Note: This is an academic event for members of the space policy and space history communities.

On June 18, President Trump directed the Department of Defense to create a Space Force as a new branch of the U.S. military. Debates about the utility of a Space Force have far predated the recent directive. What is the deeper history of the idea of an independent Space Force? What lessons should we take from the creation of the Air Force in 1947? How can the history of U.S. space security inform conversations about this potential sixth branch of the armed forces?

The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum and the IDA Science and Technology Policy Institute (STPI) are pleased to announce the next Space Policy and History Forum featuring a panel discussion exploring the historical context of the call to create a Space Force. Join Laurence M. Burke, II, Richard P. Hallion, Douglas Loverro, and  Mark J. Lewis for an in-depth analysis of the history and future of U.S. space security.

Registration is now full. If you would like to be added to the waiting list please email Teasel Muir-Harmony (muir-harmonyt@si.edu)*

*If you are a non-U.S. citizen, we request that you rsvp no later than 7 days before the Forum, email Teasel Muir-Harmony (muir-harmonyt@si.edu), and bring a passport to the event.

 

The forum will also be streamed live via webcast. 

Date and Time
Thursday, August 23, 4:00 to 5:30 pm. There will be a post-lecture happy hour open to all Forum attendees. 

Panelists

  • Laurence M. Burke, II, curator of U.S. naval aviation at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum

  • Richard P. Hallion, senior adviser for air and space issues, Directorate for Security, Counterintelligence and Special Programs Oversight at the Pentagon

  • Douglas Loverro, independent consultant at Loverro Consulting, LLC, and former deputy assistant secretary of defense for space policy at the U.S. Department of Defense

Moderator

  • Dr. Mark J. Lewis, director of the IDA Science and Technology Policy Institute.

Location
The Forum will be held at the Science and Technology Policy Institute (STPI) at 1701 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 500, Washington, DC.

Questions?
Contact Teasel Muir-Harmony. 

About the Space Policy and History Forum
The Space Policy and History Forum is organized by the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in collaboration with the Science and Technology Policy Institute (STPI), a federally funded research and development center created by Congress to support the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and other executive agencies in the federal government.