DID YOU KNOW?
MQ-28 GHOST BAT
The Ghost Bat drone is being developed by Boeing Australia. Although the full scope of the drone’s capabilities isn’t yet known, its roles on the battlefield will likely include surveillance and reconnaissance. This military drone is named after the ghost bat, a carnivorous species native to Northern Australia. The pair share some qualities, such as the ability to sense and hunt down a target in groups. In the wild, ghost bats often hunt as a group, and this UAV is designed to fly alongside fighter jets to offer a helping hand during tactical operations.
MQ-25 STINGRAY
Designed for US Navy missions, the MQ-25 Stingray is a UAV that provides in-air refuelling for fighter jets such as the Lockheed Martin F-35C and Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet. It’s almost 23 metres long and can carry almost seven tonnes of fuel during flight. The Stingray is remotely controlled by a pilot but autonomously dispenses fuel to fighter jets when connected.
GREMLINS
The United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is developing launchable drones called Gremlins. The Gremlins are designed to be launched from a mother cargo plane and offer tactical and surveillance support from above. Each of the Gremlins is around 680 kilograms in weight, with a wingspan of around 3.5 metres. The intention is to release Gremlins in a swarm to gather intelligence and carry out assaults in dangerous airspace.
The global drone market is worth £9.8 billion ($12 billion)
OMARK SMITH
rbiting high above our heads is technology that has changed every aspect of our lives. From the GPS on your phone to the sport you watch on TV, satellites have become a cornerstone of modern life. But as well as civilian use, they’re also the lynchpin to secure military and government communications. It stands to reason that any hostile state wishing to cause disruption would target these satellites. Known as anti-satellite weapons (ASATS), they have been around almost as long as satellites themselves.
When the Soviet Union launched the world’s first satellite, Sputnik 1, in 1957, the US feared that its Cold War rivals would develop an orbital network of nuclear-armed satellites. It responded with its first ASAT, an air-launched ballistic missile called Bold Orion. The Soviets responded with their own ASAT. These were known as co-orbitals and would essentially fly alongside satellites and blow themselves up, taking the satellite with them.
The technology has continued to evolve, with China entering the race in 2007 when it destroyed an old weather satellite with a ballistic missile. Continuing tests have led to a dangerous rise in space debris orbiting Earth, and in April this year the US became the first country to announce it was banning the use of missiles against satellites.
There are more than 4,500 active satellites
ASATS can be broadly divided into two types: those that use brute force and those that don’t. Kinetic-energy ASATS physically crash into satellites and can be virtually anything that can reach altitude, from ballistic missiles to drones and other satellites.
The other type of ASAT is the non-kinetic type. They use non-physical attacks such as cyber attacks or jamming and blinding satellites with lasers. These attacks can all be carried out from the air, low orbit or even ground installations.