Space Force

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Operator Confirms 'Total Loss' of Boeing-Made Satellite

Apparent explosion of Intelsat satellite leaves customers without communications services

(Newser) - Narrowed eyes are again on Boeing following the apparent explosion of a Boeing-made communications satellite on Saturday. Operator Intelsat confirmed the "total loss" of the satellite on Monday. Intelsat 33e, launched in 2016, was estimated to have a 15-year lifespan, though a propulsion issue in 2017 shaved a few...

Military Space Plane Blasts Off on Secretive Mission

X-37B could be in space for years

(Newser) - The US military's X-37B space plane blasted off Thursday on another secretive mission that's expected to last at least a couple of years. Like previous missions, the reusable plane resembling a mini space shuttle carried classified experiments. There's no one on board. The space plane took off...

Space Force Is Considering Setting Up Base in 3rd Country

Commander says force is also considering setting up hotline with its counterpart in China

(Newser) - The commander of the US Space Force says the newest branch of the military is stepping up its activities in Asia and is considering establishing a hotline with its counterpart in China. Gen. Chance Saltzman said Monday that Space Force has discussed "opening up a line of communication to...

Space Force Activates First Overseas Base

New unit in South Korea is intended to act as a deterrent and monitor potential aggressors

(Newser) - The US Space Force has put down roots in South Korea, officially launching its first command on foreign soil with a ceremony on Wednesday. The unit will be based at Osan Air Base, about 40 miles south of Seoul, and will help watch for security threats from North Korea, Russia,...

Space Plane Returns Safely From Secretive Mission

Sonic booms announce the return of the X-37B to Florida

(Newser) - Most information about the US military's space plane is classified, but dozens of sonic booms announced its return to Florida on Saturday after a record stay in orbit. The robotic spacecraft landed safely at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Space.com reports. The craft, built by Boeing, was in...

Space Force Guardians Now Have Official Anthem to Sing

'Semper Supra' sounds 'a lot like a military anthem,' as one critic noted

(Newser) - After three years as an official branch of the US Armed Forces, the US Space Force now has ... an official anthem. It’s called “Semper Supra,” Latin for “Always Above,” the USSF motto. You can listen via NBC , but know that, as Military.com tactfully says,...

Religious Exemption Requests on Vaccine Go Nowhere

Pentagon didn't expect 12K applications

(Newser) - When the Pentagon announced in August that all service members would have to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, it said they can seek religious exemptions. More than 12,000 military service members have done that, the AP reports, but so far, not one exemption on religious grounds has been granted....

Startup's Unmanned Rocket Launch Ends in Fireball

Space Force officials ordered destruction once Alpha began tumbling

(Newser) - Less than 3 minutes after launching on its inaugural flight Thursday evening in California, Firefly's unmanned rocket started to flip end over end, doing cartwheels in the sky. It then exploded mid-air, CNBC reports. Space Force officials had told the company to destroy Alpha once the weirdness started so...

Biologist Counting Turtles Finds These Instead

Bundles of cocaine wash up at Space Force base near Cape Canaveral

(Newser) - Florida, a place that has long had a reputation for strange goings-on, can add a tale of smugglers, sea turtles, a million dollars in drugs, and Space Force to its collection. A few weeks ago, Angy Chambers, a wildlife manager surveying sea turtle nests near Cape Canaveral found something besides...

Space Force Officer Booted After Podcast Comments

Lt. Col. Matthew Lohmeier fired after promoting his new book

(Newser) - A Space Force commander is out of a job after his controversial appearance on The Steve Gruber Show , a conservative podcast. Lt. Col. Matthew Lohmeier alleges in his new self-published book, Irresistible Revolution: Marxism's Goal of Conquest & the Unmaking of the American Military, that Marxism is increasingly influential...

Biden Is Keeping Space Force
Biden Is Keeping Space Force
Feb 3, 2021 4:08 PM CST

Biden Is Keeping Space Force

New military branch has full support of the administration, press secretary says

(Newser) - Space Force appears to be here to stay. The White House said Wednesday that President Biden—who has been dismantling much of Donald Trump's legacy—fully supports the new branch of the military. Press secretary Jen Psaki said the new administration has no plans to revisit Trump's decision...

Space Force Has Completed a 'Momentous Responsibility'

Troops have been officially named 'guardians,' Mike Pence announced Friday

(Newser) - If "troops" seemed too boring of a way to refer to the members of Space Force, never fear—there's a new label for those in service to the latest US military branch. "It is my honor, on behalf of the president of the United States, to announce...

US Launches Another Mystery Rocket
US Launches Another
Mystery Rocket
May 17, 2020 2:10 PM CDT

US Launches Another Mystery Rocket

It's the 6th flight of an X-37B, a solar-powered plane

(Newser) - The US military's mystery space plane rocketed into orbit again Sunday, this time with an extra load of science experiments, the AP reports. It's the sixth flight of an X-37B, a solar-powered plane that's flown by remote control without a crew. Officials aren't saying how long...

Space Force Needs Help Naming Its Troops

'Spacemen' has been ruled out

(Newser) - The Air Force calls its personnel airmen, but the Space Force isn't planning on calling its troops "spacemen"—and "space cadets" has also been ruled out. The new branch of the US military said in a press release this week that it would like members of...

Space Force Logo Revealed, Looks a Teensy Bit Familiar

No, we are not living in the Star Trek universe

(Newser) - The Pentagon's new US Space Force is not Star Trek's Starfleet Command, but their logos bear a striking similarity, the AP reports. President Trump unveiled the Space Force logo Friday, writing on Twitter that he had consulted with military leaders and designers before presenting the blue-and-white symbol, which...

US Space Force Defends Its Uniforms
US Space Force
Defends Its Uniforms
Jan 19, 2020 10:45 AM CST

US Space Force Defends Its Uniforms

It's a better look for Earth than orbit, military and online fashion critics agree

(Newser) - The Space Force has unveiled its utility uniforms, which look a lot like the other military branches' uniforms. There are reasons for that, the Hill reports. The nation's newest branch of the military "is utilizing current Army/Air Force uniforms, saving costs of designing/producing a new one." The...

Trump Signs Space Force Into Life
Space Force
Is Here
Dec 21, 2019 6:00 AM CST

Space Force Is Here

Trump signs the sweeping act that includes it

(Newser) - President Trump celebrated on Friday the launch of Space Force, the first new military service in more than 70 years, the AP reports. In signing the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act that includes Space Force, Trump claimed a victory for one of his top national security priorities just two days...

House Passes Bill Including Space Force, Parental Leave

Trump urges Senate to pass defense bill

(Newser) - The military will get a new branch and federal workers will get up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave under a massive $738 billion military bill policy passed by the House Wednesday. The Hill reports that the National Defense Authorization Act passed 377-48, with most of the votes against...

Space Command Is Resurrected
Space Command
Is Resurrected
Aug 29, 2019 4:44 PM CDT

Space Command Is Resurrected

Trump says Pentagon has established the command, which is different from Space Force

(Newser) - Declaring space crucial to the nation's defense, President Trump said Thursday the Pentagon has established US Space Command to preserve American dominance on "the ultimate high ground." "This is a landmark day," Trump said in a Rose Garden ceremony, "one that recognizes the centrality...

Pence Announces Big Step Toward Space Force

US Space Command to be established Aug. 29

(Newser) - We're a week away from having a US Space Command—not to be confused with a US Space Force . "Next week we will formally stand up the new unified combatant command that will be known as the United States Space Command," Vice President Mike Pence announced Tuesday...

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