The flag of the newest branch of the armed forces was presented to President Donald J. Trump during an Oval Office ceremony on May 15, 2020.
“The U.S. Space Force is proud to present the official flag to the President of the United States, to our space professionals across the globe, and to the American public,” said US Space Force spokesperson Lynn Kirby.
The design of the flag is derived from elements of the controversial US Space Force logo.
First unveiled to the public on January 24, the Space Force logo quickly stirred up controversy on Twitter. Commenters quickly saw similarities between it and the logo of Starfleet, a fictitious space agency from the popular television series Star Trek. Both logos are round and predominantly feature a central delta symbol surrounded by an orbital flight path.
Although the similarities are hard to ignore, the inspiration for the Space Force logo can clearly be seen in the Air Force Space Command and NASA logos. The US Armed Forces have a long-standing tradition of using design elements of agencies that preceded a newly formed branch. As a result, the similarities seem to be largely coincidental, although the explanation has been less than convincing for its detractors.
During the unveiling of the US Space Force flag, Defense Secretary Dr. Mark Esper called the formation of the new branch of the Armed Forces essential to “sustain Americans’ way of life.”
“The United States is now doing what it needs to do to protect our assets in space and ensure that space remains the heavens by which we not only protect America, but we sustain our economy, we sustain our commercial capabilities, we sustain Americans’ way of life,” said Esper.
