As the U.S. Space Force enters 2026 amid escalating threats from China and Russia, the service faces a pivotal year as it transitions to full-spectrum warfighting.
Recent assessments from the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission’s 2025 annual report underscore the challenge ahead. According to the report, “China is aggressively positioning itself as a global leader in space technology and exploration, seeking to reshape international governance, influence standards, and displace the United States as the world’s premier space power.”
The report notes China’s operational satellite fleet exceeded 1,060 by mid-2025, with hundreds dedicated to intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.
Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman has signaled U.S. resolve on this front. During the opening keynote at the Air & Space Forces Association’s Warfare Symposium in March 2025, he made U.S. intentions clear to allies and adversaries alike, declaring, “The Space Force will do whatever it takes to achieve space superiority.”
The April 2025 release of “Space Warfighting: A Framework for Planners” codifies the service’s shift from primarily supportive roles to treating space as a contested warfighting domain, openly emphasizing offensive and defensive counter-space operations alongside traditional enabling capabilities.
In the document’s foreword, Saltzman writes that space superiority “unlocks superiority in other domains, fuels Coalition lethality, and fortifies troop survivability. It is therefore the basis from which the Joint Force projects power, deters aggression, and secures the homeland.”
‘Race to resilience’
Current core U.S. military space capabilities remain foundational but increasingly vulnerable.
Missile warning and tracking systems, such as the Space-Based Infrared System and emerging Next-Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared satellites, provide global detection of ballistic and hypersonic launches, often within seconds of ignition. This capability is supplemented by proliferated low-Earth orbit sensors, including the Space Development Agency’s Tranche 3 tracking layer, a $3.5 billion investment awarded in late 2025 for 72 new satellites planned for launch beginning in 2029.
Protected satellite communication and positioning, navigation and timing networks, including the jam-resistant Advanced Extremely High Frequency constellation and military GPS featuring enhanced anti-jam M-code, ensure resilient command and control in degraded environments.
Space domain awareness tools, such as the maneuverable Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program satellites, operate in near-geosynchronous orbit to conduct close inspections of objects. Upgraded ground-based sensors, including the Ground-Based Optical Sensor System, track orbital objects and potential threats.
While robust, these systems are vulnerable to attacks such as signal jamming, sensor dazzling by directed-energy weapons and cyberattacks — reversible threats that U.S. officials report occur daily or near-daily. U.S. officials note that even temporary disruptions could significantly impair critical joint operations in wartime.
These challenges are driving the service’s “Race to Resilience” initiative, which aims to achieve battle-ready architectures by 2026. Several key milestones in the coming year will advance the Space Force’s readiness in these contested environments.
Boost-phase space-based interceptor prototypes, a proposed weapon system designed to destroy enemy ballistic missiles during the boost phase of their flight, were awarded under competitive contracts for the Golden Dome missile defense initiative in November 2025. Kinetic midcourse awards (hit-to-kill interceptors during the missile’s coasting phase) are expected in February 2026.
Speaking shortly after his appointment at the Space Foundation’s Innovate Space: Global Economic Summit in July 2025, program lead Gen. Michael Guetlein shared his optimism for the program, stating, “I firmly believe that the technology we need to deliver Golden Dome exists today,” highlighting the importance of integrated command and control.
The service will also finalize requirements for the Space Warfighter Operational Readiness Domain, a distributed digital training environment that builds on existing Space Flag exercises, enabling guardians across multiple locations to participate in virtual simulations of contested operations.
Four on-orbit servicing demonstrations are planned for 2026 to test satellite refueling, repair, inspection and maneuvering. These capabilities are essential for maintaining dynamic space operations, extending the lifespan of assets and enhancing resilience in these contested environments. These missions, funded by various DOD entities and commercial partners, mark a key step toward proving the viability of in-space logistics.
Additionally, the Commercial Augmentation Space Reserve will transition from pilot phase to full-scale operations in 2026, targeting 20 contracts by year-end to provide wartime access to commercial satcom networks. This resiliency measure is backed by record fiscal 2026 funding approaching $40 billion, reflecting priorities for hybrid military-commercial architectures.
With threats intensifying, including China’s rapid satellite expansion and Russia’s disruptive capabilities, 2026 positions the Space Force to deliver resilient architectures that ensure U.S. space superiority, enabling joint forces to maintain the edge in any conflict or contested environment.
