The UK government has launched a military unit dedicated to countering hostile threats to UK satellites in orbit.
The new Royal Air Force squadron will protect critical satellites that warn of incoming missile attacks, provide communications and help guide British ships.
The ground-based unit will use advanced technology, including electronic warfare and cyber countermeasures, to beam signals into space. These electronic signals will effectively jam or neutralise hostile satellites that are actively targeting British infrastructure.
While the Military of Defence (MoD) already has two ground-based squadrons in place to monitor and warn of threats in space, this new No. III Squadron will actually act against those threats.
The MoD says the squadron will support both offensive and defensive space operations and will expand over time as new capabilities enter service.
“Our dependency on space is precisely why it is increasingly under threat from our adversaries,” said defence secretary Wes...