Japan is planning to establish a new military unit that will include a "space monitoring force."

To be set-up by 2019, this new unit will monitor dangerous space debris orbiting the Earth and protect space satellites from collisions as well as from "other attacks."

In 2008, Japan revised its law and renewed its strategy regarding non-military activities in space.

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A change to this law allows the organization of a "space force" that will be responsible for monitoring orbiting debris that may pose a potential threat to other satellites. 

The Ministry of Defense has told the U.S. about Japan's plan to establish a space force.

There are currently 3,000 fragments of space debris in Earth orbit that can collide with reconnaissance and telecommunication satellites.

Japan will provide data and information obtained from this operation to the U.S. This cooperation is expected to strengthen Japan-U.S. relations but also space cooperation in this "fourth battlefield." 

This "fourth force" or space force will use radar and telescope facilities  acquired from the Japan Space Forum that coordinates and advocates aerospace-related activities between the industry, government agencies and educational institutions.

The Japan Space Forum currently operates in Okayama prefecture and owns a radar facility in Kagamino called the Spaceguard Center. It has a telescope facility situated in Ihara.

The defense ministry will also work with other ministries as well such as the ministries of education, sports, culture, science and technology and with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) in the acquisition of  radar and telescope facilities.

Japan and the U.S. have been closely monitoring space debris since 2007 where China has been testing its missile launching capabilities and launched a missile destroying one of its own satellites as a test.

The defense ministry has assigned some units from the Air Self-Defense Force to assist this new space monitoring force in protecting the Earth and other satellites from deadly space debris.

Last May, a space development cooperation meeting was held in Washington where the Japanese and U.S. governments agreed to strengthen space relations using satellites to monitor space debris and protect each other's space operations.

Japan has already pledged its cooperation by agreeing to  share future information from JAXA with the U.S. Strategic Command.

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