The commercial space industry has proven its potential military value since Russia invaded Ukraine—and not just in the fighting. But the Defense Department won’t be able to subscribe to every commercial imagery or communication service and may instead benefit from “some kind of a call-up ...
The leader of the National Reconnaissance Office said the NRO will follow orders from U.S. Space Command if needed. Meanwhile, the NRO awaits a finding by the Space Force on whether the office’s intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance activities “need to expand." In a webinar by ...
As commercial satellites feed images from Ukraine to U.S. space and intelligence agencies in a historically collaborative effort, Space Force leaders are eager to learn how else they can put the commercial sector to work for the service.
The California National Guard is employing National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency satellites in its fight against wildfires impacting the state. The state’s National Guard has “pioneered the use of space-based systems” that help it detect and map fires, as well as assess the damage they cause, California ...
It’s that time of year when Congress rolls out its lists of the data, requirements, and strategies it wants to see from the Defense Department. The House Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee’s piece of the fiscal 2021 defense policy bill is no different. Here’s what ...
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif.—You see the intercontinental ballistic missile before you hear it. Upon ignition in its underground silo, the horizon blooms bright red-orange, and a ball of light rises west over the Pacific Ocean. A dull roar intensifies as the unarmed nuclear missile ...
For most, space policy is still more science fiction than reality—the stuff of a galaxy far, far away. People imagine laser-toting gunships and interplanetary bases, not airmen at consoles adjusting satellites in orbit. Those perceptions have persisted through about 18 months of pressure from the ...
President Donald Trump on Dec. 20 established the US Space Force as America’s sixth military service, one of the most significant changes in Air Force history and a milestone in America’s exploration and militarization of the cosmos. The Space Force is the Pentagon’s first branch ...