Why Modern Military Power Depends on Space

The modern age has seen warfare shift from mass manoeuvre to information dominance and networked integration. These days, military operations rely heavily on rapid processing of data which can be distributed across multiple domains. For this reason, space has become foundational. 

Satellite systems are used in various way, including:

• Securing communication (particularly across dispersed troops)
• Provide accurate positioning/navigation for precision strikes
• Delivering surveillance and reconnaissance 

Ultimately, satellite capability allows forces to coordinate and act with speed. Without these assets, military operations would degrade – and fast. Globally, strategic competition is intensifying, therefore amplifying the importance of space-based systems to sustaining operational advantage. 

Space as Operational Infrastructure: The Systems That Enable War

Satellite Communications (SATCOM) 

SATCOM provides valuable beyond-line-of-sight connectivity across dispersed theatres. Militaries use secure satellite networks to achieve real-time intelligence, resilience in contested environments and coordination between allied forces. Reflecting on the growing importance of these capabilities, NATO is stepping up its efforts by investing over EUR 1 billion in procuring satellite communications services for the period of 2020-2034 through the NATO SATCOM Services 6th Generation (NSS6G) project.

Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) systems

PNT systems (most prominently GPS) are critical because they enable:

• Accurate navigation of aircraft, personnel and vehicles
• Precision targeting
• The synchronisation of communications

With the reliance of satellite-based navigation systems growing, so too has concern over the vulnerability of GPS and other Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) to jamming and spoofing. In response, defence and aerospace companies are developing assured positioning, navigation and timing (A-PNT) solutions designed to operate in degraded or denied environments. For example, global defence and aerospace company Leonardo has developed AC²ES (A-PNT Converged Computer – Embedded & Scalable)- this is a system designed to maintain reliable positioning and timing information even when GPS signals are disrupted.

Missile Warning and Early Detection Satellites

These artificial satellites use infrared sensors to identify ballistic missile launches rapidly. This provides decision-makers with early warning of a potential attack, allowing vital time for response and escalation management. 

Increasingly sophisticated space-based sensor networks are being developed to strengthen this capability. For example, the U.S. Space Force is currently developing a constellation of missile-tracking satellites designed to detect the heat signatures produced by missile launches and track advanced threats such as hypersonic weapons throughout their flight path.

Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR)

Finally, ISR – this being the term for a collection of systems used to monitor and analyse information about the operational environment - provides persistent global coverage. These capabilities support:

• Targeting
• Battle damage assessment
• The fusion of intelligence across multiple domains.

How Space Accelerates Decision-Making

Space systems play a central role in accelerating the military decision-making cycle. Modern operations increasingly rely on a connected “sensor-to-shooter” chain – this is where targets detected by sensors (such as drones or satellites) are relayed rapidly through command networks to weapon systems for engagement. 

Space-based sensors contribute significantly to this architecture. This is because they provide wide-area surveillance, missile launch detection and persistent observation of operational theatres. This data is downlinked to ground networks where it is fused with intelligence from other domains thus providing instant intelligence to military platforms. When integrated into wider ISR architectures, these space-enabled data streams help commanders not only to maintain situational awareness, but to coordinate operations across multiple domains. 

Recognising how important these capabilities are to modern warfare, NATO members are increasingly investing in technology to protect space-based sensors. For example, the UK is developing new detection sensors designed to identify laser threats that could be used by adversaries to disrupt satellites – this will in turn will help better safeguard space infrastructure that supports military communications and decision making. As highlighted by Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, Luke Pollard MP:

“Space is a hugely important and contested frontline and satellites play a vital role in UK prosperity and security. They are crucial to our everyday lives and provide a critical capability for our Armed Forces. It is essential they are protected.”

Structural Dependency and Strategic Risk

With military systems increasingly relying on space-based capabilities, naturally, this has created a structural dependency within modern military systems. When vital areas during conflict such as communication, navigation and accurate targeting are integrated into satellite-enabled architectures, any disruption can have a dire impact on the battlefield. For example, if satellite communications were degraded, commanders could lose secure links with dispersed forces, whereas interference with PNT signals could disrupt precision-guided munitions. 

This dependency has elevated space to a domain of strategic competition. Therefore, we are now seeing adversaries developing counterspace capabilities designed to degrade or deny access to critical orbital systems. Some of these include anti-satellite (ASAT) Weapons or electronic warfare techniques (jamming/spoofing). Russia, for instance, has developed the Nudol direct-ascent anti-satellite missile which can target satellites in low Earth orbit.

Simultaneously, the orbital environment is becoming more and more contested. The ever-multiplying amount of satellites, combined with debris and sophisticated manoeuvring capabilities, complicates space domain awareness and increases the risk of miscalculation. This means that resilience in space architecture is becoming a central concern for defence planners. The more technologically advanced a military becomes, the more dependent it is on secure and reliable access to space. 

“In security and defence terms, space is increasingly contested, congested and competitive and now requires the Alliance to be able to operate in a disrupted, denied and degraded environment. The evolution in the uses of space and rapid advances in space technology have created new opportunities, but also new risks, vulnerabilities and potential threats. While space can be used for peaceful purposes, it can also be used for aggression. In addition, satellites can be hacked, jammed or weaponised, and anti-satellite weapons could cripple communications and affect the Alliance's ability to operate.” – NATO, NATO’s Approach to Space

Why Space Cannot Be Treated as a Supporting Function

Military operations are evolving toward multi-domain integration and space can no longer be treated solely as a supporting capability. Instead, it is now being recognised as a contested operational domain that has a significant impact on how forces operate during conflict. 

This integration is particularly important for coalition operations, where interoperability often depends on shared access to satellite communications, navigation signals and space-derived intelligence. Many of the defence leaders and C4ISR specialists attending C4ISR Global will certainly recognise this shift, as the role of space in enabling multi-domain operations continues to grow. In 2019, NATO formally recognised space as an operational domain, reflecting the growing importance of protecting and integrating orbital capabilities within alliance operations.

As a result, resilience in space architecture – through redundancy, secure communications and enhanced space domain awareness – is becoming central to modern force design and long-term defence planning. The UK’s Defence Space Strategy similarly highlights the ambition for the UK to become a meaningful actor in the space domain, emphasising the development of space-based intelligence, surveillance and communications capabilities to support global military operations.

The High Ground of the Information Age

Throughout the twentieth century, air superiority became a fundamental component of military success. Now, in the twenty-first century, military advantage is grounded in information superiority, with space playing a leading role. Ultimately, space provides the infrastructure that supports communications, intelligence, navigation and early warning across modern military operations – it’s an incredibly valuable capability, and its role in modern military operations will only become more significant.  

References

• NATO. “NATO’s Approach to Space.” NATO. Updated 30 July 2025. https://www.nato.int/en/what-we-do/deterrence-and-defence/natos-approach-to-space
• Leonardo DRS. “Assured Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (A-PNT).” Leonardo DRS. https://www.leonardodrs.com/what-we-do/products-and-services/a-pnt/
• SpaceNews. “Missile Detection Satellite Designed by BAE Systems Passes Early Review.” SpaceNews. March 9, 2026. https://spacenews.com/missile-detection-satellite-designed-by-bae-systems-passes-early-review/
• UK Government. “Critical UK Satellites to Be Defended from Laser Threats.” GOV.UK. October 3, 2025. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/critical-uk-satellites-to-be-defended-from-laser-threats
• Popular Mechanics. “Russia’s Nudol Anti-Satellite Missile.” Popular Mechanics. April 16, 2020. https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/weapons/a32173824/nudol-missile-anti-satellite/
• Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). “Space as an Operational Domain: What Next for NATO?” RUSI. October 15, 2020. https://www.rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/rusi-newsbrief/space-operational-domain-what-next-nato
• UK Government. “Defence Space Strategy: Operationalising the Space Domain.” GOV.UK. February 1, 2022. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/defence-space-strategy-operationalising-the-space-domain