Space Force

GPS marks 25th anniversary

On April 27, 1995, the Global Positioning System reached full operational capability, meaning the system met all performance requirements. U.S. Air Force Space Command formally announced the milestone three months later.

“The 25th Anniversary is a huge, momentous occasion for us. We take great pride in providing this global utility to the approximately six billion users worldwide,” said Lt. Col. Stephen Toth, 2nd SOPS commander. “Celebrating this anniversary gives us a moment to recognize how...

https://www.workboat.com/news/government/gps-marks-25th-anniversary/

GAO Report on Space Command and Control

The following is the Oct. 30, 2019 Government Accountability Office report, Space Command and Control: Comprehensive Planning and Oversight Could Help DOD Acquire Critical Capabilities and Address Challenges.

From the report

What GAO Found Given emerging and evolving threats in the space domain, as well as significant development problems in similar prior efforts, the Air Force is prioritizing the Space Command and Control (C2) program. Early prototype work on the program’s software began in...

https://news.usni.org/2019/11/05/gao-report-on-space-command-and-control

Lawmaker Cites Vacant Pentagon Jobs As Obstacle to Technology Development

Sailors train with the LA9-P Laser Hail and Warning System on the fantail of aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75).

When confronting threats from space, directed energy and hypersonic weapons, the U.S. is working toward the technology it needs; what’s slowing progress is the lack of confirmed people to fill key Pentagon positions to guide these programs, warned the chairman of the House Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee.

By not filling dozens of senior positions with confirmed...

https://news.usni.org/2019/06/27/lawmaker-cites-vacant-pentagon-jobs-as-obstacle-to-technology-development

Space Force Nominee Warns Congress of Chinese, Russian Capabilities

Gen. John Raymond, Air Force Space Command commander in 2018. US Air Force Photo

Strides Russia and China have made in space mean the United States can no longer take for granted its superiority in that domain said the nominee expected to head the nation’s Space Force and an independent Space Command said Tuesday.

“China particularly has been watching” how the United States integrated space into all its military operations, Gen. John Raymond, currently the commander of the Air Force’s Space...

https://news.usni.org/2019/06/05/space-force-nominee-warns-congress-of-chinese-russian-capabilities

Shanahan: Space Force Won’t Take Over Navy, Army Space Assets

The Navy’s fourth Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) communications satellite, encapsulated in a 5-meter payload fairing lifts off from Space Launch Complex-41 in 2015. United Launch Alliance Photo

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Navy and Army will retain control of their space assets as the Pentagon moves forward with establishing a new Space Force under the Air Force, acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan said on Wednesday.

Navy space assets include an array of five Mobile User Objective System...

https://news.usni.org/2019/03/20/new-space-force-will-not-take-away-navy-space-assets

President Trump Rolls Out New Missile Defense Plan

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An SM-3 Block 1B interceptor is launched from the guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Erie (CG-70) during a Missile Defense Agency test and successfully intercepted a complex short-range ballistic missile target off the coast of Kauai, Hawaii. DoD

President Donald Trump said his expanded, space-based missile defense program’s goal is to detect and destroy any incoming missile fired by “hostile powers or by mistake” at the United States or its allies.

Speaking at the Pentagon...

https://news.usni.org/2019/01/17/president-trump-rolls-new-missile-defense-plan