Space Force officers of the future could train at a dedicated federal academy, a project the White House set in motion Friday with an executive order creating a design commission.
The order, signed by President Trump during a ceremony at NASA’s Johnson Space Center that awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to the Artemis II crew, covers the Space Force, NASA and the civilian space industry. Trump compared the planned school to West Point, Annapolis and the Air Force Academy, saying it would attract, train and graduate the best of the nation.
The order does not open the school itself. It establishes a presidential commission to design the academy and begin the process of creating it, the White House said. The administration cast the move as a workforce investment, arguing that superiority in space depends on the strength and skill of the people who explore, secure and build in orbit.
No location has been chosen. Trump said he would decide shortly and joked that Senator Ted Cruz of Texas was lobbying for the state. Exactly how the civilian space industry would use a federal academy remains unclear.
The move gives the Space Force its own pipeline for future officers, a capability the service has lacked since its creation in 2019.
