A Secretive U.S. Military Space Agency Steps Out Of The Shadows

A SpaceX Falcon Heavy on Jan. 15 ,2023, launched USSF-67, a national security mission carrying multiple payloads, including three developed by the Space Rapid Capabilities Office. Credit: SpaceX  

Space News: Secretive military space agency stepping out of the shadows  

When a SpaceX Falcon Heavy launched a national security mission to geostationary Earth orbit Jan. 15, the Space Force revealed that three of the payloads onboard were developed by one of its most secretive agencies, the Space Rapid Capabilities Office. 

The announcement was unusual as the Space RCO, based at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, operates under the radar and rarely advertises what it does. 

Kelly Hammett, director of the Space RCO, said the decision to publicize the satellites on the USSF-67 mission is part of a broader effort to start shedding the office’s cloak of secrecy. 

“We’re going to be a little bit more open about what we do,” he told Space News in a recent interview.  

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WNU Editor: An admission. I follow military space programs and services very closely, and I never heard of the Space Rapid Capabilities Office.

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