While the Space Era began in 1957 with the launch of Sputnik by the Soviet Union, the United States Space Force (USSF) only stood up in 2019. One could reasonably expect that after over 50 years of space activities that the USSF would quickly be able to publish a clear strategy and doctrine. John J. Klein helps readers understand why this is not the case in their latest book, Space Warfare: Strategy, Principles, and Policy, Second Edition.1
In my job I work with many USSF “Guardians.” While many of those Guardians started in other services most have been in the USSF for a very short time (usually less than three years). They often ask me what the USSF does. More specifically, they ask me how their jobs fit into the USSF mission. I have come to start leaning on Space Warfare to help explain the fundamentals of space warfare to them.
Klein in Space Warfare attempts to provide a strategic framework for understanding competition, crisis, and conflict in space. In doing so they lean heavily on the work of Sir Julian Corbett (most famously Some Principles of Maritime Strategy but, as Klein points out, so much more). I say “lean heavily” because Klein does not exclusively use Corbett but also others. That intellectual grounding is, frankly, a bit tough for Guardians to accept; so many hail from the Air Force (the home of Douhet and Command of the Air) or the Navy (the home of Mahan and The Influence of Sea Power Upon History) that they try to simply “bring along” what they already “know.” Sharing a Corbett-based view of the space domain is eye-opening for many a Guardian.
Of more direct relevance to the Guardians I talk with, Space Warfare provides a framework for looking at the space domain and a rich vocabulary to pull from. Indeed, if one looks at the Leadership Library for the Chief of Space Operations, one will find the various “C-Notes” that occasionally discuss space warfare. In more than a few cases the words that Space Force uses are defined in Space Warfare. As such, I have come to use Space Warfare to help explain to the Guardians what their job is.
Klein’s Space Warfare is a very useful primer on the space domain. While the USSF still works to formally define themselves (capstone documents are forthcoming) Space Warfare serves as a worthy substitute for the foundational documents still to come.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
- Klein, John J. (2025) Space Warfare: Strategy, Principles, and Policy, Second Edition. London & New York: Routledge. ↩︎
Feature image courtesy RMN
The opinions and views expressed in this blog are those of the author alone and are presented in a personal capacity. They do not necessarily represent the views of U.S. Navy or any other U.S. government Department, Agency, Office, or employer.
RockyMountainNavy.com © 2007-2025 by Ian B is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
Rocky Mountain Navy Gamer 