For nearly half a century, the Army?s use and dependence upon space has been steadily growing. Faced with mounting tension surrounding the war on terrorism, the Army has made a critical decision to accelerate the pace of space development?an effort which has already begun to have profound impacts on military equipment and the functions of soldiers. These giant steps go largely unnoticed by the public because, as opposed to ground and air forces, space technologies are mostly out of sight. Nevertheless, since the first successful satellite launches in the late 1950?s, hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars have been invested to develop, deploy and maintain numerous space projects, which serve functions ranging from weather monitoring and navigation to communications and reconnaissance.

In the early stages, military space capabilities were limited to the fields of communication and imagery and available only to certain echelons of command. In more recent developments, sophisticated space resources have been entrenched at field levels, including navigational systems and weaponry enhancements for equipment and individual soldiers. Troops are now regularly trained to use standard space-based technologies, though the Army is a long way from reaching its celestial goals.

During the 1980?s, the U.S. Army recognized that advancements in space were crucial to enhancing the execution of missions. Accordingly, in 1985, the Army established the Army Space Council and published the Army Space Policy, which states,

?Since the Sixties, space has become increasingly important to our national interests, joining the traditional land, sea, and air dimensions of National Defense. Space is host to advanced systems critical to this nation's security. Space systems already make essential contributions to Army combat operations and can play an even greater role in Army missions. Future Army operational doctrine must capitalize on emerging space capabilities. Consistent with National and Department of Defense policies and in cooperation with other military ser vices and agencies, the Department of the Army will exploit space activities that contribute to the successful execution of Army missions. The Army supports assured access to space and will use space capabilities to enhance the accomplishment of strategic, operational, and tactical missions." "Successful implementation of this policy will require development of a pool of Army space expertise and judicious planning, to include development of concepts, requirements and a longterm management strategy. Army plans and evolving space architecture must capitalize on national and joint programs, preserving options to support initiatives that fulfill Army requirements. Implementation of this policy demands a visionary outlook to exploit fully evolving space capabilities.?

Many U.S. Army operations have already demonstrated the importance and effectiveness of their space program. In Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield, for example, imagery and positioning available only from satellites gave the Army a distinct advantage by allowing accurate navigation and well-informed planning in a barren desert devoid of distinguishing marks. Two satellites were also devoted to providing early detection of Iraqi SCUD missile launches and relaying a warning to Patriot air defense units.

As with any technological evolution, the Army?s extension beyond the atmosphere has created vulnerabilities along with the intended benefits. The most common threats to any object in space come from the inherently volatile space environment. Threats like solar radiation and the atmospheric drag that pulls lower-orbit satellites toward Earth are constant and unavoidable. Space debris and asteroids can also cause significant damage to items in orbit.

Space developments are not limited to the United States, and the U.S. Army must continually utilize all available resources to retain its advantage in space-based operations. Threats to U.S. space assets from enemy space programs include basic jamming of communication systems, as well as space mines deployed in a satellite?s orbit and satellites designed to shoot lasers at other satellites. Another threat involves missiles launched from Earth to intercept and destroy satellites, which is remarkable considering the incredible speeds at which satellites travel. This feat has been compared to ?hitting a bullet with a bullet!?

Space law, an extension of international law, establishes the rules by which space operations are governed. For instance, most countries have agreed that no nation can claim national sovereignty over any part of space. In 1963, 112 nations signed the Limited Test Ban Treaty, which states that no nation can conduct nuclear tests in the atmosphere or space. The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 prohibits the installation of military bases or weapons of mass destruction in space and on celestial bodies. Other treaties assert that any nation must provide assistance to another nation?s distressed astronauts; all nations are liable for damages caused by their space assets; and no nation may develop or deploy environmental modification technologies that directly alter natural processes.

The Army Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC), established in 1997, oversees Army space development and serves as the Army?s component of the joint U.S. Space command. To expedite their progress in space, the Army has implanted special tactical teams called Space Support Elements (SSE) into each of its Units of Employment. Each SSE is responsible for the effective planning, coordination and integration of space operations and capabilities into standard Army protocols, including the training and support of commanding officers. In the near future, Army space support will extend itself to spark progress in all service branches, and space capabilities will be integrated at all levels of training, planning and combat.