The Associated Press reports:
Mindful of President Donald Trump’s intense interest in space, the Pentagon is declaring U.S. Space Command open for business as part of a broader effort to better defend American interests in space. But there’s still no Space Force .
Trump planned to participate in a ceremony Thursday marking Space Command’s official establishment, or to be more precise, it’s re-establishment. The command existed for more than a decade before being eliminated in 2002 as part of the government’s post-9/11 reorganization.
The role of the new Space Command is to conduct space operations such as enabling satellite-based navigation and communications for troops and commanders in the field and providing warning of missile launches abroad. That is different from a Space Force, which would be a distinct military service.