Iran seen as "emerging" space power in U.S. intel report
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Iran is using space to land big blows against U.S. forces in the Middle East.
Why it matters: Despite the U.S. bombing Iran's key space-related facilities, the nation is still seen as an "emerging" space power, according to a Pentagon intel report.
State of play: Iran took offensive actions against U.S. space capabilities during Operation Epic Fury, the Defense Intelligence Agency revealed.
- Iran has several land-based jamming systems that can degrade space-based GPS, the DIA report said.
- In September, the U.S. Transportation Department warned of "significant" interference to global navigation systems in the Strait of Hormuz.
What they're saying: U.S. officials are also alarmed about Iran's use of space intelligence to more accurately strike key military sites.
- "Space is accessible and affordable today," Brig. Gen. Todd Benson, Space Forces Central commander, said at a Mitchell Institute webinar last month. "It used to be that you had to be a world power to have any space capability or access to space."
Between the lines: Adm. Brad Cooper, the head of U.S. Central Command, said the military delivered "space superiority" over Iran in March after striking the country's space command.
- But some U.S. defense analysts have doubts given the nation's persistent electronic warfare and jamming assets.
- Todd Harrison, the American Enterprise Institute's aerospace expert, said if Iran can degrade U.S. space capabilities, "we don't have superiority" over it.
- Iran does "have some capabilities that are challenging our use of space," Kari Bingen, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Axios, with the caveat that the nation's assets pale in comparison to those of the U.S., China and even Russia.
Context: Overall, Iran's space program hasn't made major strides.
- In 2024, its Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics launched three satellites into low-Earth orbit, marking the first successful flight of its Simorgh rocket, DIA said.
- The country now has a dozen operational satellites, per AEI's space data. By comparison, the U.S. has more than 1,000 times that.
Yes, but: Iran has friends in high places.
- It reportedly purchased a Chinese spy satellite that aided ground targeting, according to the Defense Department's Irregular Warfare Center.
- In May, the State Department sanctioned three Chinese entities for "providing satellite imagery that enables Iran's military strikes."
- Russia launched two sensing satellites for Iran in 2022 and 2024, according to DIA. There were reportedly more Russian-backed launches in 2025.
What's next: The intel agency warned that Iran is pursuing military and civil space programs to "boost its national prestige, economic development, and military modernization."
- Iran is also "focused on improving guidance and navigation systems resistance to electronic attack," the DIA report said.
The bottom line: The U.S. military ultimately leads in outer space, but Iran's ground game is leveling the playing field on Earth.
- "Us declaring space superiority in this conflict is kind of like declaring air superiority when the adversary is consistently able to shoot down your planes," Harrison said.
