US to Officially Create Military Space Force

The United States government is about to launch a Space Force to protect the country’s dominance in space.

Aside from his goal of sending astronauts back to the moon, US President Donald Trump just declared the creation of another branch of the US military forces — the Space Force.

According to a White House statement, the Armed Forces branch would be responsible for safeguarding the country’s endeavors in space.

The United States is one of the leading nations in the field of space exploration. As of today, 562 people have traveled into space — 24 of which went beyond low Earth orbit. Out of this figure, 339 travelers (61.30%) were from the US.

Due to this investment, the US government sees a need to protect the nation’s dominance in space. This protection is something that the newly formed Space Force is bound to do.

The US Space Force

According to a fact sheet released by the White House, the President received six unanimously approved recommendations from his National Space Council to create a U.S Space Force.

The recommendations include a call for the President to create a United States Space Command to control the space forces. It would also be responsible for the development of military tactics, techniques, and procedures.

One of the recommendations also requested the Space Force become a separate military branch solely dedicated to the training of space combat forces.

The President recognized space as a warfighting domain requiring the government to prepare for threats that the new warzone presents.

“Our destiny, beyond the Earth, is not only a matter of national identity but a matter of national security,” President Trump was quoted as saying.

Last June, the President issued a directive to the Department of Defense to begin establishing a U.S Space Force.

However, despite the space militarization announcement of the United States, the Outer Space Treaty signed by the US and 106 other countries would thwart President Trump’s goal of pursuing military activities in space.

Still, space is now becoming a commercialized zone. Billions of dollars worth of assets owned by NASA may indeed require protection from rival nations.

“There are hostile actors around the world, some of which have already launched direct-ascent anti-satellite missiles,” NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said.