Outer space

Space as a national security concern is hard to explain

So little is known publicly about the arms race unfolding in space that even retired four-star General Jim Mattis did not consider it a major issue until he became secretary of defense.

“I will tell you I did not recognize the degree of the problem when I went through confirmation,” Mattis told Rep. Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee strategic forces subcommittee. “What you and your colleagues have done have brought it to our attention,” Mattis said during a committee hearing last week.

Under Mattis, the Defense Department adopted a new strategy that regards space as a domain of warfare. The administration has increased the military budget for space programs by 14 percent.