Such an act during the war in Ukraine could sharply escalate tensions between Russia and the United States. And tens of thousands of communications devices in Ukraine rely on U.S. satellite communications giant Iridium's (IRDM.O) satellite network. "If somebody starts shooting satellites in space, I'd imagine it would quickly make space unusable," Desch said. COMPLICATED CALCULUSWhether a Russian anti-satellite strike would violate the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, such as its prohibition on placing weapons of mass destruction in space, is debatable, lawyers say. SpaceX's Starlink network consists of roughly 3,000 satellites, and there are several dozen commercial U.S. imagery satellites eyeing Russia and Ukraine.

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