An illustration from Air University depicts a GPS III satellite in orbit above the Earth. USSF/Lockheed Martin illustration
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2025 USAF & USSF Almanac: U.S. Space Force
June 20, 2025
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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.
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
From missile warning to satellite communications for drones, the Space Force has played a key, if often unseen, role in the U.S. conflict with Iran, the head of the service’s Combat Forces Command said July 17. And one area in particular has seen Guardians be especially active: the electromagnetic spectrum.
The most recent Space Force enlisted promotion selection was the last to use the old board format for sergeants, as the service transitions to a “fully qualified” method of selecting its junior NCOs.
China’s rapidly advancing capabilities in space are a major concern for the presumed next chief of U.S. Space Force, who will likely oversee rapid growth in manpower and equipment to counter the growing threat.
The Space Development Agency resumed its Tranche 1 launch effort July 16, sending 21 data transport satellites to continue building out a mesh network in low-Earth orbit.
Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, in his final address as the Chief of Space Operations, said that a non-political military had a vital role to play in a period of sharp partisan differences and could help steady the U.S. democracy in the years ahead.
The Space Development Agency is on track to resume its Tranche 1 launch campaign this week after a nine-month pause to fix hardware and software issues that arose on orbit following the launch of its first operational satellites last fall.
The Space Force has partnered with the the National Reconnaissance Office to get started on key intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance programs but is starting to take more ownership of those efforts, an arrangement the nominee to serve as the next NRO director said is a “lesson in good government.”
The Space Development Agency announced contracts worth $1.75 billion to build 36 satellites in support of the Pentagon's Golden Dome missile defense shield.
The Air Force and Space Force want approval from Congress to shift more than $900 million in fiscal 2026 funds to cover higher-than-expected personnel costs.
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