The missile fired by the Navy hit the satellite, this making it less dangerous to those of us ont he ground, and it sent a signal to North Korea, China, Iran, Russia, et al, that we have the capability to knock "their" satellites down if need be.
Debris from an obliterated U.S. spy satellite is being tracked over the Pacific and Atlantic oceans but appears to be too small to cause damage on Earth, a senior military officer said Thursday, just hours after a Navy missile scored a direct hit on the failing spacecraft.
Marine Gen. James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and an expert on military space technologies, told a Pentagon news conference that officials have a "high degree of confidence" that the missile launched from a Navy cruiser Wednesday night hit exactly where intended.It was an unprecedented mission for the Navy, so extraordinary that the final go-ahead to launch the missile Wednesday was reserved for Defense Secretary Robert Gates rather than a military commander.
This was an excellent day for the Navy, and for those who wanted to send a Not too subtle signal to our potential enemies of our capabilities. This may not have been the main motivation for the shoot down, but it was a pretty convenient timing to show what our missiles can do!!
