Japanese satellite problems

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070327/ap_on_re_as/japan_spy_satellite

Chinese ASAT test? You heard it here first!
The Chinese have been looking for different ways to disable satellites. They are especially interested in ways to disable the satellite such that the operator does not know who to blame.

Electrical problems can mean a lot of things. It looks like a power supply problem.

No evidence of a Chinese ASAT test, but it would make a lot of sense for them to test out their ideas on a country such as Japan before they would try something like that on a US satellite. The Japanese do not have the space forensics capability that we have, so it would be a lot harder to track something like that down.

What would make more sense would be for the Chinese to test it on their OWN satellite... which would also be a more probable test.

I would place my money on it being a Japanese issue with the design of the satellite.

Electronic Warfare type effects would be hard to distinguish from many other types of failures though. You can make a Electonic Warfare attack look like a structural failure, a computer failure, a power supply failure, etc.

interesting thing that also just happened...
The Japanese Cabinet passed an emergency guideline under which the defence minister can issue immediate orders to intercept incoming ballistic missiles being fired toward the country, Kyodo News said.
So they cut out the middle man when it comes to defense.

Update: What if this whole thing is a farce? The "glitch" may be a news article so that the DRNK would not worry so much about Japanese capabilities.

In other news, my one of my radishes has a 0.5 inch bulb of editable goodness. Time for harvest?