Researchers at the Northwest Institute of Nuclear Technology (NINT), a research facility linked to the Chinese military in Xi\u2019an, say they have built the world\u2019s smallest driver for a high-power microwave (HPM) weapon, a system that could potentially be used to disrupt satellite networks such as Starlink.<\/p>\n
The device, known as TPG1000Cs, measures about four metres long and weighs roughly five tons, making it significantly smaller than comparable systems.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe system has demonstrated stable operation over continuous one-minute durations, accumulating approximately 200,000 pulses with consistent performance,\u201d the study said.<\/p>\n Until now, similar known systems could only operate continuously for no more than just a few seconds and were far bulkier, making them difficult to install in smaller weapons systems.<\/p>\n The TPG1000Cs system can generate electrical pulses reaching 20 gigawatts, according to the study. This far exceeds the roughly 1 gigawatt output that experts say a ground-based microwave weapon would need to potentially disrupt low-Earth-orbit satellite networks such as Starlink.<\/p>\n How does it work?<\/strong><\/p>\n The United States, Russia, and China have all been exploring whether high-power microwave technology could be developed into weapons capable of disrupting satellites.<\/p>\n Destroying satellites using conventional weapons can create large clouds of orbital debris that may threaten other spacecraft, including those belonging to the attacking country.<\/p>\n Microwave weapons, in contrast, could theoretically disable electronics without creating significant debris, potentially offering strategic advantages and a degree of plausible deniability.<\/p>\n These weapons store electrical energy and then release it in a sudden, powerful burst. This pulse can produce intense microwave radiation that can disrupt electronics.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.fie.undef.edu.ar\/ceptm\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1920x1080_cmsv2_c1bd6cbf-ed28-5201-9e4a-514d8adbb884-9642049.webp\")