'Second in space means second on Earth,' Trump says as he moves to create Space Academy

US President Donald Trump is moving to establish a US Space Academy — a federal institution dedicated to training personnel for the Space Force, NASA and the private space industry. The initiative envisions a single educational body that would produce not only military officers but also astronauts, engineers and scientists.

Trump signed an executive order Friday (local time) at NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, directing preparations for the academy's creation.

Trump announced the plan, saying he had created the Space Force — the sixth branch of the US military — during his first term and was making "another historic announcement" today.

"It is the policy of the Trump administration to strengthen the national space workforce by expanding opportunities to educate and develop the next generation of leaders in the space domain," Trump said, directing a presidential commission to report back within 120 days with key details on establishing the academy.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman will chair the commission, with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Secretary of the Air Force among its members.

"Given the rapid growth of the Space Force and the commercial space industry, and our expanding ambitions to the Moon and beyond, this is something that really excites me," Trump said. "To do what we need to do and to do what we do best, we need to educate and train a generation of talented people — skilled soldiers, engineers and civilian operators across every field."

He said major US military operations — including an effort earlier this year to oust Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and an ongoing maritime blockade of Iran around the Strait of Hormuz — were being supported by US Space Command.

"Space is essential to our economy and national security," Trump said. "If you want to be second in space, you cannot be first on Earth."

At the event, Trump presented the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to the crew of Artemis 2, who recently completed a lunar mission and returned to Earth.

"Before my term ends in January 2028, American astronauts will return to the surface of the Moon, and we look forward to that," Trump said. "They will plant a flag at the site of the first permanent American settlement to be built on the Moon."

Trump also said the administration plans to launch a nuclear-powered spacecraft to Mars in 2028. Reuters reported that the plan is part of the Trump administration's long-term space vision to establish a foothold for future interplanetary travel.

Trump later moved to a control center, where he held a video call with the crew aboard the International Space Station. He urged them to stay safe and promised to invite them to the Oval Office when they return to Earth.

Trump's vision is also tied to an intensifying competition with China over the Moon. The United States aims to land astronauts on the Moon again in 2028, while China is pursuing its first crewed lunar landing around 2030. Both countries are targeting the Moon's south pole — believed to hold deposits of water ice — as the site for long-term crewed outposts.