Shifting gears: Space Force moves to embrace space mobility for orbital warfare
The service's new Objective Force plan calls for demonstrating on-orbit refueling and fielding operational "space tugs" by 2030.
SPACECOM chief doubles down on need for on-orbit mobility
The Space Force, however, has been lukewarm on funding support for what it calls "Space Access, Mobility and Logistics."
presented by
Why enterprise IT modernization matters now – and how to “delight by design”
Do more with less: streamline workflows, reduce duplication, invest upfront to save long-term.
Ursa Major looks to fly Draper engine, takes aim at rocket engine markets
“This will be a next-generation capability being introduced by Ursa Major for hypersonic technology,” Ursa Major CEO Dan Jablonsky told Breaking Defense.
Space Force picks up pace of on-orbit refueling experiments
Space Systems Command is moving out with a trio of projects — contracting with Northrop Grumman for two separate experiments, and with Astroscale US for the first on-orbit refueling operation involving a military satellite.
Time for Space Force to ‘clearly say’ it needs ‘weapons in space’: SPACECOM head
"The US and France recently conducted our first ever bilateral rendezvous and proximity operation to demonstrate combined capabilities in space in the vicinity of a strategic competitor spacecraft," SPACECOM head Gen. Stephen Whiting said today.
Space Force taps Firefly to launch mysterious Victus Sol ‘responsive space’ mission
A spokesperson for Space System Command's Space Safari office told Breaking Defense that the Victus Sol launch date, payload type, capability requirements and mission objective "will not be disclosed at this time in accordance with mission requirements."
Modernizing defense enterprise IT without disrupting the mission
Government can’t stop to update systems, so modernization has to happen without interruptions.
Space Force zeroed out funding for in-space mobility in FY26 budget request: Sources
On the eve of the third annual Space Mobility Conference here, supporters of Defense Department investment in technologies to enable what SPACECOM calls "dynamic space operations" are facing a recent cooling of near-term interest from senior Space Force officials.
New C2 software for mobile satellites will support future orbital warfare ops
'I think there [are] things that we will need to be able to, I guess I'll say, 'dogfight' in space," Lt. Gen. Doug Schiess, commander of Space Forces - Space, the Space Force unit that undertakes operations for US Space Command, told reporters on Wednesday.
Space Force taking the long view of satellite servicing, with an industry in the balance
"I think the US national security community is going to shape commercial space for the foreseeable future," Carissa Bryce Christensen, CEO of BryceTech, told Breaking Defense.
Space Force Futures Command won’t need ‘giant’ resources
Lt. Gen. Shawn Bratton, who has been charged to establish the new Space Force Futures Command, said cislunar and dynamic space operations are areas for the command's scrutiny, since neither have yet proven their 'military utility."
presented by
In contested seas, autonomy has to think ahead, not just steer
As missions stretch farther and comms grow less reliable, predictive software could become the edge that keeps missions afloat.
After you: DoD, industry look to each other for investment in space mobility
Lars Hoffman, Blue Origin's vice president of national security sales, said that a viable commercial market for space mobility and logistics "doesn't exist right now."
Refueling, propulsion ‘jetpacks’ near term Space Force ‘mobility’ plans
"People need to have a realistic expectation of the demand signal," said Col. Joyce Bulson, who heads Space Systems Command's servicing, mobility and logistics program, stressing that the service is "looking to leverage commercial services to the maximum extent possible, so we're not looking for a significant government investment in bringing these capabilities to bear."
White House official urges more ‘real’ Pentagon investment in space mobility
"We can't expect to bridge the valley of death through S&T programs, and industry accelerator programs. ... We need to identify and prioritize resources, funding and personnel," said Diane Howard, National Space Council head of commercial space policy.
SSC taps Northrop Grumman’s refueling systems as ‘preferred standard’
Northrop Grumman has been working the Space Systems Command, DARPA and the Defense Innovation Unit to develop the capabilities to refuel and service satellites on orbit under several different study efforts.