National Security Space: Enabling Joint Warfighting
Abstract
Although less than 50 years have passed since man ventured into space, the constellations of satellites in orbit have fundamentally changed life on Earth. Moreover, the exploitation of space, like that of land, sea, and air, has often had an unrecognized impact on modern warfare. This did not happen overnight. In the early stages of the space age, only a limited group of users on the most strategic level used the great majority of space capabilities, and those systems were highly classified. The recently declassified Corona program of the National Reconnaissance Office is an example of such a development. Distinctions among military, national intelligence, civil, and commercial programs are being increasingly blurred and in some cases are virtually seamless. The same overhead imagery used by an analyst inside the beltway could be downloaded and exploited by a soldier in Afghanistan. The same global positioning system (GPS) satellites providing a navigation signal to fighters on patrol over Iraq could guide hikers in the Rockies or provide timing to an electric power grid. Space capabilities are woven deeply into the fabric of modern society. Commerce relies on them for the swift flow of information and transactions, and the national security arena depends on them for joint warfighting and protection of the homeland. It is clearly within this context that the defense and intelligence communities are striving to provide the right space capabilities to meet present and future national security challenges. This article discusses U.S. space capabilities; command and control for national security space; space acquisition reform; accountability in contracting; assured access to space; pioneering launch systems; a global communications network that relies heavily on space assets; space-based radar; intelligence collection using space assets; space capabilities investments; space professionalism; integration; and space control.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2003
- Accession Number
- ADA520979
Entities
People
- Peter B. Teets