--- title: "NASA Astronaut to Be Sworn Into Space Force in Ceremony Aboard Space Station" description: "The United States Space Force plans to swear NASA astronaut Michael Hopkins into its ranks during a ceremony aboard the International Space Station." date: "2020-10-28" modified: "2020-10-28" authors: - name: "Jon Christian" job_title: "Executive Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jonc" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/nasa-astronaut-to-be-sworn-into-space-force-in-ceremony-aboard-space-station" categories: - "NASA" - "Space" - "Space Force" tags: - "international space station" - "NASA" - "space force" - "the digest" --- # NASA Astronaut to Be Sworn Into Space Force in Ceremony Aboard Space Station ![The United States Space Force plans to swear NASA astronaut Michael Hopkins into its ranks during a ceremony aboard the International Space Station.]() *\Image: NASA\* ## Transfer Order An intriguing scoop by *SpaceNews*: the United States Space Force [plans to swear NASA astronaut Michael Hopkins into its ranks]() during a ceremony aboard the International Space Station — a move that seems bound to entangle America's orbital and military ambitions. "If all goes well, we’re looking to swear him into the Space Force from the International Space Station," said Space Force chief of space operations General John Raymond, according to the site. ## Bug Hunt The Space Force is the [newest branch]() of the United States' military, officially created in 2019. Hopkins is a NASA astronaut and Air Force colonel who's scheduled to command the Crew-1 mission that will use a SpaceX Crew Dragon to fly to the space station next month. Notably, that'll make him the first Space Force member to [actually be deployed to space](). ## Space Cadet The move [isn't the first collaboration]() between NASA and the Space Force, but commissioning an astronaut into a branch of the military marks a significant meshing of the two groups. It also comes as a variety of experts decry the militarization of space. "If humans do not stop and think politically about the consequences of their designs for outer space, humanity increases its risk of self-destruction through totalitarianism and the use of extinction-level event-triggering weapon systems," [wrote international relations lecturer Bleddyn Bowen this month](). **READ MORE:** [NASA’s Crew-1 commander to be sworn into U.S. Space Force from the International Space Station]() \[*SpaceNews*\] **More on Space Force:** [Oops: Netflix Trademarked “Space Force” Before the US Military]() ## Author I'm responsible for editing, assigning, and scouting at Futurism, as well as occasionally writing for the site. That work involves keeping an eye on a wide range of narratives and issues, but over the past few years I've become increasingly interested in how AI is shaping the future of media, the web, and information itself. My day-to-day often involves collaborating on reporting and commentary projects bylined by my colleagues, but I try to find time to do my own reporting as well; stories I've broken for Futurism have been cited by publications including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the New Yorker, Wired, Ars Technica, New York Magazine, the Columbia Journalism Review, Bloomberg, and more. I grew up in Southern Vermont and attended Vanderbilt University. Prior to Futurism, I contributed to outlets including the Boston Globe, Vice, Wired, Slate, the Atlantic, the Outline, Ars Technica and more, and did stints in farming and food service. I currently live in Brooklyn, New York, and in my free time I enjoy pinball, word games, cycling, running, and music production. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()