Michael Peck
Sat, August 3, 2024
Chinese researchers believe submarine-fired lasers could destroy satellites.
A laser could target more of the growing satellite networks essential to military operations.
But US experts are skeptical a scheme like this would work.
Chinese scientists claim that it's possible to destroy satellites — including SpaceX's Starlink system — using lasers mounted on submarines.
American experts question the feasibility of mounting a power-hungry energy weapon on a sub. But China and other potential American adversaries are looking for ways to destroy or degrade the satellite-based communications and targeting that has given the US military an edge, and researchers at the Chinese navy's Submarine Academy are confident that the submarines are the answer.
"A submarine with a megawatt-class, solid-state, laser weapon installed in its midsection could stay submerged while it raised a retractable, 'optoelectronic mast' to fire at satellites, before diving back down to depth," according to Hong Kong's South China Morning Post, citing the study, which was published in the Chinese defense magazine "Command Control & Simulation."
The Chinese researchers contrasted this approach with current anti-satellite weapons, which use ground-fired rockets to launch what is essentially a killer satellite that destroys its prey with an explosive warhead or projectile. The US government recently warned that Russia is also developing an anti-satellite with a nuclear warhead. A laser, by contrast, offers the potential to fire at many space targets but also comes with the many complexities of submarine operations.
These technologies, which began in the 1950s, were conceived for an era when satellites were big, expensive and few in number. They remain a threat to sophisticated spy and communications satellites, but the advent of cheap, expendable swarms of communications satellites, such as the Starlink commercial network, has vastly complicated anti-satellite efforts.
"Taking the satellites launched by the Starlink program as an example, they are numerous, densely packed and small in size, making the satellite network extremely resilient," the study noted. "Even if a significant number of satellites are destroyed, there are redundancies to replace them. Therefore, using missiles to attack such satellites is highly inefficient."
Satellite swarms are becoming a crucial part of warfare. They have enabled Ukraine, for example, to provide connectivity for its forces when existing Internet and satellite communications facilities were destroyed. Thus, there's a need for destroying or disabling many small satellites in low-Earth orbit.
Chinese researchers envision the solution as flotillas of mass-produced laser subs that could be dispatched to oceans around the world. They would wait for tracking data from other non-submarine platforms to determine when a target satellite is overhead.
"When the satellite enters the attackable range, the laser weapon is raised. Due to the limitations of the submarine's detection equipment, other forces are required to provide satellite position guidance for the submarine to attack the satellite. After the attack is completed, the submarine can submerge and wait for the next mission or return to the home port."
In addition to destroying satellites, these subs could also blast aircraft or land targets such as radars and oil refineries. The Chinese researchers estimated that "a modest 150-kilowatt laser weapon on a submarine can damage the photoelectric detection equipment on an anti-submarine aircraft in one-fifth of a second, with an effective range of more than 20 kilometers [12 miles]," the Post said. "Continuous firing could also penetrate the aircraft's fuselage."
Laser subs could also shield China's ballistic missile submarines from detection. "The escorting submarine can first use the laser weapon to interfere with or destroy overhead satellites in the sea area, making it difficult for the enemy's space-based surveillance system to function, thereby achieving the concealment of missile launches."
In 2019, the US Navy put out a research solicitation for electrical connectors that would allow submarines to transmit power — through the sub's hull — to an externally mounted laser. American submarines needed a towed power source to accomplish this, the Navy said at the time.
Still, the idea of a sub-mounted anti-satellite laser leaves American experts cold. "The submarine would have to be designed from the ground up to generate the many, many megawatts of electricity to power a laser shooting at an object 200-300 miles up, and that delivers about 10 kilowatts on target," Chris Carlson, a former Defense Intelligence Agency naval analyst, told Business Insider. "That would require an incredibly huge amount of volume."
Submarines would also have trouble aiming lasers. "A submarine at periscope depth is anything but a stable firing platform," Carlson said. "Just a little wiggle in pitch, roll, or yaw will yank the beam off target." In addition, targeting data would have to be transmitted to the sub so that it can assume a firing position when the satellite is overhead.
"Communications with a submerged submarine are difficult," said Carlson. "And after alerting the sub, it would still have to raise a mast with a data link to the tracking sensor before a separate tracking laser on the sub itself could acquire the target and point the laser weapon in the right direction."
"There are lots of ways for this to go wrong," Carlson said.
Michael Peck is a defense writer whose work has appeared in Forbes, Defense News, Foreign Policy magazine, and other publications. He holds an MA in political science from Rutgers Univ. Follow him on Twitter and LinkedIn.
Use of Russian software on UK nuclear submarines sparks call for defence review
Camilla Turner
Sat, August 3, 2024
The Vanguard-class nuclear submarine HMS Vengeance at Clyde, Faslane - Jane Barlow/PA Wire
Ministers have been urged to carry out an urgent review of defence supply chains in the wake of The Telegraph’s revelations about Britain’s nuclear submarine fleet.
The Telegraph disclosed that Britain’s nuclear submarine engineers are using software that was designed in Russia and Belarus.
The software should have been created by UK-based staff with security clearance, but the work was partially outsourced to developers in Siberia and Minsk, the capital of Belarus.
There are fears that further defence capabilities could have been compromised because it has emerged that a previous project was also outsourced to developers in Minsk.
Experts have warned that the UK’s national security risked being jeopardised if personal details of those with classified knowledge of Britain’s nuclear submarine fleet fell into the wrong hands, leaving them exposed to blackmail or targeted attacks.
The Telegraph understands that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) considered the security breach a serious threat to UK defence and launched an investigation.
The inquiry discovered that the firm that outsourced the work – on a staff intranet for nuclear submarine engineers – to Russia and Belarus initially kept it secret and discussed whether it could disguise where the workers were based by giving them fake names of dead British people.
Admiral Lord West, the former head of the Royal Navy said he was “shocked” to read about these “extraordinary” revelations, and urged the MoD to carry out a review into supply chains to ensure they are secure.
“This whole area is an area that has been worrying me more and more. If you go back years ago there wasn’t the same reliance on coding and software and these sorts of things,” he said.
Lord West, who served as the First Sea Lord from 2002 to 2006, added that it can be “highly dangerous” now that everything was so reliant on software.
“This is a world where software can make such a difference. We have to have mechanisms where we can absolutely be certain that no one has broken into the supply chain, even at the lowest level, and that there is no one who hasn’t got the clearance to do the work,” he said.
“I think certainly the Ministry of Defence needs to look very, very closely at this and to make sure that [their supply chains] are absolutely secure. They need to make absolutely sure that every single supplier is secure and has signed the Official Secrets Act.”
The Telegraph revealed how Rolls-Royce Submarines, which designs and runs the UK’s nuclear submarine fleet on behalf of the Royal Navy, wanted to upgrade its staff intranet and had subcontracted the work to WM Reply, a digital consultancy firm.
WM Reply then used developers based in Belarus – Russia’s closest ally – one of whom was actually working from home in Tomsk, Siberia, according to documents submitted to the MoD’s inquiry.
The intranet system included personal details of all Rolls-Royce Submarines employees, as well as the organisational structure of those at the company working on the UK’s submarine fleet.
Ben Wallace, former defence secretary, said there must be “punitive action” for subcontractors who breach the terms of their contracts.
“There doesn’t seem to be a clear enough policy of penalties or punitive action should you not comply,” he said. “If a company realised they would be stuck off working from government contracts or named and shamed, I suspect they wouldn’t do it.”
Tom Tugendhat, a former security minister who is a Tory leadership contender, said that securing supply chains was important for “boosting our resilience and protecting our national security” and said the Government “must safeguard the defence sector skills, jobs, and capabilities” in the UK.
A Rolls-Royce spokesman said: “We can categorically state that at no point was there any risk of data, classified or otherwise, being accessed or made available to non-security cleared individuals. It is not possible for non-security cleared individuals to access any sensitive data via our company intranet.
“All our suppliers comply with strict security requirements. Once we were made aware of these allegations that clearly breached these requirements, and following a rigorous internal investigation that concluded in 2021, Rolls-Royce Submarines ceased working with WM Reply. We have not awarded them any further contracts.”
A spokesman for WM Reply denied the claim that its actions could have endangered national security.
“WM Reply regularly reviews its delivery processes and procedures, respects the needs and processes of its customers and enjoys transparent and long-standing relationships with those customers,” they said.
Camilla Turner
Sat, August 3, 2024
The Vanguard-class nuclear submarine HMS Vengeance at Clyde, Faslane - Jane Barlow/PA Wire
Ministers have been urged to carry out an urgent review of defence supply chains in the wake of The Telegraph’s revelations about Britain’s nuclear submarine fleet.
The Telegraph disclosed that Britain’s nuclear submarine engineers are using software that was designed in Russia and Belarus.
The software should have been created by UK-based staff with security clearance, but the work was partially outsourced to developers in Siberia and Minsk, the capital of Belarus.
There are fears that further defence capabilities could have been compromised because it has emerged that a previous project was also outsourced to developers in Minsk.
Experts have warned that the UK’s national security risked being jeopardised if personal details of those with classified knowledge of Britain’s nuclear submarine fleet fell into the wrong hands, leaving them exposed to blackmail or targeted attacks.
The Telegraph understands that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) considered the security breach a serious threat to UK defence and launched an investigation.
The inquiry discovered that the firm that outsourced the work – on a staff intranet for nuclear submarine engineers – to Russia and Belarus initially kept it secret and discussed whether it could disguise where the workers were based by giving them fake names of dead British people.
Admiral Lord West, the former head of the Royal Navy said he was “shocked” to read about these “extraordinary” revelations, and urged the MoD to carry out a review into supply chains to ensure they are secure.
“This whole area is an area that has been worrying me more and more. If you go back years ago there wasn’t the same reliance on coding and software and these sorts of things,” he said.
Lord West, who served as the First Sea Lord from 2002 to 2006, added that it can be “highly dangerous” now that everything was so reliant on software.
“This is a world where software can make such a difference. We have to have mechanisms where we can absolutely be certain that no one has broken into the supply chain, even at the lowest level, and that there is no one who hasn’t got the clearance to do the work,” he said.
“I think certainly the Ministry of Defence needs to look very, very closely at this and to make sure that [their supply chains] are absolutely secure. They need to make absolutely sure that every single supplier is secure and has signed the Official Secrets Act.”
The Telegraph revealed how Rolls-Royce Submarines, which designs and runs the UK’s nuclear submarine fleet on behalf of the Royal Navy, wanted to upgrade its staff intranet and had subcontracted the work to WM Reply, a digital consultancy firm.
WM Reply then used developers based in Belarus – Russia’s closest ally – one of whom was actually working from home in Tomsk, Siberia, according to documents submitted to the MoD’s inquiry.
The intranet system included personal details of all Rolls-Royce Submarines employees, as well as the organisational structure of those at the company working on the UK’s submarine fleet.
Ben Wallace, former defence secretary, said there must be “punitive action” for subcontractors who breach the terms of their contracts.
“There doesn’t seem to be a clear enough policy of penalties or punitive action should you not comply,” he said. “If a company realised they would be stuck off working from government contracts or named and shamed, I suspect they wouldn’t do it.”
Tom Tugendhat, a former security minister who is a Tory leadership contender, said that securing supply chains was important for “boosting our resilience and protecting our national security” and said the Government “must safeguard the defence sector skills, jobs, and capabilities” in the UK.
A Rolls-Royce spokesman said: “We can categorically state that at no point was there any risk of data, classified or otherwise, being accessed or made available to non-security cleared individuals. It is not possible for non-security cleared individuals to access any sensitive data via our company intranet.
“All our suppliers comply with strict security requirements. Once we were made aware of these allegations that clearly breached these requirements, and following a rigorous internal investigation that concluded in 2021, Rolls-Royce Submarines ceased working with WM Reply. We have not awarded them any further contracts.”
A spokesman for WM Reply denied the claim that its actions could have endangered national security.
“WM Reply regularly reviews its delivery processes and procedures, respects the needs and processes of its customers and enjoys transparent and long-standing relationships with those customers,” they said.
Ukraine says it sank a Russian Black Sea Fleet submarine n Crimea.
The Kilo-class submarine Rostov-on-Don was hit in Sevastopol, Ukraine's military said.
Ukraine has relentlessly targeted Russia's Black Sea Fleet since the war began.
Ukraine says it sank a $300 million Russian submarine in what could be another big blow to Putin's Black Sea Fleet
Cameron Manley
Updated Sun, August 4, 2024
Ukraine says it struck and sank a Russian Black Sea Fleet submarine and damaged a number of prized S-400 air defense systems in Crimea.
In a statement on Telegram, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said the Kilo-class submarine Rostov-on-Don was hit in the port of Sevastopol.
"The boat sank on the spot," the General Staff said.
"The destruction of the Rostov-on-Don proves once again that there is no safe place for the Russian fleet in the Ukrainian territorial waters of the Black Sea," it added.
Business Insider was unable to independently verify the claim. The Russian Defense Ministry has not yet commented.
The Russian-appointed governor of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhayev, posted on Telegram on Sunday morning but did not reference Ukraine's announcement.
"Everything is quiet in the city," he wrote, while also warning of an upcoming training exercise.
Ukraine's military said the B-237 Rostov-on-Don "is one of four Kilo-class submarines capable of using 'Kalibr' missiles."
It is not the first time that sub, which Ukraine says cost Russia $300 million, has been targeted in the conflict.
The UK's Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in September that the submarine had "likely suffered catastrophic damage" following a missile strike on a shipyard in Sevastopol.
"Any effort to return the submarine to service is likely to take many years and cost hundreds of millions of dollars," the MoD said at the time.
Despite having no traditional navy of its own, Ukraine has had huge success battling the Black Sea Fleet.
Many of the fleet's ships have been forced to relocate eastward from the naval base in Sevastopol to Novorossiysk, and it has also lost a number of key warships, including its flagship, the Moskva.
In addition to striking the submarine, the General Staff said Ukrainian forces had also severely damaged four S-400 antiaircraft missile launchers.
Frederik Mertens, a former strategic analyst at the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies, previously told BI that by targeting Crimea and defense systems such as the S-400, Ukraine was likely "preparing the ground" for the use of F-16 fighter jets, which arrived in Ukraine earlier this week.
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