
Pentagon Requests $15B for Space Force - anigbrowl
https://thehill.com/policy/defense/482373-pentagon-requests-154b-for-space-force
======
Pinbenterjamin
I'm going to try and be optimistic about this;

10b in research and development? I can't imagine that it's going to be for
'weapons' only right? Some of this has to go into the future of humankind. I
would imagine they have to be interested in colonization, as it's generally in
the interest of humankind to expand to the reaches of outerspace, and to do so
and be confronted with opposition would require such an agency.

I'd like to know too what the overlap in responsibility between NASA and
Spaceforce will be. Are they both scientific ventures? Is Spaceforce actually
interested in intergalactic safety.

I'm cautiously optimistic.

~~~
RobRivera
For the record, GPS infrastructure was DoD funded. My point is: DoD funding is
not all doom, gloom, weapons dev.

A lot of it is logistical infrastructure that has significant benefit for
civilian applications.

Remember, defense funding is what fueld the tech sector's birth

~~~
mhh__
I guess it technically isn't (I believe force multiplier would be the term)
but GPS is an extremely powerful weapon if only one side has such capabilities

~~~
verdverm
Not so much a weapon system as an information and coordination system.

It's like calling the camera that looks at stars for determining position a
weapons system. GPS and astro guidance are both part of a redundant navigation
system.

------
otoburb
>> _" Space Force technically only has one member right now, Chief of Space
Operations Gen. John Raymond, though thousands of airmen are working for the
service on assignment."_

I know this may seem like an esoteric budgeting question, but does this mean
that other departments are essentially funding the Space Force and don't
expect to recover their labour costs, or will they be accrued and cross-
charged back to the respective departments when (if?) Space Force's $15.4B
funding is approved?

~~~
gizmo686
Space force is fundamentally a reorganization. Work that had previusly been
done by other branches (mostly airforce) is being moved to its own branch.
During the transition, work (hopefully) continues without interuption. As I
read the proposal, the airforce will recieve a corresponding drop in funding
to reflect their reduced scope.

------
davidw
I think radio or TV discussions of the Spaaace Foooorce should be required to
pronounce it like so:

[https://clyp.it/mznwbuxq](https://clyp.it/mznwbuxq)

------
nabla9
Organizational structure influences policy.

US just created an organization who needs to work against demilitarization of
space to stay relevant. Just operating spy satellites for NRO or satellite
communication network is is not enough.

------
FillardMillmore
Whether the Space Force actually achieves its goals remains to be seen (goals
which remain somewhat nebulous, though the article points out the following):

> The new service is aimed at protecting U.S. assets in space, such as
> satellites, from earthly threats, including U.S. adversaries Russia and
> China.

I am no expert, but I'm fairly certain that the Air Force and NASA were
charged with the responsibility of protecting government assets in space. It
would seem that this Space Force is being created to carry this duty out as
one of its core responsibilities (the Air Force is already responsible for a
lot) as some countries around the world accelerate their space research and
space ventures (not to mention that our own private sector has companies
accelerating space research as well). As far as I understand it, China already
has an equivalent to the US Space Force - besides China, there are other
countries with galactic ambitions and they are not all friends of the US.

That said, claims of the US 'weaponizing' space may be exaggerated, or at
least it would seem so to me. The US obviously wants to protect its interests
in Space and it doesn't want China getting a strong enough early foothold so
that they can operate from a position of greater leverage in matters of space
diplomacy.

Again, I'm no expert, but I think what the US needs to do to ensure future
prosperity for others in space (both private and state actors) is to pursue
diplomacy and establish an international coalition for space governance. Of
course, this is easier said than done, but starting on the right path could be
the difference between tense confrontations in the future vs. clearly
communicated and shared information.

~~~
Seenso
> I am no expert, but I'm fairly certain that the Air Force and NASA were
> charged with the responsibility of protecting government assets in space. It
> would seem that this Space Force is being created to carry this duty out as
> one of its core responsibilities (the Air Force is already responsible for a
> lot)

Which isn't so odd. During WWII, the US didn't have an Air Force, it had the
_Army_ Air Force. It didn't become totally independent of the Army until 1947.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_Air_Corps](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_Air_Corps)

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_Air_Forces](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_Air_Forces)

------
elicash
If I were to add a new branch, it wouldn't be a Space Force.

It'd be a cyberwar force.

~~~
duncan-donuts
Doesn't this already exist through the NSA and friends?

~~~
Namrog84
There is a difference between the military and government agencies.

It's like asking why not get rid of military in favor of militia, Hired guns,
And police forces?

Who had what authority. Funding. Jurisdiction and related. And plenty of other
things.

------
caublestone
For the first time in my life, I’m excited for a new government initiative.
I’ve realized that the there is a link between home security and military
budgets. I’m optimistic about the space force because we the people are bought
in to spending on insurance premiums which is a defined margin above
calculable risks. And so if we want government funded space exploration we can
sell it as insurance and actually make it happen.

------
_threads
I can only imagine a French president announcing even 1 single billion for a «
space force » project. All he would get is an instant a civil war

~~~
masonic
In other words, he'd surrender?

------
papito
Quite a boondogle. What's it for? The earth camo uniforms? New letterheads?
The space ops are already part of the military.

~~~
fit2rule
The more and more gets leaked about all this, the more I'm convinced that this
is simply a move to set up a policing force - in Space - before the Mars
colony really gets rolling.

I mean, when Mars gets colonised, what's to stop Mars from becoming a
superpower in the Sol system within a very short period of time? Pretty much
nothing.

Once humanity gets its footing on Mars - and it really looks like this is
going to happen within the next few decades - there are going to be security
repercussions for those of us left on Earth. I believe this Space Force effort
is an attempt to make USA not only Earth's police force, but that of the solar
system, too.

 _Extraordinary times! To be actually typing this, in earnest.._

~~~
takinola
Given that nothing we put into orbit or on another planet is going to be self-
sustaining, you don’t need weapons to exert control on any residents of such
infrastructure. A simple blockade will suffice

~~~
caconym_
For now.

GP comment is speculative in either case.

~~~
kevin_thibedeau
I'd be more wary of a sneak attack from Antarctic insurgents first.

------
melling
I like to compare expenses to the interest on the national debt.

Looks like it's about 3% of that:

[https://www.thebalance.com/interest-on-the-national-
debt-411...](https://www.thebalance.com/interest-on-the-national-debt-4119024)

Of course, rates are historically low.

------
pastor_elm
>The budget documents released Monday anticipate 6,434 active-duty Space Force
members

Seems like incredible bloat for this agency to have any sort of 'active duty'
military personal at the moment. What are they exactly going to do that
civilians can't?

~~~
HenryKissinger
Working at:

Combined Space Operations Center, Vandenberg AFB

Missile Warning Center, Cheyenne Mountain AFS

Joint Overhead Persistent Infrared Center, Buckley AFB

Joint Navigation Warfare Center, Kirtland AFB

Joint Task Force-Space Defense, Schriever Air Force Base, Colorado Springs, CO
- JTF-SD is responsible for protecting military satellites from aggression

National Space Defense Center - Co-located within JTF-SD, NSDC is a joint
effort between the Department of Defense and the United States Intelligence
Community responsible for detecting, warning, and defending against threats to
military space systems, particularly those of the National Reconnaissance
Office

------
Damorian
This is interesting, I'd have expected it to be much higher. I know that the
Air Force Space Command employed more people than NASA, which has a $20B+
budget. I assume more is massaged in elsewhere.

------
ARandomerDude
Does anyone know the proposed monicker for someone in the Space Force (granted
there's only 1 person right now)? They aren't "airmen," nor are they
"astronauts."

~~~
dTal
Space Marines? Space Ranger? Starship Troopers? Defenders of the Earth?

------
jedberg
I wonder how long it will be until they decide to reorg NASA under Space
Force.

~~~
Shivetya
I would be more of the belief that by its existence that Space Force will
further separate NASA from the military.

It provides much more separation that what NASA currently has, if anything the
real question becomes how much will the other branches give up to Space Force.
The Air Force has the most to lose; unless of course this becomes something
similar to Navy and Marines

------
pbiggar
Sounds like they've identified $15B in wasteful spending that they can just
eliminate.

------
DanCarvajal
So just a few F35s worth of funding.

~~~
mhh__
About 150 of them?

------
tomp
_> The money, largely transferred from existing Air Force programs, would
include $2.5 billion for operations and maintenance, $10.3 billion for
research and development, and $2.4 billion for procurement._

TL;DR: who cares.

------
LatteLazy
No money for nasa, gold plated ships for the military...

~~~
HenryKissinger
The Trump administration calls for big budget increases for NASA to fund Moon-
to-Mars program

[https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/10/21131361/nasa-
administrat...](https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/10/21131361/nasa-
administration-president-trump-budget-request-25-billion-moon-artemis)

