Did humanity just witness its first space battle?

Earlier this week, Israel's Arrow 2 missile system reportedly intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile on a trajectory outside the Earth's atmosphere.

Arrow System Back in Action

A surface-to-surface missile (SSM) is a type of missile designed to be launched from a ground platform, such as a military base, to targets located at various distances.

These missiles can have a variety of functions, such as carrying explosives to attack enemy targets, transporting nuclear warheads, or even launching cruise missiles.

Arrow anti-ballistic missile launch system. (Photo: Gagadget).

Arrow 2 is a ballistic missile defense system developed jointly by Israel and the United States. Its history dates back to the 1991 Gulf War.

At that time, Israeli cities faced the threat of Iraqi Scud missiles. The situation then led the IDF to establish the Homa organization, also known as "Fortress" , to create an effective anti-missile defense system to protect the country.

The system is designed primarily to intercept and destroy incoming ballistic missiles, including medium-range missiles, to protect Israel from potential threats.

One of its key features is its ability to intercept ballistic missiles at very high altitudes, which distinguishes it from missile defense systems designed to operate within the Earth's atmosphere.

Haaretz reported that on October 31, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reportedly used this defense system for the second time in 25 years to shoot down an Iranian-made ballistic missile. The destroyed missile was Qadar, an improved version of the Shahab 3 missile.

Interception in space

According to The Telegraph, the missile flew nearly 1,000 miles before missile defense systems shot it down. Details of the incident are scarce, but it is believed to have occurred above the official boundary between Earth's atmosphere and space, known as the Kármán line , which is 62 miles above Earth.

There have been several previous cases of intercepting missiles at this space frontier, according to Harvard-Smithsonian astronomer Jonathan McDowell. However, all previous cases involved intercepting missiles launched by the same party for testing purposes.

This was the first time a missile successfully intercepted an incoming enemy missile in space . In other words, it was the first military battle in space.

Note that the Outer Space Treaty (OST) prohibits the placement and use of nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction in orbit around the Earth, on celestial bodies, or their deployment in space.

However, the OST does not explicitly prohibit conventional weapons, nor does it mention intercepting missiles in space. Therefore, the Arrow system's destruction of a conventional ballistic missile, even if it occurred above the Kármán Line, would not seem to violate the OST's rules.