A mysterious object linked to Beijing’s space program has been spotted at the end of a remote airstrip in China.
Satellite images show the long, white object next to several smaller ones, which military analysts have suggested could be vehicles or support equipment.
The photo, taken on November 29 by Planet Labs and shared by The Warzone website, also shows a row of vehicles near the main facility, which has been significantly expanded in recent years, most notably with a large new hangar.
The runway, located near the Lop Nur nuclear site, extends for more than five kilometers, making it one of the longest in the world.
While it is unclear what the object is, there is speculation that it could be an airplane, a worrying development amid China’s drive for global dominance.
Its length is estimated at around 10 meters, comparable to the US Space Force’s two secret X-37B mini-shuttles.
The and lands on a runway.
NASA has kept many details about the X-37B under wraps, but the secret space drone could easily be used to deploy weapons systems in space.
Satellite images show the long, white object alongside several smaller ones, which military analysts have suggested could be vehicles or support equipment
The photo, taken on November 29 by Planet Labs and shared by The Warzone website, also shows a line of vehicles near the main facility
The airstrip, located near the Lop Nur nuclear site, extends for more than five kilometers, making it one of the longest in the world
China has been increasing its space capabilities at an alarming rate in recent years.
In 2022, it conducted an apparently successful test of a nuclear-capable hypersonic glider vehicle and developed a range of anti-satellite weapons.
Beijing has also developed satellites that can eliminate Western orbital technology. Experts claim scientists have developed a science-fiction-inspired weapon that combines pulses of microwave radiation into one powerful beam – much like the planet-destroying lasers from Star Wars.
In 2016 and 2021, China’s space program tested the capabilities of its Shijan 16 and 21 satellites. These are billed as space debris neutralization devices, but analysts believe the technology likely has a dual military application.
These satellites have robotic arms and are able to ‘grab’ other satellites and ‘drag’ them out of geosynchronous orbit, about 35,000 kilometers above the Earth’s surface.
This feat was demonstrated by Shijan-21 when it pulled China’s defunct Beidou-2 G2 navigation satellite out more than 3,000 kilometers, leaving it in a ‘disposal orbit’, out of harm’s way from other satellites.
This capability has divided analysts who applauded China’s efforts to limit space debris but also recognized that the assets could easily be deployed in an offensive manner against enemy technology.
Such dual-use technology is also possessed by the US, which has conducted some seven test flights of a space drone based on the design of the iconic Space Shuttle.
The Chang’e 6 moon probe and the Long March-5 Y8 launch vehicle combination sit atop the launch pad at the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan Province on May 3, 2024
Image taken from a video animation at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center on June 2, 2024
China also has a shuttle-like drone, the CSSHQ – although this device has flown only two missions and its capabilities are largely unknown.
China has also made progress in developing its claimed territory in space. In June, China landed an unmanned spacecraft on the far side of the moon.
The Chang’e-6 craft, equipped with an array of tools and its own launcher, landed in a giant impact crater called the South Pole-Aitken Basin on the space-facing side of the moon.
The successful mission is China’s second to the far side of the moon, a region no other country has reached. The side of the moon that continually faces away from Earth is riddled with deep and dark craters, making communications and robotic landing operations more challenging.
Experts warned that China poses a major nuclear threat to the West after rapidly expanding its nuclear arsenal.
Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, Chief of the Defense Staff, said the world is now entering a new ‘nuclear age’ – with China posing a deadlier threat than ever before.
In an alarming speech to the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in London, Admiral Sir Tony said Britain is facing a new ‘world order’ shaped by its enemies and regional conflicts.
The military boss claimed that Russia, China, Iran and North Korea all posed a danger, highlighting Beijing as a particular challenge for the US.
For decades, China’s nuclear threat was not considered significant. But Beijing is now expanding its stockpile of nuclear weapons faster than any other country.
It is feared that the communist state will be on par with the US and Russia by 2030 and could soon have an apocalyptic arsenal of a thousand nuclear warheads.
During the annual lecture of the Chief of Defense Staff of RUSI, Adm. Sir Tony that the world is ‘at the dawn of a third nuclear age’.