"WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump hasreleased a new executive order (EO) setting national space policy across the civil, commercial and defense sectors - settinga goal of establishing an "initial" Moon base by 2028 and reiterating the administration's Golden Dome plans for a comprehensive air and missile defense shield over America. Perhaps the most notable thing about the new EO is the title, "Ensuring American Space Superiority," especially as the document focuses on civil space exploration rather than defense."
"The phrase "space superiority" traditionally has served as a military term of art for controlling the heavens to prevent adversaries from taking actions to harm US space assets. The Space Force defines space superiority as follows: "A degree of that allows military forces in all domains to operate at a time and place of their choosing without prohibitive interference from space or counterspace threats, while also denying the same to an adversary.""
"But the EO, published Thursday, is primarily centered around specific goals for NASA. For example, it states that America will return to the Moon by 2028, and mandates the establishment of "initial elements of a permanent lunar outpost by 2030" to include launching by nuclear reactors for use on the lunar surface. It further calls for "enhancing sustainability and cost-effectiveness of launch and exploration architectures, including enabling commercial launch services and prioritizing lunar exploration.""
The executive order titled Ensuring American Space Superiority sets national space policy across civil, commercial, and defense sectors and centers on concrete NASA objectives. The order directs a return to the Moon by 2028 and the establishment of initial elements of a permanent lunar outpost by 2030, including use of nuclear reactors on the lunar surface. It calls for enhancing sustainability and cost effectiveness of launch and exploration architectures, enabling commercial launch services, and prioritizing lunar exploration. The policy signals intent to end US participation in the International Space Station by 2030 and reiterates missile defense prototype goals by 2028.
Read at Breaking Defense
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