The United States Armed Forces have leveraged space-based assets for decades to provide a warfighting advantage, but the evolution of in-orbit operations by adversaries has highlighted the need for the U.S. Space Force, a top military official said.
“The driving reason for the Space Force is to continue to do [space] well,” Space Force Vice Commander Lt. Gen. David Thompson told an audience during the Government and Military Keynote of SATELLITE 2020. “It’s about aggressive and hostile behavior and activities in the space domain. That’s the major reason for the Space Force today.”
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Thompson noted that space assets are critical to U.S. military operations but also to the economy and everyday life of U.S. citizens: “The challenge we really do face is that not enough of the American people understand just how much they depend on space and space capabilities every single day.”
He cited the Russian satellite Kosmos 2542, launched in November 2019 and designed to inspect other satellites in orbit, as a primary example of threats in space. It maneuvered near a U.S. National Reconnaissance Office satellite. “The behavior of the Russian satellite, that’s threatening and dangerous. That’s why we need a separate force organized and trained to deal with that,” Thompson said.
Thompson highlighted key needs: dedicated space intelligence capabilities, a national intelligence center, and expanded ability to test how space assets will stand up to threats. He also emphasized greater cooperation with the commercial space sector.
“This is an opportunity and a challenge, and we have to deliver,” he said. “I believe we are in truly epic, historic, exciting times. The only question is in 70 years — What will our successors say?” VS
