China Has Hundreds of Satellites Over Australia Monitoring Joint US Military Drills: Report

China has deployed hundreds of satellites over Australia in what appears to be an effort to capture intelligence on US military training, according to a news report from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

The swarm of intelligence-gathering satellites over Australia is concerning officials because it could mean Beijing receives detailed, confidential information on ongoing joint US-Australia military drills, ABC reported.

"They can glean military intelligence on what the capabilities and equipment are, as well as processes of ground military activities,” said James Bennett, scientist and executive vice president of EOS Space Systems, an Australia-based defense company and imaging manufacturer. “They can use this to drive a fair bit of intelligence on military operations in Australia."

The US Department of Defense did not immediately return The Messenger’s request for comment.

In July, EOS Space Systems said it identified three Chinese satellites that were optimally positioned to gather information on the Talisman Sabre war games, a military training operation between the United States and Australia, as well as forces from more than a dozen other countries.

Since August 10, after "Exercise Malabar" naval drills commenced, hundreds of smaller, low-Earth-orbit satellites have been tracked over Australia, including Sydney, where the drills are taking place.

"We've been collecting optical surveillance data on Earth observing Chinese satellites during the Talisman Sabre and Malabar exercises and what that's showing is quite a lot of activity surveying the ground during those events," Bennett said.

"We've seen over 300 satellites surveying ground-based activities and the number of overflights is over 3,000 since the start of the Malabar exercise centered around the Sydney Harbor Bay area," he added.

While China has been increasing its presence in space, Australia's government recently scrapped a plan to develop new satellites that could capture some of the intel that Beijing is now receiving over budget concerns.