NATO to Set Up New Space Center Amid China, Russia Concerns
2020-10-22
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1The Belgian village of Kester is home to a group of top-secret, fenced-off buildings on a hill some call "the radar station."
2Some people have claimed to have seen mysterious Russians near the buildings.
3Others have suggested that the area might have been used as a base for U.S. nuclear warheads.
4It's easy to see why the buildings would be of interest.
5Four large, white, Kevlar domes sit like shining spacecraft in the middle of farmland, about 25 kilometers west of Brussels.
6The buildings make up the Kester Satellite Ground Station, an important center that supports NATO's space communications network.
7It is the biggest and most modern of four stations the military alliance runs.
8Satellites are important to NATO. More than half of the 2,000 satellites orbiting Earth are operated by NATO countries.
9The satellites make sure everything is connected, from mobile phone and banking services to weather forecasts.
10NATO commanders in places like Afghanistan or Kosovo use some of them to navigate, communicate, share intelligence and identify missile launches.
11This week, the Kester Satellite Ground Station will be part of a new defense organization.
12NATO is set to announce it is creating a space center to operate its satellite communications.
13It will also assist in important military operations around the world.
14In December, NATO leaders declared that space was the alliance's "fifth domain" of operations, after land, sea, air and cyberspace.
15Starting Thursday, NATO defense ministers will begin two days of discussions.
16During the talks, the ministers are expected to approve plans for the new space center, to be based at NATO's Air Command in Ramstein, Germany.
17It will be the center for space support for NATO operations, "sharing information and coordinating our activities," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said.
18It is part of NATO's efforts to keep ahead in the fast-moving world of technology.
19NATO is worried about what it sees as increasingly aggressive behavior in space by China and Russia.
20Around 80 countries have satellites and private companies are adding to that number.
21In the 1980s, only a small part of NATO's communication network used satellites.
22Today, it is at least 40 percent. During the Cold War, NATO had more than 20 stations.
23But new technologies now permit the world's largest security alliance to double its coverage with only about four stations.
24At Kester, four satellite dishes beneath Kevlar domes connect NATO's civilian and military headquarters in Belgium to other operations around the world.
25The dishes send information and images from across Europe and Africa into space above the equator where satellites owned by allies like the United States, Britain, France and Italy orbit.
26NATO itself does not own any satellites.
27Around the world, commanders in ships, aircraft and buildings decrypt the information to get orders, pictures and intelligence, prepare missions, or move troops and military equipment.
28From Kester, new lines of communication can be set up for NATO within 30 minutes.
29The buildings have special security systems and were built to resist terrorist attacks.
30But NATO allies are worried about other kinds of attacks involving anti-satellite weapons high above the Earth.
31"Some nations - including Russia and China - are developing anti-satellite systems which could blind, disable or shoot down satellites and create dangerous debris in orbit," Stoltenberg said.
32NATO says its actions "will remain defensive and fully in line with international law."
33And Stoltenberg has repeatedly said over the past year that NATO has no plans to put weapons in space.
34I'm Susan Shand.
1The Belgian village of Kester is home to a group of top-secret, fenced-off buildings on a hill some call "the radar station." Some people have claimed to have seen mysterious Russians near the buildings. Others have suggested that the area might have been used as a base for U.S. nuclear warheads. 2It's easy to see why the buildings would be of interest. Four large, white, Kevlar domes sit like shining spacecraft in the middle of farmland, about 25 kilometers west of Brussels. 3The buildings make up the Kester Satellite Ground Station, an important center that supports NATO's space communications network. It is the biggest and most modern of four stations the military alliance runs. 4Satellites are important to NATO. More than half of the 2,000 satellites orbiting Earth are operated by NATO countries. The satellites make sure everything is connected, from mobile phone and banking services to weather forecasts. NATO commanders in places like Afghanistan or Kosovo use some of them to navigate, communicate, share intelligence and identify missile launches. 5This week, the Kester Satellite Ground Station will be part of a new defense organization. NATO is set to announce it is creating a space center to operate its satellite communications. It will also assist in important military operations around the world. 6In December, NATO leaders declared that space was the alliance's "fifth domain" of operations, after land, sea, air and cyberspace. 7Starting Thursday, NATO defense ministers will begin two days of discussions. During the talks, the ministers are expected to approve plans for the new space center, to be based at NATO's Air Command in Ramstein, Germany. 8It will be the center for space support for NATO operations, "sharing information and coordinating our activities," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said. 9It is part of NATO's efforts to keep ahead in the fast-moving world of technology. NATO is worried about what it sees as increasingly aggressive behavior in space by China and Russia. 10Around 80 countries have satellites and private companies are adding to that number. In the 1980s, only a small part of NATO's communication network used satellites. Today, it is at least 40 percent. During the Cold War, NATO had more than 20 stations. But new technologies now permit the world's largest security alliance to double its coverage with only about four stations. 11At Kester, four satellite dishes beneath Kevlar domes connect NATO's civilian and military headquarters in Belgium to other operations around the world. 12The dishes send information and images from across Europe and Africa into space above the equator where satellites owned by allies like the United States, Britain, France and Italy orbit. NATO itself does not own any satellites. 13Around the world, commanders in ships, aircraft and buildings decrypt the information to get orders, pictures and intelligence, prepare missions, or move troops and military equipment. From Kester, new lines of communication can be set up for NATO within 30 minutes. 14The buildings have special security systems and were built to resist terrorist attacks. But NATO allies are worried about other kinds of attacks involving anti-satellite weapons high above the Earth. 15"Some nations - including Russia and China - are developing anti-satellite systems which could blind, disable or shoot down satellites and create dangerous debris in orbit," Stoltenberg said. 16NATO says its actions "will remain defensive and fully in line with international law." And Stoltenberg has repeatedly said over the past year that NATO has no plans to put weapons in space. 17I'm Susan Shand. 18The Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted it for Learning English. It was edited by Bryan Lynn. 19________________________________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21dome - n. a circular enclosure 22navigate - v. to determine the correct sea or land route 23domain - n. a specific area 24coordinate - v. to put the details together 25dish - n. the rounded exterior of a satellite 26equator - n. an imaginary line drawn around the earth equally distant from both poles, the parallel of latitude 27decrypt - v. cracking a language code 28debris - n. the leftover garbage after a catastrophe