The Pentagon revealed they are still uncertain as to what Space Force troops will the number of prospective members is estimated to rise up to 16,000 in the coming years.

Air Force Lt. Gen. David Thompson, the vice commander of the Space Force, said what they call Space Force members is something they take seriously and it’s “something we’ve spent some serious time and energy on,” Stars and Stripes reported.

“There are a couple of really strong options on what we might be called and some pretty strong opinions. What we’d like to do is ensure we’ve thought as broadly as we can … and consider what that ought to be before we land on it,” he added.

Thompson ruled out “spacemen” and “space cadets.” Planners are seeking guidance from a number of departments, including the language department at the Air Force Academy, to determine an appropriate title.

The Defense Language Institute is crowdsourcing suggestions from troops expecting to transfer to the Space Force to determine what their roles would be to the equivalent of soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen.

- ADVERTISEMENT -



In a similar way that the Marines are a part of the Navy, the Space Force will be under the Air Force. The first military service established since the Air Force in 1948, it will rely heavily on the Air Force for troops, Thompson said, a point echoed by the Space Force’s single member to date, Chief of Space Operations Gen. Jay Raymond.

“I just want to point out, though, that we will rely very heavily on the Air Force to operate those bases,” Raymond said. “But we’ll work to rename those to match the mission of the base.”

Officials expect about 6,000 troops to transfer by the end of 2020. Although troops currently working in space operations are expected to transfer to the Space Force, they won’t be forced, Thompson said.

“As a general principle, if you are in space operations — officers or enlisted members — the assumption and the expectation is that you will transfer into the Space Force,” he said. “For those who may not want to for various reasons we’ll have mechanisms in place.”

In early January, Raymond pointed out five potential Air Force bases that could become the first Space Force bases, a task which seems easy to do, there are heavy logistics involved.

Contrary to some belief, Space Force will not send troops to space. The branch will instead provide forces and assets to the Space Command, which leads military operations in space for the U.S. military..

President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Jan. 24 to reveal the Space Force logo, saying, “After consultation with our Great Military Leaders, designers, and others, I am pleased to present the new logo for the United States Space Force, the Sixth Branch of our Magnificent Military!”