This report reviews the dramatic changes occurring in the commercial and foreign space sectors, the ways in which emerging commercial space capabilities can be used by the U.S. military, and what advantages adversaries may gain by exploiting those same capabilities. These changes in the space environment present the Department of Defense (DoD) with opportunities and challenges- challenges and opportunities that are examined in this report with particular reference to the space control mission area. This report should be of interest to Air Force and DoD leaders, planners, and strategists who are concerned with the use of space assets by the U.S. military and potential adversaries, and those engaged in emerging commercial and foreign space capabilities and in the space control mission area.

This report reviews the dramatic changes occurring in the commercial and foreign space sectors, the ways in which emerging commercial space capabilities can be used by the U.S. military, and what advantages adversaries may gain by exploiting those same capabilities. These changes in the space environment present the Department of Defense (DoD) with opportunities and challenges- challenges and opportunities that are examined in this report with particular reference to the space control mission area. This report should be of interest to Air Force and DoD leaders, planners, and strategists who are concerned with the use of space assets by the U.S. military and potential adversaries, and those engaged in emerging commercial and foreign space capabilities and in the space control mission area.

Growth in the technical capabilities of commercial and foreign space systems, potential exploitation of space by adversaries, increasing use of commercial space capabilities by U.S. forces, and continuing budget constraints are all changing the role of the U.S. military in space. The growth of commercial space markets, and the rapid privatization and increasing foreign ownership of commercial space assets, suggest that the Department of Defense must develop a long-term strategy to ensure adequate and secure access to commercial communications satellites and other commercial space resources. Space control will assume increasing importance in military operations, and space itself may become a theater of military operations. The United States should develop a long-term strategy to enable the U.S. military to deny space capabilities to potential adversaries. Such a strategy should rely on system or operational concepts that minimize collateral damage to commercial, civil, and third-party space assets and that do not violate existing arms control agreements or treaties. Space surveillance--the ability to precisely identify, track, and predict the position of objects in space --is an essential aspect of space control. Space control and changing space surveillance needs have implications for the Air Force as an institution.

This book, Space Capstone Publication Spacepower: Doctrine for Space Forces, is capstone doctrine for the United States Space Force and represents our Service's first articulation of an independent theory of spacepower. This publication answers why spacepower is vital for our Nation, how military spacepower is employed, who military space forces are, and what military space forces value. In short, this capstone document is the foundation of our professional body of knowledge as we forge an independent military Service committed to space operations. Like all doctrine, the SCP remains subject to the policies and strategies that govern its employment. Military spacepower has deterrent and coercive capacities - it provides independent options for National and Joint leadership but achieves its greatest potential when integrated with other forms of military power. As we grow spacepower theory and doctrine, we must do so in a way that fosters greater integration with the Air Force, Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. It is only by achieving true integration and interdependence that we can hope to unlock spacepower's full potential.

Contains papers presented at the Air Force Historical Foundation Symposium, held at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, on September 21-22, 1995. Topics addressed are: Pt. 1, The Formative Years, 1945-1961; Pt. 2, Mission Development and Exploitation Since 1961; and Pt. 3, Military Space Today and Tomorrow. Includes notes, abbreviations & acronyms, an index, and photographs.

As the United States creates the Space Force as a service within the Department of the Air Force, RAND assessed which units to bring into the Space Force, analyzed career field sustainability, and drew lessons from other defense organizations. The report focuses on implications for effectiveness, efficiency, independence, and sense of identity for the new service.

The Air Force, exultantly, and the Navy, quietly, have organized separate space commands and are pursuing a multitude of space-related programs. The Army, despite playing a leading role in military space activities in the 1950s, does not yet have an operational space command. Its space-related efforts remain largely in the areas of research and development. Does the Army have a role in space? According to Colonel Arthur Downey, U. S. Army, the Army cannot ignore the potential applications of space technology to all military operations. Nor can the Army expect either the Air Force or the Navy to channel its resources to Army-specific missions. Colonel Downey recommends the Army tend its own business in space in three major areas: training space-qualified personnel, continuing research and development, and updating combat doctrine to take space technology into account. Downey argues space is not a mission, but a place, a place where many missions can be performed. He believes to prevent or win future wars, the Army must more actively investigate the uses of space.