The U.S. military currently has five branches — army, air force, navy, coast guard, and marines — that patrol air, land, and sea, but congress is close to approving a new branch… one that will serve in outer space.
It may sound like something out of science-fiction, but last week the House Armed Services Committee voted 60 to 1 to establish a brand new arm of the military called, I kid you not, the U.S. Space Corps. The vote took place as part of the negotiations for this year’s National Defense Authorization Act, and the proposal will still have to make it through both houses of congress before it becomes a reality, but right now odds are looking pretty good for the Space Corps.
If approved, the Space Corps. will be the first new U.S. military branch created since 1947, when the Air Force debuted. However, there are some pretty notable opponents to the program, namely the Air Force’s secretary and chief of staff, who both believe the branch would be a redundant waste of money due to the already existent Air Force Space Command division. But fears over China’s growing space program and technological prowess — they just last week became the first nation to teleport an object into space — may be all congress needs to approve an American Guardians of the Galaxy that puts all its resources into defending Earth’s orbit.
This, of course, isn’t the first time the U.S. Military has looked to the stars for defense. As I previously mentioned, the Air Force Space Command currently runs our military satellites, and who could forget President Raegan’s ill-fated “Star Wars” missile defense system. The laser shooting satellites of the SDI turned out to be a pipe dream, but they’re still one of the coolest things the military ever attempted.
It’s not official yet, but in the future Uncle Sam could want YOU to serve your country on the outer reaches of the galaxy.
