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Britain will spend more than £3 billion strengthening its military capabilities in space amid growing concern that Russia and China could target Western satellites in a future conflict.
The government is investing in technology designed to detect hostile activity in orbit and protect satellites that provide British forces with communications, intelligence and navigation.
Under a new UK Space Strategy, £880 million will be spent on space control and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems, while £2.8 billion will strengthen satellite communications, including the military’s SKYNET network.
The investment reflects growing concern within NATO over the vulnerability of satellites on which modern armed forces have become increasingly dependent.
Russia and China have both developed capabilities that could potentially disrupt, disable or destroy satellites. Military planners fear that attacks against space-based communications and navigation systems could form part of the opening stages of a future conflict.
Wes Streeting, the Defence Secretary, said: “This space strategy recognises that our national security depends on our freedom of action in space and, if necessary, the ability to protect UK and allied space assets.
“As threats in orbit grow more sophisticated, so must our ability to detect and respond to them, ensuring we protect the interests of the UK and allies while fuelling economic growth along the way.”
Modern military operations rely heavily on satellites for secure communications, intelligence gathering, missile warning and navigation.
Satellite navigation is also crucial to many precision-guided weapons, meaning the loss or disruption of space-based systems could severely restrict the ability of Western forces to operate during a conflict.
Britain will develop what the government describes as a “resilient, integrated national satellite communications system”, intended to make military communications more difficult for an adversary to disrupt.
The strategy will also increase Britain’s ability to track objects and potentially hostile activity in orbit.
About £149 million will be committed to the European Space Agency’s Vigil mission and £85 million to the National Space Operations Centre.
The programmes are intended to provide earlier warning of potential collisions, suspicious activity involving satellites and solar storms capable of disrupting communications and other infrastructure.
The defence investment forms part of £7.8 billion of government spending on space planned up to 2030.
Ministers say the growing military importance of space is matched by Britain’s increasing economic dependence on satellites.
Space-based systems support mobile communications, banking, navigation, transport, energy networks and weather forecasting, raising concerns that attacks or serious disruption in orbit could have consequences far beyond the armed forces.
Jonathan Reynolds, the Business, Innovation, Science and Trade Secretary, said: “As space becomes a new frontier of economic and military competition, this plan will help keep Britain secure by strengthening our ability to launch satellites, detect threats and protect the services people rely on every day.”
The government also hopes the programme will support Britain’s £18.6 billion space industry, which employs more than 55,000 people.
About £148 million will be invested in European rocket programmes, with a further £30 million going to SaxaVord Spaceport in Shetland.
The investment is intended to improve Britain’s ability to place satellites into orbit from its own territory rather than depending entirely on launch facilities overseas.
Another £40 million will support technology to repair and maintain satellites in orbit and remove potentially dangerous space debris.
The government will also provide £163 million for scientific and exploration programmes, including the British-built Rosalind Franklin Mars rover.
Civilian projects include £57 million intended to improve mobile and internet connections on trains and £9 million for the Met Office to improve forecasts of potentially damaging space weather.
The strategy replaces the National Space Strategy published in 2021 and brings military, civilian and commercial space programmes under a single government plan.
