ORLANDO, Fla. — The Space Force on Dec. 12 kicked off its first national conference focused on professional development, bringing together service members, known as guardians, from across the nascent military branch.
The “Spacepower” conference — with about 2,000 people in attendance from the U.S. Space Force, allies and private industry — was organized by the Space Force Association, an advocacy non-profit that promotes the Space Force mission in the public and policy spheres.
Since the Space Force’s inception inside the Department of the Air Force in 2019, the service’s professional development gatherings have been part of the larger Air & Space Forces Association conferences. All the military branches host conferences focused on their specific domain. The Space Force is now working to establish itself as a separate service devoted to space power, not just an offshoot of the Air Force.
Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman said in a keynote speech that it’s critical that as the service grows and matures, that it has its own national conference concentrated specifically on space power.
Saltzman said guardians, for example, need to understand how space systems support joint military forces and the role of space systems in “this new era of great power competition.” One of the goals of the conference, he said, is to promote the idea that the future of U.S. national and economic security depends on the ability to operate freely and securely in space.
“The Space Force is clearly moving beyond the establishment phase,” he said. “Our guardians are now delivering on the investment from the American people to ensure our nation remains the preeminent space power.”
Seeking its own culture
In his remarks, Saltzman touched on the need for innovation, creative thinking and empowering ideas from all ranks.
Many guardians continue to have questions about what the culture of the Space Force should be, he…
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