside a maritime deployment to the Indo-Pacific region.
Using space not only to support military operations on Earth but also to influence their outcome is "really, really important," then U.K. Space Command chief Major General Paul Tedman said in April at a conference. He has since retired from the military.
China's foreign ministry said it was not familiar with the specific details of the U.S.-British operation. More broadly, Beijing opposes the weaponization of space and supports its peaceful use, the ministry said, while accusing Washington of stoking an arms race through efforts including the missile defense system Golden Dome and potential space-based weapons.
Asked about Shiyan 12-01 and the Chinese spaceplane, the ministry said it had no information. State news agency Xinhua has described Shiyan 12-01 as conducting space environment surveys, and the spaceplane as an experimental craft supporting the peaceful use of space.
U.S. Space Force says its own spaceplane is carrying out a range of tests and experiments.
SPACE WEAPONS
U.S. Space Command head General Stephen Whiting has repeatedly emphasized the importance of space to modern warfare, warning that adversaries are developing capabilities to deny the United States access to key systems and reduce military effectiveness. He has said adversaries would likely seek to target U.S. space assets early in a conflict.
To counter such threats, the U.S. must adopt a more active warfighting posture in space, Whiting argues. That means not only protecting U.S. systems but also being prepared to threaten or strike hostile assets if necessary. He has called for orbital interceptors and other weapons.
"We must be well-prepared for conflict in space. And if deterrence fails, we will fight and win," he told a conference in April.
Western officials warn of a range of threats, including ground-based lasers, electronic jammers, cyberattacks and anti-satellite missiles.
In orbit, the United States, China and Russia all operate maneuverable satellites capable of approaching and inspecting other spacecraft. Such systems could be adapted to carry weapons, including lasers or projectiles. Western officials say Beijing and Moscow have demonstrated technologies that could be used to threaten U.S. and allied satellites.
The U.S. has also accused Russia of developing an anti-satellite capability involving a satellite designed to carry a nuclear weapon. Moscow has denied that it is developing a space-based anti-satellite nuclear weapon.
The U.K.'s Tedman, in an interview last fall, said militaries now see satellites as “weapons systems” that need to maneuver and fight. The West is “working hard to retain our strategic advantage in space,” he said.
Some specialists note that disrupting satellites remains easier from Earth than through spacecraft-on-spacecraft attacks.
In a rare disclosure about its own capabilities, the U.S. Space Force announced in June that it had introduced an earthbound electromagnetic weapon from L3Harris Technologies designed to disable or disrupt adversary satellites.
"DOGFIGHTING" AND HUNTER SATELLITES
Although the United States remains the world's leading space power, China is rapidly expanding both the number of satellites it operates and the complexity of its missions.
Chinese satellites have demonstrated what U.S. officials describe as orbital "dogfighting," which includes multiple satellites moving in a synchronized way in proximity. Chinese spacecraft have also shown the ability to capture a defunct satellite and move it into a different orbit.
Last year, China conducted what was likely an on-orbit refueling attempt, according to a U.S. Space Force official. Refueling would be a major breakthrough because satellites are normally constrained by the fuel they launch with. The ability to replenish fuel could determine whether a spacecraft remains a hunter or becomes the hunted.
Chinese institutions continue to pursue new capabilities. Patent-related documents show the maker of some of China's most advanced military aircraft acquired technology that allows satellites to autonomously calculate fuel-efficient maneuvers while pursuing another spacecraft.
Meanwhile, a technology-transfer notice published by the National University of Defense Technology described a mature system capable of managing hundreds of satellites simultaneously for both defensive and operational purposes.
Researchers at another major Chinese university with close military ties have also been developing pursuit satellites, including concepts involving multiple spacecraft using nets to capture targets, according to patent-related documents.
The institutions and the People's Liberation Army did not respond to requests for comment. On-orbit capabilities such as refueling and capturing another satellite could have non-military uses.
China's official military newspaper, PLA Daily, said in a 2022 editorial that controlling space was essential for safeguarding national security, seizing the strategic initiative and achieving victory in war.
(Reporting by Cassell Bryan-Low in London, Joey Roulette in Washington and Eduardo Baptista in Beijing. Editing by Anna Driver)
