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A-SAT test poses no threat to ISS, all debris will decay within 45 days: DRDO chief
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Chairman G Satheesh Reddy said on Saturday that there was no possibility of debris from the anti-satellite (ASAT) test conducted by India on March 27 hitting the International Space Station (ISS).
By
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New Delhi
His remark comes days after NASA raised concerns about the spread of debris from the Anti-Satellite Test (A-SAT) test India conducted on March 27.
Reddy, at a briefing held at the DRDO Bhawan here, said the interceptor had the capability to intercept satellites in orbit of 1,000 km.
India chose a much lower orbit of less than 300 km during Mission Shakti for "capability demonstration" and to avoid threat of debris to global space assets, he said.
"An orbit of around 300 km was chosen for the test for capability demonstration, and the purpose was to avoid threat of debris to any global space assets," Reddy said.
"The debris created following the intercept will decay in a matter of weeks," he added.
He said there were chances of some debris going up but since 10 days have passed since the launch, there was no possibility of it posing any threat to the ISS.
The risk analysis simulation based on an internationally accepted software also showed that there was no threat to the space station. The DRDO chief said that all the debris should be dissolved within 45 days.
On Tuesday, the NASA had termed a "terrible thing" India's shooting down of one its satellites, saying the hit-to-kill mission created about 400 pieces of orbital debris.
Responding to the observations made by NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine about the possible threat to the International Space Station, Reddy said when India conducted the test, the space station was over French Guyana.
Bridenstine had said that the ASAT test by India had created 69 pieces of orbital debris posing risk to the International Space Station.
India's Ministry of External Affairs too has said the test was done in the lower atmosphere to ensure that there is no space debris.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has hailed the A-SAT test's success as "an unprecedented achievement" that makes India "a space power."Â
On March 27, India shot down one of its satellites in space with an ASAT missile, which made it only the fourth country after the US, the USSR and China to have used such a weapon.
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