Despite talk of a Space Force, new report claims US remains woefully behind the competition in orbit

A new report published by the Center for Strategic and International Studies alleges that, despite maintaining the largest military on the planet, the United States is facing an uphill battle when it comes to defenses beyond it. While America may currently possess the broadest and most capable satellite infrastructure, to include control over the global positioning satellites the world relies on for GPS, it lacks sufficient means of defense against the increasing prevalence of anti-satellite weapons technologies.

Last week, India became the fourth nation in history to demonstrate the capacity to destroy a satellite in orbit by way of ground-launch missiles. NASA says the debris field created by the anti-satellite test placed the International Space Station in danger, further escalating tensions between the globe’s burgeoning space powers. The United States, while having a significant head start in the field of orbital operations, now finds itself in the difficult position of needing to defend its assets despite what some argue is a half-hearted orbital effort led by the United States Air Force.

The Air Force has had plenty of time to know this had to be done. If they could make themselves do it, they would have,” Congressman Mike Rogers, a Republican from Alabama, told reporters last year. “Unfortunately, because space is one of the 11 other missions they have, it is always going to be subordinate, but worse it’s going to be a pay-for, which is what’s happened over these years. We’ve seen repeatedly where the Air Force has reached into space program funds to put them against fighter jets, bombers, tankers. That has exacerbated this already-bad problem that we have with space.”