Space Archives

Pentagon updates decades-old classification policy for space programs

The new policies address issues around overuse of special access program designations, according to Assistant Secretary for Space Policy John Plumb.

Jan 18, 2024 By Mikayla Easley

Rendering of a L3Harris missile warning satellite (L3Harris image)

Space Development Agency picks 3 vendors to build next layer of missile tracking satellites

Six of the satellites in the Tranche 2 tracking layer will provide fire control-quality data to warfighters, an SDA official said.

Jan 16, 2024 By Mikayla Easley

Rocket Lab to build 18 satellites for SDA’s global satcom constellation

The company received a $515 million prototype agreement to build and operate 18 Beta variant satellites for SDA’s Tranche 2 transport layer.

Jan 8, 2024 By Mikayla Easley

Capt. Drake Williams, I3E program manager, interacts with I3E’s augmented reality space simulation at the SpaceDEN, a Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) facility located in El Segundo, Calif. (U.S. Space Force photo: Capt. Calvin Suratos)

Space Force taps Microsoft to build cloud-based, simulated space environment

The Integrated, Immersive, Intelligent Environment (I3E) is an augmented reality space simulation powered by Microsoft's HoloLens headsets.

Jan 8, 2024 By Mikayla Easley

U.S. Space Force Major General DeAnna M. Burt speaks during a change of command ceremony for the Combined Force Space Component Command, United States Space Command, Nov. 16, 2020, at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. During the event Major General John E. Shaw relinquished command of the CFSCC and deputy command of Space Operations Command, U.S. Space Force, to Burt who previously served as the Director of Operation and Communications, Headquarters USSF. (U.S. Air Force photo by Michael Peterson)

Space Force ‘days away’ from signing first commercial strategy

The document will offer guidance for how commercial tech can be integrated into the Space Force and which capabilities industry can provide as a service, said Lt.…

Jan 5, 2024 By Mikayla Easley

Powered by 27 Merlin engines, generating more than five million pounds of combined thrust, a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket lifts off from Launch Complex (LC)-39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Dec. 28, 2023 at 8:07 p.m. EST, carrying the U.S. Space Force (USSF)-52 mission into Earth orbit. (SpaceX photo)

Space Force launches X-37B robotic space plane for new round of classified experiments

The X-37B will conduct tests on space domain awareness technologies, operations in new orbital regimes and radiation effects on NASA materials.

Dec 29, 2023 By Mikayla Easley

Air Force taps Intelsat for commercial space internet project

The Air Force Research Lab's DEUCSI program will develop and experimentally test satellite communication systems capable of operating with multiple commercial space internet constellations.

Dec 29, 2023 By Jon Harper

Space Force hosts inaugural ‘orbital warfare’ training exercise

The simulation-based Red Skies exercise allowed guardians to hone skills in orbital mechanics and satellite flight.

Dec 27, 2023 By Mikayla Easley

Illustration of a hypersonic missile (Getty Images)

Report: Multi-orbit sensing architectures optimal for hypersonic missile defense

A new report from CSIS is intended to be a "cheat sheet" for policy makers weighing current and future sensor architecture designs.

Dec 18, 2023 By Mikayla Easley

U.S. Airmen assigned to Travis Air Force Base, California, transition into the U.S. Space Force during a ceremony at the 621st Contingency Response Wing, Travis AFB, California, Feb. 12, 2021. Applicants were required to apply through a formal application process, provide a commander’s letter of recommendation and meet a records only board convened by the U.S. Air Force and Space Force. All applicants accepted received notice of transfer approval by the board. (U.S. Air Force photo by Nicholas Pilch)

Lawmakers direct DOD to examine feasibility, costs of standing up a Space National Guard

The study is directed in the compromised version of the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act.

Dec 11, 2023 By Mikayla Easley