Chinese scientists have modelled how Starlink could be jammed over an area the size of Taiwan – and found it would take an unprecedented scale of coordinated electronic warfare.

When Russian forces rolled into Ukraine in early 2022, one of the first moves by Kyiv was sending a post to Elon Musk on X: Ukraine needs satellite internet.

Within days, thousands of Starlink terminals arrived, restoring command and control across the battlefield despite Russia’s best efforts to black out communications.

Moscow initially tried to jam the signals – and reportedly had some success. But when SpaceX quietly updated its software and reconfigured the constellation, many Russian jammers went silent. The battlefield advantage shifted.

That episode sent shock waves through military circles worldwide – especially in Beijing.

For the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), preparing for a potential campaign over Taiwan means answering an urgent question: how to achieve electromagnetic dominance when the enemy could access a constellation of 10,000-plus satellites that hop, adapt and resist jamming in real time?

A groundbreaking simulation study by Chinese scientists offers the most detailed public analysis to date of how the PLA could attempt to silence one of the most resilient communication systems ever built.

Their findings – published on 5 November........

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