China Wants to Take Out US Satellites with Microwave Pulses

Lin Shishan, a colonel in the General Staff Fourth Department, wrote an article in which he detailed the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) plans to take out United States computer networks and satellite communications.

According to Pakalert Press, the latter category would be targeted with high-power microwave pulses that would penetrate the satellite via its antennas and cables, causing serious damage to the electronic components inside.

Members of the China Academy of Space Technology, Wu Gang, Song Zhiqiang, and Liu Bo, stated that the country is highly aware of the fact that satellite systems are of maximum importance, which is why they’re bound to become targets on cyber warfare.


“When the power or energy reaches a certain level of magnitude, it would interfere with the internal electronic equipment or components, rendering them unable to function normally, or even burning the semi-conductor components and integrated circuit of the electronic equipment,” they explained regarding the attacks on satellite systems.

Another paper published sometime in March by Liu Wangxin reveals that China may try to take over the Internet information nodes and facilities governed by the US.

On the other side of the fence, US experts don’t seem to be too surprised by the news.

“As expected, they view our communications and GPS navigation systems as priority targets at the start of a conflict and are spending time and effort figuring out their vulnerabilities and attack strategies,” said Dmitri Alperovitch, CTO of CrowdStrike.

For now, the US has the upper hand from a technological standpoint and that’s probably why the Chinese will try to cause some damage by relying on whatever technology they already possess.

However, this doesn’t mean that United States is not preparing for battle. Edward Timperlake, a former Pentagon security expert claims that the country’s forces from the Pacific need to be reinforced with new technologies, training and tactics which can ensure that anything China has in store can be dealt with.

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