GoKawiil
Tech News
US Air Force Secretary Troy Meink stated in a speech that the military has already placed space control weapons in orbit capable of defending US forces against hostile action. He gave no details on what the weapons are, how they work, or how many exist, and the Air Force declined to comment further when asked.
The US Space Force has confirmed publicly for the first time that it has deployed weapons in space, marking a shift from its previous focus on defensive and monitoring roles. The branch, established in 2019 as the first new US military service in over 70 years, was originally created to safeguard American satellites used for communication and surveillance.
Air Force Secretary Troy Meink publicly acknowledged for the first time that the US now has 'space control weapons' already stationed in orbit, capable of defending military forces from hostile action. He declined to specify what the weapons are, when they were deployed, or whether they've been tested, citing deterrence concerns.
China's Yaogan 50-02 reconnaissance satellite, which had settled into an unusual retrograde orbit roughly 590 miles up, broke apart months after launch. The US Space Force has tracked 43 fragments now circling Earth at altitudes between 372 and 683 miles, and the cause of the breakup remains unannounced, though astronomer Jonathan McDowell speculated it could be a battery explosion or a debris strike.
President Trump awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to Artemis II astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen, who flew around the moon in April. At the same ceremony, he signed an executive order establishing a Presidential Commission, chaired by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, to draft plans within 120 days for a new United States Space Academy meant to train personnel for NASA, the Space Force, and private space companies.
President Trump signed an executive order at Johnson Space Center establishing a commission to develop the first US Space Academy, a NASA-run institution rather than a military service academy. The signing came during a ceremony honoring the four Artemis II astronauts with the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman is leading the effort as part of his broader Project Athena plan to reshape the agency's workforce strategy.