It seems that now we can observe events, in some way reminiscent of what happened in the fifties and sixties of the last century. More than clearly, a new space race has been outlined, in which there will be new participants. Moreover, as before, the main goal of all scientific and design work will be the exploration of outer space in the military sense of the word. At the end of January, several Asian countries took important steps in the implementation of their space programs. In addition, there were several other events indirectly related to space.
At the end of January, in just a couple of days, the United States and China conducted test launches of their anti-missile missiles, and Japan launched two more satellites into orbit. A little later it became known that Iran sent a spacecraft with a monkey on board into space, and in late January South Korea launched an artificial satellite for the first time in its history. December events can also be added to the rich in "space" events at the end of January. At the beginning of the last month of last 2012, the entire East Asian region watched with curiosity and apprehension the work at the North Korean missile range. As a result of these works, on December 12, a test launch of the Ynha-3 carrier rocket took place, on board of which, according to official data, there was a satellite.
The launch was successful and the rocket payload entered orbit. A little later, interesting information came from the military and scientists from South Korea. They managed to find and examine some of the North Korean missile wreckage. The result of the survey was the following conclusion: the DPRK is capable of making such missiles on its own, although it needs to import some components. Despite the fact that Eunha-3 launched an artificial Earth satellite into orbit, unfriendly rhetoric fell from a number of states again. Pyongyang continued to be accused of attempts at provocation, etc. In addition, the leadership and engineers of North Korea recalled their previous joint projects with third countries: Iran, Pakistan, etc.
One of these countries, as already mentioned, continues to work in the field of manned spacecraft. On January 28, an Iranian rocket was launched, timed to coincide with the next anniversary of the Islamic revolution. The Kagoshvar-5 launch vehicle launched a spacecraft called Pishgam (Pioneer) with a monkey on board. The capsule with the "cosmonaut" rose to a height of 120 kilometers and from there safely descended to the ground. Details of the flight - the duration and parameters of the trajectory - were not reported. There is every reason to believe that the monkey did not fly around the planet, because the Pioneer apparatus was moving along a ballistic trajectory.
Judging by the latest events, Iran seriously intends to become a space power. Three years ago, Iranian scientists sent mice, turtles and worms into space. A year later, as a result of an accident during the next tests, a test monkey died. Now it has been possible to successfully launch a spacecraft with a relatively large mammal. Over the next five to eight years, Iran intends to launch a human cosmonaut into orbit. At the moment, there is no reason to believe that the Islamic Republic will cope with this goal. At the same time, all doubts about Iranian success are based only on fragmentary information and opinions of foreign (non-Iranian) specialists. Therefore, it will be possible to speak about any prospects or successes of the Iranian space program only after the relevant news.
On January 30, South Korea successfully launched a launch vehicle with a spacecraft for the first time in its history. The Naro-1 rocket, also known as KSLV-1, launched from the Naro cosmodrome, and within minutes, the STSAT-2C research satellite was in orbit. It should be noted that this was already the third South Korean attempt to acquire its own spacecraft. In 2009 and 2010, similar launches of previous STSAT-2 satellites ended in failure. The third launch was originally planned for November last year, but was postponed due to technical problems in the second stage. An interesting feature of the Naro-1 launch vehicle is the fact that only the second stage was created by Korean specialists. The first is a slightly modified universal upper stage of the Angara project and was developed in Russia.
As for the Japanese launch, it was the most mundane operation and the only interesting point is the purpose of the two launched vehicles. These satellites carry radars, cameras, etc. reconnaissance equipment. It is argued that the updated satellite constellation of Japan will be able to monitor any point on the planet. Probably, among these points there will be North Korean military facilities, including the Sohe cosmodrome. Currently, due to the small number of its own reconnaissance satellites, Japan is forced to request the necessary information from the United States. Naturally, the data comes with a delay, and this situation does not suit the Tokyo commanders. Because of this, Japan's current plans include the launch of six radar and optical-location surveillance satellites. Five out of six satellites are already in orbit.
In addition to carrier rockets, anti-missile missiles also took off at the end of last month. On January 26 and 27, one day apart, the United States and China conducted test launches of their interceptor missiles. The Americans tested the EKV missile, designed for transatmospheric interception of ballistic missiles. According to official data, the launch was successful. While the United States refines its intercontinental missile interceptor system, China is pursuing less complex but important projects. On January 27, a Chinese interceptor missile successfully intercepted a medium-range ballistic missile. The specific types of missile and interceptor, as well as the details of the tests, were not named.
In general, the end of January turned out to be very active for countries engaged in space exploration. In four days, four launches of carrier rockets and interceptor missiles were made. All this remarkably demonstrates the current trends in Asian geopolitics and other similar issues. Everyone is trying to get at their disposal reconnaissance satellites and manned vehicles. In light of such trends, the recent American and Chinese missile tests look interesting, which look like a kind of hint to other countries. It is quite understandable that no one will take this hint at their own expense and everyone will continue to develop their missiles, satellites and manned vehicles. This means that Asian countries and states with interests in this region will soon publish new press releases about their successes or failures in the space field.
