THE END OF PEACEFUL SPACE: FROM MILITARIZATION TO WEAPONIZATION OF SPACE

The history of mankind could be said to be synonymous with the history of conflict. Man being a social animal continues to ask questions concerning his wellbeing and security such that where these fundamentals of his livelihood are threatened, man resorts to the means available to him to protect himself. With the entrance of human component to space in 1957, man has continuously sought to establish himself as he has always done in every case of his expeditions to discover new lands and territories, as the master of space. Not minding space?s vastness, our exploration of space has never looked back. Rather there has been an expanded global awareness of our collective and inextricable connection to the rest of our solar system and the space around us. Therefore, as long as we continue to ask questions of ourselves and the universe in which we live, our inquisitiveness will ultimately get the better of us. Such inquisitiveness being an inherent feature of humanity also promises to be the driving force for further incursions of man into new and further reaches of space. To optimize the processes surrounding space?s exploitation increasingly sophisticated tools and assets would have to be used, relied on and ultimately protected by the owners and interested parties. This is where the military whose traditional sphere of operations and engagements demands utilization of force and its various instruments becomes inevitable or so it seems for the attainment of this protective and if needs be offensive requirements.