When the military started putting things in orbit decades ago, space was a place that was inaccessible to most people.

And so when the military had a satellite up there, big and brighter or whatever, looked to the left, looked to the right, looked up and down,

it didn't find a whole lot of neighbors.

Now when the military looks up, down, left, and right in space,

there are a lot of things it sees.

So to me, weaponization isn't about what technology gets on orbit, it's how it's used.

And so then the really difficult challenge is how do you infer intent when you're observing and monitoring.

Hey, welcome to another episode of the Modern War Institute podcast.

I'm John Amble, editorial director at MWI, and I really enjoyed the episode you're going to hear today.

Regular listeners will know that from time to time, we team up with the Army's

Mad Scientist program.

They recently hosted a conference at the University of Texas, Cockrell School of Engineering. They had a bunch of really fantastic participants, but one of the speakers in particular

was not only interesting but engaging, thought-provoking, and really kind of entertaining.

His name was Dr. Morabajah, and he was kind enough to sit down and record a conversation for the MWI podcast.

Dr. Jha is part of the Department of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics at U.T. Austin, where he tracks objects in space.

Not only is he really smart on the science of orbital mechanics, he's also very passionate

about the practical application of that science, which makes him a really great guest for the podcast.

Before we get to the conversation, just a couple quick notes. First, if you're new to the

MWI podcast, make sure you find it on Apple Podcast, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcast.

And if you like what you hear, please take a second and give us a rating or leave a review.

Second, I want to thank the Army Mad Scientist team not only for helping to make this particular episode happen,

but really for all the great work they're doing.

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