The Air Force is pressing hard to develop defensive and offensive space weapons without adequately considering the potential adverse consequences. Now the Air Force is seeking a presidential directive that could strengthen military uses of space. Currently, space satellites serve important military roles but only in support of ground operations. If an enemy managed to disrupt these in a time of conflict, US forces would lose one of their great advantages, so it is reasonable to seek ways to protect its satellites from harm. What the Air Force has in mind is shrouded in secrecy. An experimental microsatellite launched last month has the ability to disrupt other nations’ military satellites. A proposed global strike space plane would carry munitions halfway around the world in 45 minutes. The “Rods From God” programme would hurl dense metal rods at targets on the ground with the force of a small nuclear weapon. Other programmes would use laser beams or radio waves to disable targets. This all sounds similar to the technological hubris of missile defence. Now, $100 billion later, they still can’t reliably detect and destroy an incoming missile. Congress needs to assess whether a multilateral treaty to ban space weapons might not leave the nation far safer than a unilateral drive to put the first arms in space. — The New York Times