Space Force

In a provocative and unprecedented act over the past two days a Russian military “inspector” satellite has been maneuvering closer and closer to a US-registered, European-built, all-weather earth observation satellite that provides data vital for Ukraine's war effort. It is the first time non-consensual close proximity action has been carried out in low-Earth orbit between two satellites. It has alarmed western space war fighters who see it as a hostile demonstration of future orbital conflict. Russia is a declining space power and watches the growing military space prowess of China and the US with alarm There can be no doubt of the intent of the mission which must have been planned for some time.

On September 14, the United States announced it had deployed a space weapon to Earth’s orbit. US Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink declared it a response to “evolving threats.” But what is a space weapon, and what are these threats? The truth is we still don’t really know. The weapons are classified and we earthlings are in the dark. Cutting-edge military space tech ranges from maneuverable space-craft capable of tracking and shooting down enemy satellites to communication jammers that clock or swamp the enemy’s data links. But if the weapons are mysterious, the need for them is very real.

Operation Epic Fury marks a turning point in the art of war. The key to 20th-century battles was air power. In the past, space and cyber activities have traditionally played supporting roles as so-called force multipliers. But this is no longer the case. In this conflict they have become mainstream, carving out new fronts for the wars of the future. The use of space is no longer something that is just nice to have, because everything from comms to intel to navigation uses space and cyber assets. Along with the National Reconnaissance Office, which manages US spy satellites, the US Space Force uses a global sensor network of ground-based telescopes and radar on every continent except Antarctica.

Donald Trump’s desire for Greenland is not just about access to oil, minerals and control of the new strategic and commercial corridors opening in the region. It’s also about data. Specifically, the most important data in the world. For decades, Pituffik Space Base – formerly Thule – in Greenland has been central to US space defense and Arctic strategy. It’s the US military’s only base above the Arctic Circle and their most northerly deep-water port and airstrip. It’s home to the 12th Space Warning Squadron. Its massive AN/FPS-132 radar has 240 degrees of coverage surveying the Arctic Ocean and Russia’s northern coast, especially the Kola peninsula where it has concentrated its strategic nuclear weapons.