World's major space program USA president has launched space force, the first new US military service in more than 70 years. In signing the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act that includes the force, Trump claimed a victory for one of his top national security priorities two days after being impeached by the House of Representatives. It is part of a $1.4tn (£1.1tn) government spending package – including the Pentagon’s budget – that provides a steady stream of financing for Trump’s US-Mexico border fence and reverses unpopular and unworkable automatic spending cuts to defence and domestic programmes. the space force has been a reliable applause line at Trump’s political rallies, but for the military it is seen more soberly as an affirmation of the need to more effectively organise for the defence of US interests in space, especially satellites used for navigation and communication. The force is not designed or intended to put combat troops in space.Space has become increasingly important to the US economy and to everyday life. The global positioning system, for example, provides navigation services to the military as well as civilians. Its constellation of about two dozen orbiting satellites is operated by the 50th space wing from an operations centre at Schriever air force base in Colorado.The space force is the first new military service since the air force was spun off from the army in 1947. It will be the provider of forces to US space command, a separate organisation established earlier this year as the overseer of the military’s space operations.
The division of responsibilities and assets between space force and space command has not been fully worked out.
Space force will be tiny compared with its sister services. It will initially have about 200 people and a first-year budget of $40m. The military’s largest service, the army, has about 480,000 active-duty soldiers and a budget of about $181bn. The Pentagon spends about $14bn a year on space operations, most of which is in the air force budget. credit - the guardian.
