WASHINGTON -- The United States Air Force has taken a major step in centralizing its military space power under one command.

While not establishing a U.S. Space Force per se, the action unifies U.S. Air Force military space operations. The action taken this week has the Space and Missile Systems Center in Los Angeles, California becoming part of Air Force Space Command in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Air Force Space Command has four primary mission areas

* Space forces support involves launching satellites and other high-value payloads into space using a variety of expendable launch vehicles and operating those satellites once in the medium of space. * Space control ensures friendly use of space through the conduct of counterspace operations encompassing surveillance, negation, and protection.

* Force enhancement provides weather, communications, intelligence, missile warning, and navigation. Force enhancement is support to the warfighter. * Force application involves maintaining and operating a rapid response, land-based ICBM force as the Air Forces only on-alert strategic deterrent.

-- U.S. Air Force

The command realignment became official on October 2.

This melding of military space groups is one of a series of steps recommended by the Commission to Assess United States National Security Space Management and Organization.

Better known in military space circles as the "Space Commission", this U.S. Congress-chartered study was led by Donald Rumsfeld, prior to his current post as the U.S. Secretary of Defense for the Bush Administration. The commission took a hard look at oversight, management and acquisition of U.S. military space systems and capabilities.

From his Bush Administration post, Rumsfeld directed the Air Force to take a number of actions to implement the Commission's recommendations.

The realignment of the Space and Missile Systems Center under the Air Force Space Command consolidates space development, acquisition and operations functions in one organization - and under one commander.

"This realignment will better meet operational requirements for space," said General Lester Lyles, commander of the Air Force Missile Center. "Space priorities will be set by a single command - Air Force Space Command - ensuring the Air Force continues to provide quality stewardship for America's space assets," he said.

While there is no physical movement of people and organizations, the realignment is expected to help "reengineer" military space operations and management.

As this unifying step is taken, uninterrupted delivery, operation and sustainment of space-based capabilities to the joint warfighter will continue in support of America's national security, states a U.S. Air Force press release on the realignment.

"We are creating an organization that has no counterpart anywhere -- a cradle-to-grave powerhouse that's exactly the right organization for the 21^st century," said Lt. Gen. Roger DeKok, Air Force Space Command vice commander.