Trump Establishes U.S. Space Academy

On August 28, 2026, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to set up the U.S. Space Academy. This new institution aims to educate and train future leaders for the Space Force, NASA, and the growing commercial space sector.

The executive order marks the beginning of an initiative designed to develop a talent pipeline for the military’s sixth branch, focusing on training roles like flight engineers and civilian operators.

“It’s called the U.S. Space Academy,” Trump mentioned. “That’s a big deal. You think of West Point, Annapolis, the Air Force Academy, and the Coast Guard academies. They’re all great, but now we’ll have one for the Space Force. An academy for what those in this room love the most.”

While the specific location for the academy hasn’t been disclosed yet, Trump noted that Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is advocating for it to be based in Texas.

“I’ll be choosing a location very shortly,” Trump said. “I know where some people want it within this audience. Some are lobbying me. One guy over there—leave me alone, just leave me alone. I’m not sure he’s going to get it. But everyone wants it because space is the hot thing right now.”

“Just leave me alone, Ted, please, leave me alone,” the president humorously added.

The executive order establishes a commission that will report back within 120 days on various aspects such as admissions, academic programs, and potential locations for the academy.

The most recent federal military service academy prior to this was the U.S. Air Force Academy, which was founded in 1954. Trump had previously initiated the U.S. Space Force during his first term in 2019.

During the ceremony hosted at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, the president presented the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to the Artemis II crew members. The event wrapped up with the astronauts gifting Trump a blue NASA crew jacket.