well as the growing Russian military activity in neighbouring areas, such as
Ukraine, Libya and Syria. Syria in particular was the scene of a large Russian
military campaign against ISIS, which allowed Moscow to showcase brand new
weapons, including a modern satellite fleet, as the US did in Kuwait in 1991.
44
Russia’s intervention in Syria started in September 2015 and was decisive for
stabilizing the area by bolstering the Assad regime and limiting the growing
Iranian influence. Moscow deployed an array of devastating new weapons, which
appeared oversized given the regional theater of operation. The use of modern
space-based assets was truly impressive. Russian forces used the Persona
45
and
Resurs-P
46
electro-optical spy satellites to take thousands of high-resolution
images every day. All data were sent through laser links to the geostationary
Garpuns
47
satellites, which bounced them in real time to the command and control
centers on Earth. In all weather conditions, at night and during the day, the Kondor
radar satellites
48
guaranteed continuous imaging of the territory. In addition, the
ELINT
49
Lotos
50
spy satellites were employed to intercept ISIS radio communications. All launches of the lethal Kalibr NK cruise missiles were carefully planned
thanks to the images provided by the BARS-Ms
51
satellites, and guidance and control was assured through the global radionavigation constellation of 27 Glonass
52
satellites.
This impressive array of space-based assets will support two futuristic weapons
expected to be deployed soon: the PL19/Nudol
53
anti-missile
54
rocket, capable of
intercepting both ICBM’s in the mid-course phase
55
and spy satellites in low
orbits, and the lethal hypersonic cruise missile Object 4202.
56
Hypersonic missiles
44
http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/54096.posts. Kremlin Ru, March 23, 2016.
45
http://www.russianspaceweb.com/persona.html.
46
http://www.russianspaceweb.com/resurs_p.html.
47
https://spaceflightnow.com/2015/12/13/russian-data-relay-satellite-launched-by-protonrocket/.
48
Harvey, Brian. 2007. « The Rebirth of the Russian Space Program: 50 Years After Sputnik,
New Frontiers ». Cham: Springer-Verlag, 180.
49
ELINT is the acronym for Electronic Intelligence, referring to systems for listening to electromagnetic emissions.
50
https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/10/russia-soyuz-flight-lotos-s1-mission/.
51
https://www.globalsecurity.org/space/world/russia/bars-m.htm.
52
https://www.globalsecurity.org/space/world/russia/glonass.htm.
53
https://thediplomat.com/2018/04/russia-conducts-new-test-of-nudol-anti-satellite-system/.
5 4
h t t p s : / / w w w. p o p u l a r m e c h a n i c s . c o m / m i l i t a r y / r e s e a r c h / n e w s / a 2 4 4 5 5 /
russia-anti-satellite-weapon/.
55
http://www.nti.org/media/pdfs/10_5.pdf?_=1316627913, p. 1.
56
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3876596/Russia-fires-radical-hypersonicsuper-nuke-warhead-Prototype-mysterious-object-4202-blasted-ballistic-missile.html.
Battlestar Galactica: The Space Cyberwar of the Future 109
Ukraine, Libya and Syria. Syria in particular was the scene of a large Russian
military campaign against ISIS, which allowed Moscow to showcase brand new
weapons, including a modern satellite fleet, as the US did in Kuwait in 1991.
44
Russia’s intervention in Syria started in September 2015 and was decisive for
stabilizing the area by bolstering the Assad regime and limiting the growing
Iranian influence. Moscow deployed an array of devastating new weapons, which
appeared oversized given the regional theater of operation. The use of modern
space-based assets was truly impressive. Russian forces used the Persona
45
and
Resurs-P
46
electro-optical spy satellites to take thousands of high-resolution
images every day. All data were sent through laser links to the geostationary
Garpuns
47
satellites, which bounced them in real time to the command and control
centers on Earth. In all weather conditions, at night and during the day, the Kondor
radar satellites
48
guaranteed continuous imaging of the territory. In addition, the
ELINT
49
Lotos
50
spy satellites were employed to intercept ISIS radio communications. All launches of the lethal Kalibr NK cruise missiles were carefully planned
thanks to the images provided by the BARS-Ms
51
satellites, and guidance and control was assured through the global radionavigation constellation of 27 Glonass
52
satellites.
This impressive array of space-based assets will support two futuristic weapons
expected to be deployed soon: the PL19/Nudol
53
anti-missile
54
rocket, capable of
intercepting both ICBM’s in the mid-course phase
55
and spy satellites in low
orbits, and the lethal hypersonic cruise missile Object 4202.
56
Hypersonic missiles
44
http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/54096.posts. Kremlin Ru, March 23, 2016.
45
http://www.russianspaceweb.com/persona.html.
46
http://www.russianspaceweb.com/resurs_p.html.
47
https://spaceflightnow.com/2015/12/13/russian-data-relay-satellite-launched-by-protonrocket/.
48
Harvey, Brian. 2007. « The Rebirth of the Russian Space Program: 50 Years After Sputnik,
New Frontiers ». Cham: Springer-Verlag, 180.
49
ELINT is the acronym for Electronic Intelligence, referring to systems for listening to electromagnetic emissions.
50
https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2018/10/russia-soyuz-flight-lotos-s1-mission/.
51
https://www.globalsecurity.org/space/world/russia/bars-m.htm.
52
https://www.globalsecurity.org/space/world/russia/glonass.htm.
53
https://thediplomat.com/2018/04/russia-conducts-new-test-of-nudol-anti-satellite-system/.
5 4
h t t p s : / / w w w. p o p u l a r m e c h a n i c s . c o m / m i l i t a r y / r e s e a r c h / n e w s / a 2 4 4 5 5 /
russia-anti-satellite-weapon/.
55
http://www.nti.org/media/pdfs/10_5.pdf?_=1316627913, p. 1.
56
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3876596/Russia-fires-radical-hypersonicsuper-nuke-warhead-Prototype-mysterious-object-4202-blasted-ballistic-missile.html.
Battlestar Galactica: The Space Cyberwar of the Future 109