Outer Space

China successfully carried out its first test of an antisatellite missile, becoming just the third nation to be able to destroy spacecraft in an antisatellite test. The test brought reactions from the US and its allies, with an US official calling China's test "inconsistent with the spirit of co-operation that both countries aspire to in the civil space area." Others, such as the UK, expressed concerns that the debris from the test could strike other satellites.