USSF Eyes Enhanced Space Domain Awareness Capabilities With Private Sector Support

The commander of the U.S. Space Operations Command said the U.S. Space Force will rely more on the private sector for space domain awareness support.

According to Lt. Gen. David Miller, commercially operated satellites can provide critical capabilities such as delivering space tracking data and analytics and transforming raw data into actionable intelligence. He noted, however, that the Space Force needs to carefully weigh the benefits and the disadvantages of picking commercial solutions over government-owned systems and identify which activities will be performed by military personnel.

The commander said capabilities augmentation needs to happen as satellites become more prone to congestion and adversarial threats, SpaceNews reported Tuesday.

The U.S. military is starting to adopt commercial technologies for space activities.

Gen. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations and a 2024 Wash100 awardee, said during the AFA Warfare Symposium that USSF’s commercial space strategy is nearing finalization. This, even as he acknowledged delays, which he said were due to the service incorporating feedback into the document and aligning the strategy with that of the Department of Defense.

In November, Kathleen Hicks, deputy secretary of defense, a 2024 Wash100 awardee and past Potomac Officers Club speaker, shared that DOD wants to use private sector space capabilities to maintain an edge over adversaries.