SPACE FORCE
One of Vulcan Centaur’s biggest users will be NASA. But another important customer is the US Space Force, a separate branch of the US armed services alongside the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. Prompted by the recognition that space – particularly in the form of surveillance and communication systems – has become indispensable to modern military operations, it’s the role of the Space Force to protect US interests in the space domain. Where in the past military space launches were the province of the Air Force, they now fall within the remit of the Space Force. As an example, in July 2022 a ULA Atlas V rocket launched a pair of spacecraft
– a missile-warning satellite and a technology demonstrator platform – on behalf of the Space Force.