Space & Astronomy

Mystery as declassified 1980s US spy satellite inexplicably explodes

By T.K. Randall
October 1, 2026

Image: Earth and Universe
Credit: Pablo Carlos Budassi / CC BY-SA 4.0 (adapted) Originally launched in 1988, USA 32 (also known as Farrah III), was a US spy satellite, the exact purpose of which had remained a mystery for several decades.

It wasn't until last year that details of its operation were declassified and revealed by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO).

As it turned out, the satellite had been tasked with listening out for Soviet radar and radio signals.

Given that the Cold War has been over for decades, it has since sat idle, but now, in a surprising twist, reports suggest that USA 32 has now 'exploded' in orbit, creating a field of debris.Not only does the debris now pose a threat to other satellites, but the exact cause of its destruction remains something of a mystery.

While one possibility is that it was struck by a piece of space junk or a meteorite, it has also been suggested that it could have been targeted by some sort of space-based weapon, perhaps as a test.

Just a few days before the incident, the US Space Force had been launching a series of classified payloads into orbit using SpaceX rockets.

As things stand, several nations - in particular the US and China - have been conducting clandestine operations in space and we don't really know exactly what is going on up there.

Whether any of that has anything to do with the destruction of USA 32, however, remains unclear.

Source: Mail Online

Tags: Satellite