A new RAND report shares lessons for U.S. policymakers based on how Ukrainian and Russian forces used space systems over three years of war.
Starlink
In the Space Force’s push to increase its consumption of commercial satellite capabilities, satellite communications stands out as the template. The question now is how broadly the Space Force will look to leverage additional SATCOM providers.
At the most fundamental level, this requires the Space Force to have assured access to space. The Space Force must retain a diverse stable of launch providers, while expanding options for launch locations.
As SpaceX works to “deorbit” 100 of its oldest Starlink satellites from low-Earth orbit, the Space Force is watching closely—a collaboration that will provide crucial data and real-world experience for Guardians.
News last fall that SpaceX owner and CEO Elon Musk restricted the Ukrainian military’s use of his Starlink satellite broadband service to stymie an attack on Russian forces highlighted the extraordinary power wielded in that war by a single business owner with some outlandish ideas. But ...
The Space Force is bolstering its satellite network—and its ties to SpaceX—with a $70 million contract for the company’s new Starshield service. Starshield, often described as a government equivalent to SpaceX’s Starlink network, is made up of satellites in low-Earth orbit (LEO) and will provide ...
The effects of Russia’s 2021 anti-satellite weapon test on just one commercial satellite constellation illustrate the urgency of just one aspect of space safety. A “dominating commercial space market” is also expanding the scope of space missions to include the likes of commercial human spaceflight and ...
GAO criticizes DOD on GPS alternatives; USAFE, AFSOC buy SpaceX internet service; and NRO will follow Space Command instructions.
Establishing international norms could help protect commercial assets.
Chief of Space Operations Gen. John W. "Jay" Raymond offered some of his early observations on the role of space activities in the war in Ukraine. After nearly a three-year pandemic hiatus, many of the world's top national security and foreign affairs officials gathered in ...
A new experiment integrating commercial satellites with military networks for tactical and strategic communications is one of U.S. Northern Command chief Gen. Glen D. VanHerck’s priorities. The experiment should be concluded within the year, he said during a press briefing. Speaking from Alaska with Pentagon ...
Russia’s ASAT test rattled the world. The Space Force was already working on solutions.
