WASHINGTON \u2014 The top Space Force general delivered a stark warning: America\u2019s ability to track threats in space is dangerously outdated for an era where adversaries can launch surprise attacks on U.S. satellites.<\/p>\n
Gen. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations of the U.S. Space Force, speaking Sept. 17 at the Advanced Maui Optical and Space Surveillance Technologies (AMOS) Conference, said the military\u2019s space surveillance systems \u2014 built for a more peaceful orbital environment \u2014 are struggling to keep pace with the explosive growth in satellites and space debris, as well as the deployment of anti-satellite weapons by rivals like China and Russia.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe cannot be satisfied if it takes us hours to detect on-orbit activity, and we definitely cannot be satisfied if full characterization of on-orbit events takes weeks and months,\u201d he said. \u201cThe longer it takes to update the catalog, the more problematic the issue, the less domain awareness we have.\u201d<\/p>\n
The general\u2019s comments underscore growing Pentagon concerns about what military officials call \u201cspace domain awareness\u201d \u2014 the comprehensive tracking and understanding of all objects and activities in Earth\u2019s orbit. This capability, which encompasses monitoring satellites, debris, and potential threats, has become critical as space transforms from a largely benign environment into a contested warfighting domain.<\/p>\n
Racing against adversaries<\/p>\n
Saltzman\u2019s urgency reflects the rapidly changing nature of the space environment where the number of active satellites has grown dramatically, while China and Russia develop and test weapons capable of destroying or disabling satellites, creating new categories of threats that existing tracking systems weren\u2019t designed to handle.<\/p>\n
The Space Force maintains what\u2019s known as a space catalog \u2014 a comprehensive database of all known objects orbiting Earth, from active satellites to tiny pieces of debris. But this system, largely built during the Cold War era when space was less crowded and less contested, faces growing challenges.<\/p>\n
\u201cMuch of our SDA mission set was built for a different era, an era where space was not a warfighting domain,\u201d Saltzman noted. Military and civilian Space Force personnel \u201care expertly working hard to maintain our awareness of the space domain every single day,\u201d but \u201cwe need to increase our manpower, update our training, enhance our tools, rewrite our policies and procedures and do a better job of leveraging our domain data.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beyond basic cataloging<\/p>\n
Saltzman\u2019s take echoes concerns from other senior military officials who argue that current space surveillance capabilities remain stuck in basic cataloging functions rather than providing the predictive and analytical intelligence needed for modern space operations. Former deputy commander of U.S. Space Command Lt. Gen. John Shaw has previously pointed out<\/a> these same shortcomings.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need a more comprehensive program to avoid operational surprise, not just enhance ongoing efforts incrementally,\u201d Saltzman said. \u201cWe need to solve SDA problems, not just improve SDA processes.\u201d<\/p>\n The stakes are high as modern military operations depend heavily on space-based assets for communications, navigation, intelligence, and precision weapons guidance. A successful surprise attack on these systems could cripple U.S. military capabilities worldwide.<\/p>\n \u201cSpace is becoming exponentially more congested each day,\u201d Saltzman noted, \u201cand our SDA capabilities are struggling to keep pace. And without operationally relevant SDA, contesting the space domain to maintain our strategic advantages will be nearly impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n Maui\u2019s strategic role<\/p>\n Speaking at the AMOS conference in Hawaii provided Saltzman with an opportunity to highlight one of the military\u2019s most important space surveillance assets. The U.S. Space Force 15th Space Surveillance Squadron operates at the Maui Space Surveillance Complex, perched atop the Haleakal\u0101 volcano.<\/p>\n The Maui facility hosts one of only three operational GEODSS (Ground-Based Electro-Optical Deep Space Surveillance) systems worldwide, alongside installations in Socorro, New Mexico, and Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. These sophisticated telescopes can track objects in deep space, providing critical data for the military\u2019s space catalog.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Maui complex has been a gem of the space community for decades, and is one that the U.S. Space Force does not take for granted,\u201d Saltzman said, emphasizing the service\u2019s commitment to \u201crespecting the mountain\u2019s cultural and spiritual significance and moving forward only in complete partnership with the community.\u201d<\/p>\n The Space Force is modernizing the Hawaiian site through programs like the Ground-Based Optical Sensor System (GBOSS), which represents a significant upgrade to the existing GEODSS infrastructure. The service also established a Space Domain Awareness Tools, Applications, and Processing (SDA TAP) Lab in Maui earlier this year, joining a similar facility in Colorado. These labs are designed to accelerate the development and deployment of new surveillance technologies through partnerships with industry and academia.<\/p>\n Industry partnership push<\/p>\n Central to Saltzman\u2019s message was a call for deeper collaboration with the private sector, an area where the Space Force has faced criticism for being slow to embrace privately funded innovations. Commercial startups, for example, have argued that the military prefers government-owned<\/a> capabilities over potentially faster and cheaper commercial alternatives.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need you, everyone in this room today, to help us turn commercial innovations into warfighting advantage,\u201d Saltzman told the AMOS audience. \u201cI believe, as does all the Space Force leadership, that we need to shift from a largely transactional relationship with industry to a much more collaborative partnership, and we know that this will require increased trust on both sides.\u201d<\/p>\n This reflects an evolution in Saltzman\u2019s own thinking since he last spoke at the AMOS conference in 2023<\/a>, when he addressed industry concerns about the service\u2019s reluctance to embrace commercial space domain awareness services. At that time, he said the military needed to better define which capabilities could be acquired from private companies versus those that were \u201cinherently governmental.\u201d<\/p>\n