WASHINGTON -- A new strategy report for safeguarding America and its interests has been issued by the U.S. Department of Defense. The wide-ranging assessment calls for beefing up military space surveillance, communications, and other Earth-orbiting spacecraft. In addition, the report underscores the need to deny use of space by adversaries.

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) is an effort to scope out a strategy for America's defense and also sets in motion a transformation of U.S. defense for the 21^st century.

Issued September 30, the QDR report was the product of senior civilian and military leadership of the DoD. "This report outlines the key changes needed to preserve America's safety and security in the years to come," writes Donald Rumsfeld, U.S. Secretary of Defense, in the foreword to the report.

U.S. Armed Forces are dedicated to protect and advance American interests, on a national and global basis, and if necessary, to decisively defeat threats to those interests. The QDR notes that "enduring national interests" include protection of critical U.S. infrastructure. Furthermore, part of the country's economic well being includes "security of international sea, air, and space, and information lines of communication."

In this arena, satellites play a crucial role. According to a senior defense official at an October 1 briefing on the Quadrennial Defense Review, space operations have gained prominence in conflict situations.

"You may recall that your cell phones went dead on the 11^th of September, as the system overloaded. Well, part of that has to do with how much communications can move along land lines as opposed to through space. We need to pay attention to our ability to continue to communicate to, from and in space," the official said.

Communications and information technologies are critical to network far-flung forces. Holding great promise are new technologies that provide better "situational awareness" about both friendly forces as well as adversaries.

Technology in the military sphere is evolving quickly, the QDR explains. These rapid advancements include sensors, information processing, and precision guidance.

The DoD will pursue development, deployment, and use of emerging technologies, such as:

• Nanotechnology that may result in miniature, mobile, autonomous sensors that could penetrate the secure and remote facilities of an adversary;
• Commercial imagery for remote sensing of the Earth that would be quickly integrated with other data;
• Advanced parallel processing and quantum computing to provide real-time processes, decryption, translation, and transcription of communications; and
• Enhanced space-based radar systems to provide global, long-range ground moving target indicator capability to augment existing airborne capabilities

A critical operational challenge of the future, the QDR observes, is constant location and tracking of mobile targets at any range, and rapidly attack them with precision. To this end, space-based systems play a part, along with airborne systems, coupled with "human intelligence" - in other words, spies on the ground.

The QDR calls for reorienting the U.S. military global posture. "Capabilities and forces located in the continental United States and in space are a critical element of this new global posture," the report says.

One of six critical operational goals for DoD's transformation identified by the QDR is "enhancing the capability and survivability of space systems and supporting infrastructure."

Potential adversaries could benefit by use of military and commercial space capabilities, giving them the ability to conduct wide-area surveillance, as well as tracking and targeting American forces and assets, the QDR says.

Explains the report, enemies could also utilize beams of laser light to blind sensors of targeted satellites. "Space denial capabilities, such as ground-based lasers, can be located deep within an adversary's territory."

"In addition to exploiting space for their own purposes, future adversaries will also likely seek to deny U.S. forces unimpeded access to space. Space surveillance, ground-based lasers and space jamming capabilities, and proximity micro satellites are becoming increasingly available," the report explains.

This is a worrisome proliferation of abilities that can disrupt U.S. space operations.

"A key objective for transformation, therefore, is not only ensure the U.S. ability to exploit space for military purposes, but also as required to deny an adversary's ability to do so," the QDR states.

Arguably, one of the more straightforward parts of the QDR concerns the capability and survivability of space systems.

"Because many activities conducted in space are critical to America's national security and economic well being, the ability of the United States to access and utilize space is a vital national security interest," the QDR says. "During crisis or conflict, potential adversaries may target U.S., allied, and commercial space assets as an asymmetric means of countering or reducing U.S. military operational effectiveness, intelligence capabilities, economic and societal stability, and national will."

The QDR stresses that ensuring the freedom of access to space and protecting U.S. national security interests in space are priorities for the DoD.

"The mission of space control is to ensure the freedom of action in space for the United States and its allies and, when directed, to deny such freedom of action to adversaries. As the foundation for space control, space surveillance will receive increased emphasis," the report says.

Additionally, the DoD will pursue modernization of aging space surveillance infrastructure. Also, the current ability to track and catalog orbiting spacecraft -- a system that military insiders say is far too clumsy and limited -- must be evolved to provide "space situational awareness". This means a greatly increased ability to know the exact whereabouts and actions of Earth-orbiting objects.

Embarking on the long-term transformation of U.S. military capabilities will take time, money and resolve.

Melding the use of space to other war fighting tools may require establishment of a Joint National Training Center, the QDR states, as well as a space test range. Such a center and test range, and an ability to better simulate "opposing force" actions, would help hone innovative strategies, try out advanced hardware, and sharpen the skills of war fighters in the 21^st century.