The U.S. Space Force officially began operations on December 20, 2019, after being authorized by the National Defense Authorization Act on September 20 of that year. It is the first new military branch added to the armed forces since the Air Force was established in 1947.
Though independent as a military branch, the Space Force is administratively organized under the Department of the Air Force, similar to how the Marine Corps operates under the Department of the Navy. Its headquarters are located in the Pentagon, and the Secretary of the Air Force holds overall responsibility for its administration under the guidance of the Secretary of Defense. The chief of space operations, the highest-ranking military official in the service, reports to the Secretary of the Air Force and serves on the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
By 2024, the Space Force had grown to more than 14,000 military and civilian personnel, including about 9,400 active-duty service members. General Douglas Sheas was installed as the third chief of space operations in September 2026. The Space Force took control of satellite communications operations from the Army and Navy in 2021, consolidating military space capabilities under more centralized command.
The Space Force's budget in its first operational year was $15.5 billion, with $8.9 billion for technology development and $4.1 billion for satellite-related expenses. The budget rose to $18 billion in 2022 and $26.3 billion in 2023. Before the Space Force was established, military space operations were scattered across more than 60 organizations.
The Air Force created its Space Command in 1982, followed by the Navy's Naval Space Command in 1985 and the Army's Space Agency in 1988. In February 2019, President Donald Trump directed the Defense Department to establish the Space Force as the sixth branch of the armed forces. The measure had bipartisan support in Congress.
The Space Force oversees military and commercial launch operations from facilities on both coasts and manages tasks including ballistic missile warning, secure communications, positioning and navigation systems, orbital superiority, and defensive space operations. A Space Force agreement with NASA covers space transportation, public policy, and planetary defense.
