Science & Tech
SpaceX: We’ll Consider Launching Space Weapons If Asked
Elon Musk’s rocket startup says it might join the space arms race.
Policy
Air Force Pushes Back on Pentagon’s First Blueprints for Trump’s Space Force
In a pointed memo, Heather Wilson counters several Space Force proposals championed by Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan.
Ideas
Congress Wants a Space-Based Missile Defense System. That’s a Colossally Bad Idea
A provision in the 2019 defense authorization act orders the Pentagon to start development.
Science & Tech
How Rocket-Makers Ensure 3D-Printed Parts are Strong Enough for Space
Measure them against an industrial standard for welding called AWS D17.1 Class A.
Science & Tech
How A Billion-Dollar Satellite Gets to the Launch Pad
Before an ultra-secure communications military satellite soars into orbit, it has to fly to Florida aboard the U.S. Air Force's largest plane.
Defense Systems
GAO: Barriers to commercial satellite launch 'surmountable' for DOD
Centralizing data related to the Defense Department's work with commercial satellites could be one of the first tasks for a “Space Force.”
Ideas
Why the Space Force Is Just Like Trump University
The gap between the hype and reality of the proposed new branch of the military makes the project almost entirely an exercise in misleading branding.
Ideas
Ep. 15: Space Force is happening; The future of ISIS in Africa; Charlottesville, one year later; and more.
Welcome to our podcast about the news, strategy, tech, and business trends defining the future of national security.
Policy
Pence Makes Hard Sell For Trump's Space Force by 2020
The administration wants a new military service branch, but space mission's future in the Pentagon and Congress is far from certain.
Ideas
Do We Need a Space Force? That Depends on Our Answers to These Legal and Strategic Questions
The first question that we need to clarify is whether the U.S. and its future peer adversaries are willing to fight a war in space.
Policy
5 Unanswered Questions About Space Force
As Pentagon leaders plan changes to the U.S. military’s orbital-operations organizations, analysts wonder whether they have done all their homework.
Threats
Russia Is Slowly Declining As a Space Superpower
The first country to launch a satellite is losing its space advantage to leakers, competitors like SpaceX, and most importantly to China.
Ideas
Congress Rushes to Spend Billions on Space Weapons—Even if They Don’t Work
Even a bare-bones system would be ridiculously costly, and more likely to foster war than prevent it.
Science & Tech
Cargo Bases in Space: Air Force General Wants Them Within a Decade
The service’s mobility chief is already talking with SpaceX and other companies about the possibilities of orbiting supply dumps.
Policy
Opposition to a Space Force Simmers in the Senate
But Republicans who oppose the president’s push appear largely content to hold their fire until next year.
Ideas
The US Military Should Be Doubling Down on Space
Commercial innovation is slashing costs and boosting capabilities fast enough to remain useful even as antisatellite weapons improve.
Ideas
Ep.14: Natasha Bertrand of The Atlantic; Space Force moves ahead; Future of the Iran deal? and more.
Welcome to our podcast about the news, strategy, tech, and business trends defining the future of national security.
Ideas
The US Military Should Not Be Doubling Down on Space
Satellites are only getting harder to defend. The Pentagon needs to find a better way to do its C4ISR and precision-navigation-timing missions.
Policy
Pentagon Delays Space Force Report
The day after Defense One published details from an 11th-hour draft of the much-anticipated report, the Pentagon has delayed its release.
Policy