{
  "id": 12223916,
  "title": "Mission Shakti: How India’s 2019 anti-sat missile test in space caught US off guard",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/05/mission-shakti-how-indias-2019-anti-sat-missile-test-in-space-caught",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-05T20:12:18.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Times of India",
    "slug": "times-of-india",
    "url": "https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/defence/news/when-indias-anti-satellite-missile-test-in-space-in-2019-caught-us-intelligence-agencies-off-guard/articleshow/134716715.cms"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A retired US Air Force and intelligence officer recently revealed that India's anti-satellite missile test (ASAT) in space in 2019 left American security agencies completely unprepared. Former National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) officer David Grusch shared the details on the Joe Rogan podcast show, stating, \"It is a crazy story... There was an unexpected Indian missile test that hit one of their own defunct weather satellites in 2019. And they didn't tell us.\" India had issued a NOTAM (notice to airmen) off the Odisha coast, alerting the US that a missile would be tested, but they had no idea it would be an ASAT missile. Grusch recounted the chaos at his office after the test, saying, \"I remember in my office, I had like all these different phones. I am like calling the embassy... I am like, what the f**k? They did not tell us. We were worried at the end of the row about the debris as we fly spy satellites.\" The defunct satellite destroyed was Microsat-R, making India the fourth country after the US, Russia, and China with the capability to hit and destroy satellites in space. The test generated around 400 pieces of orbital debris, with 24 pieces reaching orbits higher than the International Space Station (ISS). NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine criticized the test, calling it a \"terrible, terrible thing\" that endangered astronauts on the ISS. However, the US had conducted similar space tests before, including two successful destructive kinetic direct-ascent ASAT intercept tests in 1985 and 2008, and recently confirmed the deployment of a designated space weapon in orbit.",
  "summary": "India conducted an unexpected anti-satellite missile test in 2019, which surprised US security agencies completely. The former NRO officer David Grusch recounted his experiences during the incident on a podcast. India announced its capability after destroying a defunct satellite, making it the fourth country to achieve such technology. This test led to concerns about debris affecting US…",
  "key_points": [
    "India's 2019 ASAT missile test caught US off guard",
    "Microsat-R destroyed, creating 400 pieces of orbital debris",
    "US criticized test, calling it \"terrible, terrible thing\""
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}