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In the 21st century, the battlefield will extend vertically into the region of space. This operational concept is intended to focus the Army's effort to exploit the high ground of space, and seamlessly integrate it into land force operations. Achieving space dominance will be critical to gaining and maintaining the information superiority required for the advanced full-spectrum operations described in the Army's Objective Force Concept. This publication describes the contribution space provides to land forces and what the Army will do to contribute to joint dominance of the dimension of space. Army space operations will focus on five essential tasks to ensure that the Objective Force will successfully achieve decisive victory. These five essential space operations tasks are: * Support increased deployability and reduced theater footprint. * Achieve situational understanding (SU) "Off the Ramp" during entry operations. * Support precision maneuver, fires, sustainment, and information. * Enable continuous information and decision superiority. * Protect the force during all phases of the operation. Seamlessness will be the signature characteristic of well-integrated space and land force operations. From the user perspective, space support must be reliable and timely, and operational friction must be minimized. During operations at the tactical or operational level, undue delays or discontinuities will quickly make space support irrelevant. For this reason, the central thrust of Army space operations is to reduce technical and procedural seams in the system of systems. In effect, many of the actions outlined here will bridge, bypass, or remove seams that would otherwise lessen or nullify the effectiveness of space support to land force operations. The Army has been, is, and will continue to be, a prominent player on the joint space team. Preparations are now underway to develop new Army contributions to the functions of space surveillance, and negation of space control operations. Army forces will also provide support to space forces, such as those conducting space satellite control operations. Some of this support will be tied to the Army's role in homeland security, with an emphasis on Army national missile defense operations. This concept also touches on several advanced space operations for the near to mid terms. Space control capabilities to enhance information operations (IO) will continue to be a high priority. Procedures to enable direct tasking of satellites by tactical commanders, and expanded employment of direct downlinks from satellites to tactical users, will remain an ongoing initiative. In the far-term, this capability will be achieved through the Global Information Grid (GIG). The infusion of functional area (FA) 40 space operations officers, into existing headquarters, will ensure current and future space force enhancement tools and products are integrated into the Objective Force operations. Space awareness and analysis provide a combat multiplier required for achieving information superiority. Whether at home or abroad, near or far term, Army space operations will be consistent with the Army's responsibility to conduct prompt and sustained land combat, and win the nation's wars. As the Army moves forward in its transformation, and achieves Objective Force qualities, we must, in all our mission areas, ensure that we are truly "transformational" and not just "reforming." The words of J.F.C. Fuller, expressed in the early 1930's, should serve as a constant reminder: "Rather than refighting the last war, we should instead ask, 'Given an emerging technology, how can we fight war more rationally?'"
