IRAQ: SPACE IS THE PLACE
Military space operations played a bit part in the first Gulf War. This time around, Aviation Week reports, space will get a meatier role.
Now, air strike planners routinely seek inputs from milspace (military space) experts to ensure a number of GPS satellites will be in view over a target area, particularly when GPS-aided weapons are to be delivered. They also rely on satellite-derived weather information and imagery of target areas. And as U.S. and coalition air forces move toward network-centric operations, space-based communication links become critical to the planning process.
Looking beyond Saddam, military space chiefs want to do more than help with targeting and communication. They're also trying to turn de-nuclearized versions of Minuteman III ballistic missiles into quick-strike weapons of conventional war.
