A painting by artist Rick Herter titled "High Ground Intercept" was presented at an official cereomny at Space Operations Command at Peterson Space Force Base, Colo., on Oct. 20, 2023. John Ayre/USSF
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2024 USAF & USSF Almanac: U.S. Space Force
June 7, 2024
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Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org
The U.S. Space Force was created on Dec. 20, 2019. The Space Force exists as a separate military service within the Department of the Air Force, lead by the Chief of Space Operations.
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Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org
When Space Force leaders started talking about expanding the service early this year, the idea was simple: double the size of the force in the next five years. At AFA’s Air, Space & Cyber conference this week, officials detailed just how they’re planning to grow so much so quickly.
The Space Force revealed this week that it has space control weapons on orbit, but the head of U.S. Space Command said the U.S. still has “a long way to go” in improving its ability to detect and target threats in the domain.
As the Space Force prepares to field new fleets of satellites that can track moving targets in the air and on the ground, it’s working to ensure it has the organizational structures in place to onboard and operate those systems.
The Space Development Agency wants to wrap up its Tranche 1 launch campaign by the end of spring 2027, flying six more batches of satellites to build out its tracking and data transport constellations, according to Director Gurpartap Sandhoo.
NASA is pushing hard to get astronauts back to the moon by 2028—and the urgency is driven in no small part by the national security implications of doing so before China does, Administrator Jared Isaacman said Sept. 15.
The Air Force is targeting August 2027 for its new T-7A Red Hawk trainer jet to reach its initial operational capability. To get there, the head of Air and Education Training has three milestones he needs to see the program hit.
The Space Force estimates about 10 percent of its programs will be impacted under a continuing resolution for the coming fiscal year, according to Chief of Space Operations Gen. Douglas Schiess.
Guardians are playing a critical role in U.S. operations against Iran, providing electronic warfare effects to stifle enemy air defense and communication systems and other space capabilities vital to the war effort, Gen. Douglas Schiess said in one of his first appearances since swearing in as Chief of Space Operations.
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