X-wings doing battle with TIE-fighters, the Starship Enterprise shooting off into the stars after saving the day.

Key points: Analysts say space is being transformed from a "sanctuary" to a "warfighting domain"

Analysts say space is being transformed from a "sanctuary" to a "warfighting domain" China is making significant strides in its push to explore the dark side of the moon

China is making significant strides in its push to explore the dark side of the moon Commercial companies have already announced plans for a mobile phone network on the moon

Once reserved for the realm of sci-fi epics, United States President Donald Trump's announcement of a new "Space Force" has brought the idea of space battles a lot closer to reality.

A new arm of the military dealing specifically with space is a sign of the growing international rivalry over humanity's final frontier, with Mr Trump claiming that it would allow America to reclaim its "heritage as the world's greatest space-faring nation".

"We don't want China, and Russia, and other countries leading us. We've always led," Mr Trump said while announcing the new force.

"When it comes to defending America it is not enough to merely have an American presence in space, we must have American dominance in space. So important."

And to win back that dominance, the US leader is looking to cooperate with the country's powerful commercial space sector — or as he put it, "rich guys" who "like rockets".

Mr Trump wants their help for a planned moon mission which will see humans return there for the first time since 1972, but China also has its own plans for lunar exploration.

So why is there so much global interest in space at the moment, including in Australia, and what are countries around the world doing up there right now?

Space remains 'hugely contested' in 2018

Modern militaries rely on satellites that feed them vital intelligence.

As a result, "counterspace" weapons have become a rising area of interest, and earlier this year, US intelligence agencies warned that China and Russia were both working on "destructive counterspace weapons" for use in a future conflict.

"It's hugely contested," said Malcolm Davis from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute.

"I think that we've gone from space largely as a sanctuary from warfare, as people call it 'a global commons', to a warfighting domain."

The potential weapons US intelligence agencies were concerned about included both ground-launched missiles capable of taking out enemy satellites, as well as "directed-energy weapons" that could blind or damage the sensors on satellite instruments.

The US intelligence agencies said in their report that both China and Russia would probably have operational weapons within a few years.

"If you take away that information edge by attacking the satellites … then you in effect pluck out the eyes and cut off the ears of those information-dependent militaries," Mr Davis said.

He said the United States under former president Barack Obama was reluctant to pursue its own counterspace arsenal, instead standing behind the established legal norms that outlaw the weaponisation of space.

"The US is now realising that its critical space capabilities, that are an essential component of how it fights wars and its source of military strength, is under ever more threat," he said.

Sorry, this video has expired Space is not a 'zero-sum game' and has room to do business, says Richard Pournelle

Richard Pournelle, from space technology company Nano Racks, says that the Space Force could help pave the way for wider exploration in a similar way to the development of military frontiers in the past.

"Well, I think you have to look at it the way that you would in the past," he told ABC's The World program.

"In the development of frontiers … you had military outposts lead the way, along with civilians providing service to them.

"So, however it ends up working out on the military side, the one thing we do know is that you're going to have people from all over the world participating in activities in space."

Is Space Force a done deal?

Probably not. The proposal has to be passed by Congress first, as only it has the power to create new branches of the military.

That seems an unlikely prospect, since Congress rejected a proposal calling for a similar "Space Corps" just last year.

Responsibility for space in the US military currently belongs to the Air Force, and Mr Davis says there has been significant pushback from them as well.

"The US Air Force is opposed to it largely because it would create a lot of needless organisational duplication and thus that would create added burden in terms of expense," he said.

China's rising interest to explore the dark side of the moon

Apollo astronaut Captain Eugene Cernan during the 1972 moon mission. ( Supplied: NASA )

Another major area of competition lies a little further afield.

Mr Trump also spoke about his desire to have Americans return to the moon, which was first announced late last year, during this week's press conference.

"This time we will do more than plant our flag and leave our footprints, we will establish a long-term presence, expand our economy, and build the foundation for an eventual mission to Mars," he said.

The moon is considered to be an essential stop-over location for future missions to more distant locations like Mars.

Deposits of ice could be used to manufacture rocket fuel, and the soil could be used to build a base.

But other countries are also very keen on the moon and its resources, among them China, who are working hard on their own lunar missions.

Loading...

China last month launched a communications satellite named Magpie Bridge that is currently sitting in a special orbit near the moon, giving it a view of both the Earth and the so-far-unexplored dark side of the Moon.

That feat was praised in official Chinese state media Xinhua as a "world first".

The plan is for the satellite to beam continuous images of the dark side of the moon, with China looking set to become the first country to land a rover there later this year.

China is also planning on setting up a permanent robotic base on the lunar surface in the next 10 years, and is hoping for a manned mission in the 2030s.

'Rich guys who like rockets' push for mobile phones in space

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 1 minute 41 seconds 1 m 41 s SpaceX launches Falcon Heavy rocket into space

But it's not just state actors that are showing interest in the moon and Mars — the growing commercial space sector also wants in on the action.

Last month, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos — who also owns space technology company Blue Origin — proposed working in partnership with government organisations like NASA to speed up the possibility of creating a permanent settlement on the moon.

This radar image shows China's space station Tiangong-1 as it fell to earth. ( AP: Fraunhofer Institute )

Earlier this year, Nokia, Vodafone and Audi announced they were teaming up to launch a mobile phone network on the moon in 2019, enabling high-definition streaming back to earth.

And the equipment will be sent aboard one of Elon Musk's SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets, which are reusable and cheaper than ones used by NASA.

But Mr Pournelle says the future of space exploration and business is one of public-private collaboration.

"I think if you're looking at the unlimited resources of space you don't have to look at it as a zero-sum game," Mr Pournelle told the The World.

"It is a big space, there are lots of places for people to explore and do business.

"We're barely just beginning to get out there with robots and literally just scratched the surface of some of these planets."

The International Space Station is currently scheduled to remain operational until 2028. ( Supplied: NASA )

He pointed to his own work with Nano Racks in collaborating with government agencies on the International Space Station (ISS) as an example of the possibilities of future space work.

"Think of the Space Station as an old house with a good foundation," he said.

"But a lot of the technology in the Space Station is 1980s technology. It's still got fluorescent lights.

"There's a lot there that could be updated to make it so that it could be operated much cheaper."

So when can everyone go on a space holiday?

Sorry, this video has expired Astronauts make, fling, eat pizzas in space

Not just yet, according to Saber Astronautics founder Dr Jason Held.

"Ten-fifteen years we might be talking tourism, but today, it's all about the data," said Dr Held, whose company focuses on next-generation space flight software and operations.

"It's about satellites that are flying around that are producing value for us, people here on Earth.

"That's satellite TV, that's internet of things, that's satellite photos that watch agriculture and mining. That's the commercial opportunity right in front of us today."

But he says a whole new world is not that far away.

"All of these things that we've considered to be science fiction — going into space, living in space, having human economy going from lowest-orbit to further out to the moon, asteroid mining — [are] slowly becoming a reality."