IAC-Council-Space

ASIPSS                   
Center For
NonProliferation

Weaponization of Outer Space

As of today, weapons in Outer Space continues to be an area of weaponry that has potential unlimited power that has yet to be determined. The original action of exploring technology in Outer Space came from the launch of Sputnik from the Soviet Union in 1957, but even before the launch Western powers had proposed to bar the use of Outer Space for military purposes. As of 1963, both the United States and the Soviet Union banned the orbiting of objects carrying nuclear weapons, both powers claiming that neither ever had the intention of implementing the installation of weapons of mass destruction into Outer Space. But this is not to say that in our current era weapons of mass destruction will not be explored and tested in Outer Space. Similar to cyber warfare, weapons in Outer Space is a subject that has yet to be explored for its capabilities in potential defense systems and destruction. As research is currently being developed, super powers are slowly transitioning to their next level of potential tactics of defense and offense in military functions. Transitioning into a new era of weaponry and defense with the high risk potential of it becoming an arms race in Outer Space.