From a two-nation race to a contested global theater.

That was the arc Col. Pete Atkinson traced for us this week at Martin’s Crosswinds, and it reframed how a room full of Maryland space professionals thinks about what comes next.

Col. Atkinson, Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of War for Space Policy, headlined the September MSBR Luncheon in Greenbelt on Wednesday, September 9.

A few highlights from his talk:

The shift in space innovation. What began as a two-way sprint between the United States and the USSR has become a broad family of capabilities: positioning, timing, imaging, sensing, and communications woven into nearly every mission the nation runs.

Launch cadence is the story. Government and commercial launch rates have climbed to historic levels, and China’s recent advancements are changing the pace calculation for everyone.

The shift in space innovation. What began as a two-way sprint between the United States and the USSR has become a broad family of capabilities: positioning, timing, imaging, sensing, and communications woven into nearly every mission the nation runs.

Space is an Army problem, too. Col. Atkinson walked through how the U.S. Army leans on space for situational awareness, operations, and communication, and why space capability is now inseparable from ground capability.

A secure space theater. He closed on why the U.S. Space Force was stood up and how closely it works with the Army to maintain superior space command.

After the luncheon, MSBR held its Annual Meeting, covering the board’s activity over the past year, organizational finances, and upcoming events. The monthly board meeting followed, where a new executive board was elected.