Out-of-This-World Warfare: Inside U.S. Space Command’s Mission and Future
The United States Space Command is the Pentagon’s dedicated hub for space warfare operations. It was originally activated in 1985 during the Cold War, when President Ronald Reagan approved a unified space command to coordinate military activities in orbit spacepolicyonline.com. For 17 years, this first iteration of Space Command oversaw satellite communications, missile warning, and space surveillance for the U.S. military. However, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, the Defense Department reshuffled its commands to prioritize homeland defense. In 2002, U.S. Space Command was inactivated and folded into U.S. Strategic Command as the military stood up U.S. Northern Command for continental defense spacepolicyonline.com. This move was seen as making room for the new NORTHCOM while keeping the total number of combatant commands limited. Space duties continued under STRATCOM, but without a singular focus, even as potential adversaries like China and Russia began advancing their own space capabilities spacepolicyonline.com.
