War in Space

How does one become a space operator? And what does a space mission look like? Wing Commander Cliff Fletcher-Jones is a senior officer in the Royal Air Force and currently serves as Assistant Chief of Staff at UK Space Command. He explains the nature of military space operations and outlines his doctorate research into humanity's relationship with space. We further discuss the Orwellian-sounding theory by pondering whether all parts of space are equally strategic.

Space sustainability has become a buzzword for the space industry. But what does the term mean? Dr Timiebi Aganaba, Assistant Professor of Space and Society at Arizona State University, outlines the ecological roots of the term and why today's discussions often revolve around global security. We talk about ‘the space club’ (were we not supposed to?), transparency in the behaviour of countries and space agencies and what they launch into space, and why Africa will be a game-changer for space exploration.

Laura Winter explains the intricacies of the US National Defence Authorisation Act and the impact that the continuing resolution has had on the defence space industry and the US Space Force. What are the repercussions for wider industry, and how does this affect the biggest spender on space – the military? Listen in to find out!

This is going to be a big year for space, with several moon missions, a test of our planetary defence, mega-constellations and JUICE! (That’s ‘Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer.) Makena Young, Associate Fellow at the Aerospace Security Project (CSIS), explains why reusability is a growing trend, why the Webb telescope launch was so exciting, and why the dinosaurs might be jealous.

Air Vice-Marshal Paul Godfrey, Commander of UK Space Command, joins us to discuss the future of his responsibilities. He talks about his move from being a ‘space user’ to taking charge of Space Command, why integration is so important, and why we need to acquire further knowledge to make full use of space and its capabilities.

Space Physics 101: What's a solar storm? Are orbits just space highways? And how dangerous is space debris? Ali Stickings, RUSI Associate Fellow and Space Strategy Lead at Frazer Nash Consultancy, breaks down the physical hazards to space assets and explains why space debris is the next big environmental problem.

The intersection of national security and space is not new, but more actors are becoming involved in the domain, in a race with increasing stakes. In the first episode in this new series of podcasts, Dr Bleddyn Bowen, Lecturer in International Relations at the University of Leicester, explains why space features in all the new national strategy documents and why that does not mean that terrestrial aspects should be neglected.

Everybody is talking about space. But why does it matter? What are we doing there? And is war in space a remote possibility, or an inevitable risk? In this trailer for a new podcast from RUSI, we discuss why space is important for national security.