Chinese scientists propose to destroy Starlink satellites with a 10-megaton atomic bomb

China sees Starlink satellites as a threat and has been developing programs to destroy them for months. Recently, scientists have proposed an approach that involves detonating an atomic bomb to eliminate SpaceX's spacecraft.

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The new model, developed by Chinese experts, makes it possible to take out several hundred or even thousands of satellites without damaging friendly spacecraft. For example, SpaceX has put more than 3,500 first-generation Starlink satellites into orbit and will begin sending Starlink V2 into space in 2023.

Chinese scientists believe that it is possible to disable enemy spacecraft using an atomic warhead with a capacity of 10 megatons. According to calculations, the explosion in orbit will provoke capture of radioactive particles by the planet's magnetic field, which will threaten all satellites, including friendly ones.

In this regard, experts suggest detonating an atomic bomb at an altitude of 80 kilometers, so the air will help to create a radioactive cloud, which in a few minutes will cover an area of about 140,000 square kilometers at an altitude of 500 kilometers. This will make it possible to partially or completely destroy spacecraft in a selected orbit.

Physicists from the Celestial Empire stressed that the developed model will fully replicate the behavior of the radioactive cloud, which was formed as a result of high-altitude nuclear weapons tests in the Hawaiian Islands. They were conducted by the United States 60 years ago as part of the Starfish Storm project to study the effects of a nuclear explosion in outer space.

Source: scmp