'China's space capabilities may surpass Washington by decade end': US Space Force official

China may overtake the United States in terms of space capabilities by the end of the decade and is increasing its space abilities at a speed twice that of the USA, Gen. David Thompson, vice head of space operations for the US Space Force said.

Thompson said that the fact that China is creating, fielding, and modernising its space capabilities at twice the rate, indicates that they will soon surpass the US, CNN reported. Notably, last week China launched a new satellite into the geosynchronous orbit.

Rep. Jim Cooper, a Tennessee Democrat who chairs the House Armed Services Committee's strategic forces subcommittee and is a vocal supporter of the US Space Force, stated that they are in a space race with China but claimed that they are not advancing quickly enough to keep up with private business, CNN reported. Gen. Thompson agreed with Cooper.

Private sector more imaginative than Air Force: Jim Cooper

Cooper remarked that the private sector is much more imaginative than their Air Force was, and they need to get the Space Force to do the same. He continued by saying that they need to go above Elon Musk's and Jeff Bezos' imaginations, as well as their wallets, to truly be better. Cooper proposed that the Space Force is more like the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), which manages government space spacecraft and delivers satellite intelligence to a number of US government organisations.

Cooper claimed that he recently had a side-by-side briefing with the NRO and the Space Force. After that briefing, he came to the opinion that the NRO was a blessing in disguise, according to CNN. Cooper is hoping to see the day when he will be able to say the same about the Space Force.

China launches new communications satellite

China, on the other hand, has been breaking records with their satellite launches. Last week, November 26, on Friday, they launched a new communications satellite into a geosynchronous transfer orbit, continuing a string of rocket launches.

At around 11:40 am on Friday, a Long March 3B rocket was launched from southwest China's Xichang Satellite Launch Center. The satellite will be tasked with transmitting telephone, internet, television, and radio signals, according to China Daily. This launch was China's 47th of the year, which has been a record-breaking year for Chinese launch activity.

(Image: AP/@GenDavidThompson/Facebook)