A birthday update on the newest service branch.
On Dec. 20, 2019, the U.S. Space Force the newest branch of the U.S. Armed Forces was officially instituted with the signing of legislation by President Donald Trump. Five years later, in December 2024, statistics tell (part of) the story of its development.
9,400: approximate number of active-duty Guardians (spaceforce.com/faq)
6: Space Force locations, in Colorado, California and Florida (spaceforce.mil/About-Us/Space-Force-Locations)
2: Space Force astronauts. Col. Mike Hopkins transferred from the Air Force while on the International Space Station (ISS) on the branchs first birthday; Col. Nick Hague became the first Guardian to ascend, to the ISS, in September. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_Space_Force_astronauts)
93: Air Force Academy Class of 2024 cadets who were commissioned into the Space Force as second lieutenants (usafa.edu/the-breakdown-class-of-2024-by-the-numbers)
571: American Legion members who reported serving in the Space Force
8: commemorative anniversary posters on the Space Forces website
- Security