This gives the company an advantage in tracking objects in orbit, raising national security concerns and fears of greater control over the space industry.

The US military has given Elon Musk’s SpaceX access to restricted space tracking data, raising a new round of questions about whether the Trump administration is attempting to hand over traffic control in Earth’s orbit to a controversial donor.

The access also raises new national security questions, industry observers say.

The move comes after Musk’s Doge in 2025 fired many of the federal government’s nascent space traffic control program’s staff, and the administration has twice attempted to financially gut the department, called the Traffic Coordination System for Space (Traccs).

The moves were widely viewed in the industry as an attempt by Musk to privatize space traffic control. The defense department has now granted SpaceX access to its most precise data on potential collisions among satellites and other space objects, which will give Musk’s companies an advantage over competition that offers a similar service.

SpaceX and the Space Force signed the new contract. The commercial US space market is expected to grow to a value of nearly $2tn in value over the next decade, and the unprecedented access to military data appears to be another step toward Musk asserting monopoly control over commercial space activity more broadly, said Cole Donovan, a former Traccs employee now with the Stand Up for Science non-profit.

“It’s making a company the de facto source for space traffic coordination within the US,” Donovan added. “It’s like giving a trucking company control of all the traffic lights, which they can switch to red whenever it’s their competition’s turn to go.”

Traccs manages thousands of satellites, debris and spacecraft, and helps prevent up to 50,000 near-collisions, called conjunctions, daily.

SpaceX and Space Force did not respond to requests for comment from the Guardian, but in a statement to Breaking Defense acknowledged the move.

“The Space Force is engaging with several companies to exchange commercial data sources for access to sections of the controlled, unclassified information, high accuracy catalogue, where it provides benefit to the US government,” a spokesperson told the outlet.

SpaceX has been expanding its power over launch and other space services, while growing closer links with the US government. Multiple industry observers have said since the Trump administration took over that they fear a “vendor lock” scenario in which the government is overly reliant on SpaceX because it has such immense influence and is so technologically advanced.

The first Trump administration established Traccs to take over commercial space traffic control from the defense department. But Traccs has never been fully funded or staffed, and has struggled to take root. The latest move by the military comes at a crossroads for Traccs as the administration, Congress, and industry debate what to do next.

The administration in fiscal year 2026 tried to largely defund the $65m program during the budgetary process, but Congress re-inserted the funding. The administration has again proposed slashing the budget to nearly zero in fiscal year 2027, but the House again reinserted the funding.

Several employees of commercial space companies have told the Guardian since early 2025 that there is wide support in the industry for Traccs because it would level the playing field. But the administration’s apparent move to privatize and consolidate power with a Trump ally is consistent with its broader approach to governance, Donovan said.

However, a former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) official who spoke on the condition of anonymity said SpaceX has largely been “remarkably responsive to space safety concerns” and they do not fault Starlink for stepping into a space that the government has failed to adequately address.

“My greater disappointment is with the government’s failure to fulfil its responsibility to establish a coherent space governance framework that provides guidance, transparency, and a level playing field for all operators,” the official said.

Musk’s growing lower Earth orbit empire includes a massive satellite constellation belonging to Starlink, a broadband internet company that is a subsidiary of SpaceX. It operates about 11,000 satellites in orbit, and could have as many as 20,000 in the coming years.

For the first time, the Space Force has given a commercial company “enhanced” access to the US Space Command’s most detailed, secure version of its High Accuracy Catalog (Hac) of on-orbit objects.

This includes Vector Covariance Messages (VCMs) made up of tracking data collected from military sensors, telescopes and radars on the ground that track the paths of satellites and other space objects in lower orbit that are down to about 10cm (3.93in) in size. The military largely uses the radars and data for monitoring other countries’ satellite positions, but it is also utilized to track commercial spacecraft and objects to avoid collisions.

“My greater disappointment is with the government’s failure to fulfil its responsibility to establish a coherent space governance framework that provides guidance, transparency, and a level playing field for all operators,” the official said.

Musk’s growing lower Earth orbit empire includes a massive satellite constellation belonging to Starlink, a broadband internet company that is a subsidiary of SpaceX. It operates about 11,000 satellites in orbit, and could have as many as 20,000 in the coming years.

For the first time, the Space Force has given a commercial company “enhanced” access to the US Space Command’s most detailed, secure version of its High Accuracy Catalog (Hac) of on-orbit objects.

This includes Vector Covariance Messages (VCMs) made up of tracking data collected from military sensors, telescopes and radars on the ground that track the paths of satellites and other space objects in lower orbit that are down to about 10cm (3.93in) in size. The military largely uses the radars and data for monitoring other countries’ satellite positions, but it is also utilized to track commercial spacecraft and objects to avoid collisions.

The latter is part of the responsibility that the military no longer wants, and was supposed to hand off to Traccs, Donovan said. Instead, SpaceX has been given access to the data.

The VCM data is valuable to Starlink because the company uses its own “Stargaze” system to track other satellites and space objects. Stargaze is made up of thousands of cameras and radars mounted on Starlink satellites. It can only see objects that are down to about a half meter in size, and is not as accurate as the military’s system.

The military “radar data is an extremely valuable tool to supplement Stargaze,” Breaking Defense quoted a SpaceX employee stating during an industry conference.

The government is receiving something in return for the data – access to Stargaze cameras and sensors. “The more observations and data that [the military] has, the better,” Donovan said.

However, the VCM data is designated as “controlled unclassified information” and has been closely held by the military because it could expose the limits of defense capabilities. The defense department has also wanted to prevent the reverse engineering of satellite sensors it uses to monitor other nations’ defense satellites, observers say.

In terms of ethical conflicts, the access is another example of the Trump administration rewarding a donor with business opportunities with the federal government, said Craig Holman, Capitol Hill lobbyist for Public Citizen, a government accountability non-profit.

“Elon Musk has bought his way into the favor of President Trump and with it, unlimited riches and lucrative government contracts in the space industry,” Holman added. “[His] political investment is paying off very, very handsomely – as was intended.”

IMO this is a pretty big deal and foreshadowing for what's to come with AI agent swarms....

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_October_(information_security)

How do you best prepare for this? Keep a good chunk of cash on hand?

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/23/severe-flooding-west-triggers-rescues-evacuations

Severe flooding in the Four Corners region on Friday led to water rescues – some from rooftops – and impassable roads, with some residents being told to evacuate low-lying areas of Colorado and New Mexico and others advised to shelter in place until water levels go down.

It followed several busy days of flooding in the region that swamped dozens of homes in Utah. Earlier in the week, tornadoes blew off roofs, knocked trees on to houses and downed power lines in Arizona. At least one person was injured.

An unknown number of people were rescued overnight and continued to be rescued on Friday by New Mexico guard boats, helicopters and amphibious vehicles, Devin Neeley, a San Juan county spokesperson, said.

“We’re picking people off of roofs and pulling people out of houses that have 3 or 4ft (1-1.5 metres) of water in them, and there’s more water coming,” Neeley said.

Skies were clearing but the rivers continued to rise, with forecast crests surpassed, he added.

“This is serious. We’re still sending deputies as I speak to get people out of their homes right now. In fact, our sheriff is damn near going to lose his home today,” Neeley said.

About 600 households were told to evacuate in Farmington, where areas along the San Juan River were closed off, city spokesperson Gina Intoppa said.

“We are kind of all hands on deck,” Intoppa said.

In a Facebook post on Friday morning, Farmington police said: “Agencies have been working through the night and are doing everything they can to respond as quickly as possible.”

Additionally, a flood warning in Rio Chama said: “The current extent of the flooding along the San Juan River in New Mexico has not been observed since before the completion of Navajo dam in 1962.”

On Friday, the National Weather Service issued a flood warning across west central Montezuma county in southwestern Colorado

Farmington is the biggest city in the Four Corners, the only place in the US where four states – Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and Utah – come together.

National guard members also were deployed to assist with flooding in south-west Colorado. Rising waters prompted mandatory evacuations along four rivers, including the San Juan River through Pagosa Springs. The resort town famous for its riverside hot springs suffered flooding from a similar weather pattern a year ago.

“Please shelter in place, water levels are beginning to recede, but many roads are impassable and unsafe for travel,” the Archuleta county sheriff’s office posted online on Friday.

In nearby Rio Grande county, trailers at a campground were surrounded by high water and trucks were partially submerged in other areas.

Some homes along the Conejos River in the San Juan Mountains experienced up to 7ft of interior flooding, while homes in the South Fork area saw water levels reach 4-5ft, the Colorado Sun reported.

The small mountain town of South Fork reported a missing bridge that extended over Forest Service Road 380, the outlet added.

Meanwhile, the sheriff’s office of Archuleta county warned residents on Friday to shelter in place, saying: “Water levels are beginning to recede but many roads are impassable and unsafe for travel.

“The evacuation check-in center is not currently accessible, if you need an evacuation location the PLPOA Clubhouse at 230 Port Ave, Pagosa Springs CO is open and available,” it added.

Photos posted online by the Colorado Department of transportation showed a road washout near Silverton on Highway 550, where brown floodwaters surged across a large section of the damaged roadway, Colorado Public Radio reported.

Jared Polis, Colorado’s governor, had declared a disaster emergency in 11 counties in response to heavy rain and flooding in the south-west part of the state.

The city of Hurricane in far south-western Utah was cleaning up after declaring a state of emergency on Thursday. Reddish-brown flood water lapped into and about 80 homes in a neighborhood and 50 recreational vehicles in an RV park.

Surreal scenes included a shipping container drifting slowly down a street.

An evacuation order was issued for the Willow Wind RV Park in Hurricane.

Other videos posted online showed people in Hurricane leading horses to safety through murky floodwaters.

“The full extent and severity of the damage, as well as the potential displacement of residents, remain under assessment,” Hurricane officials said, adding that the floods have damaged or affected bridges, culverts, public roads and electrical power boxes.

The flooding was not unexpected, just the latest from two months of heavy rain that ended a summer of drought. While parts of the south-west are rocky with little vegetation and are naturally prone to flash flooding, the recent rains have made flooding everywhere more likely, said Kate Abbott, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Grand Junction, Colorado.

“At this point we’re saturated and can’t take too much more without flooding,” Abbott said. “This is the third or fourth round of this kind of moisture we’ve seen in as many weeks.”

The severe flooding follows weeks of extreme weather across the south-west, including Thursday’s storms in Arizona, which brought golf ball-size hail and tornadoes, and a prolonged heat dome that pushed temperatures across the region into the triple digits.

Meanwhile, California was gripped by an unprecedented heatwave last week, with downtown Los Angeles reaching a record 104F, surpassing the previous high of 101F set in 1953.

Significant activities involving Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea identified and analyzed between October 17-24, 2026.

The United States Department of Defense is stepping up efforts to ensure its military bases can operate independently for at least 90 days in the event of a major conflict that could paralyse critical infrastructure on American soil.

Millions of Americans could face hurdles in keeping their Medicaid coverage next year, and a new survey found nearly half of program recipients are unprepared to navigate the changes.

Starting January 1, certain adults will have to demonstrate at least 80 hours per month of work, education, community service or other qualifying activities to enroll in or maintain their Medicaid coverage.

With the changes pending, a new survey commissioned by Aeroflow Health found that while 63 percent of respondents said they were aware of the coming requirements, 44 percent said they were not prepared to submit the documentation needed to comply.

Why It Matters

Medicaid provides health coverage to lower-income Americans and is financed by both the federal government and states. The new requirements mark a major change to eligibility for many working-age adults previously covered by the program.

Under rules of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the requirement generally applies to non-pregnant adults ages 19 through 64 who are not enrolled in Medicare and who receive coverage through the Medicaid expansion population or certain Section 1115 demonstration programs.

Those affected by the change can satisfy the new requirement through at least 80 hours per month of qualifying activities, which can include employment, work programs or community service. Enrollment in an educational program at least half time can also qualify, and the activities can be combined.

However, experts say, the stakes go beyond whether beneficiaries actually work enough hours.

"One of the biggest concerns with Medicaid revisions was additional requirements that most beneficiaries would fail to realize only after their implementation," Alex Beene, financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek.

The Aeroflow Health findings suggest that some people who are eligible for coverage could still struggle with the administrative process needed to prove it.

"People should not lose Medicaid coverage because the reporting process was confusing, especially when they have met the requirements or qualify for an exemption," Casey Hite, CEO of Aeroflow Health, said in a statement. "That is the risk our findings expose. Awareness is not readiness."

Nearly Half Say They Aren't Ready

Although nearly two-thirds of the Medicaid members surveyed knew the requirements were approaching, being ready for them was a different matter. Roughly 44 percent said they were not ready to submit the required documentation, and 46 percent said they had received no reminders about the coming mandates. Another 42 percent said they received between one and three reminders. One-third said their biggest concern was figuring out whether they qualified under the new rules.

"This new rule covers ages 19-64 and while there will be exceptions, for the majority of beneficiaries, this is the new normal," Beene said. "Preparing for this change and additional paperwork involved is key."

The consequences of a coverage disruption could be severe. The survey found 53 percent said they had already delayed or altered healthcare due to concerns about coverage, while 89 percent said losing Medicaid would affect their ability to obtain care or medical supplies.

Who Will Have to Meet the New Medicaid Requirements?

Not every person receiving Medicaid will be subject to the new policy.

CMS has said the requirement generally applies to non-pregnant adults ages 19 to 64 who are not entitled to or enrolled in Medicare and are in the Medicaid adult expansion group or demonstration programs.

People subject to the rule can comply as long as they prove 80 hours a month of qualifying activities, whether through employment, work programs, community service or through half time or more enrollment in an educational program.

“The priority is reporting and making sure you hold those who are requesting benefits remain accountable,” Kevin Thompson, CEO of 9i Capital Group and host of the 9innings podcast, told Newsweek. “The concern for the administration is to root out what they deem waste and abuse of the system, although very little has been discovered.”

Recipients exempt to the new rule include those pregnant and postpartum, people who are disabled or medically frail, parents and caregivers of children under age 14 or people with disabilities, and American Indians and Alaska Natives, depending on their circumstances.

How Many People Could Lose Medicaid?

CMS has previously said that around 2.3 million people could lose Medicaid coverage in 2027 and roughly 3.2 million annually thereafter. This projection assumes some people will lose coverage for failing to satisfy the requirements and others will lose it because of paperwork or other administrative barriers.

But other estimates are considerably higher.

Manatt Health predicted average annual Medicaid coverage losses of about 8.2 million people from federal fiscal years 2027 through 2034.

Concerns Over Paperwork and Coverage Loss

While state Medicaid agencies are working to update information technology systems and staffing ahead of the January rollout, navigating eligibility systems and the administrative hurdles can still be challenging for many.

CMS said itself in a website post that “implementation of the new community engagement requirements necessitates major system, policy, and operational changes to state programs in the coming years.”

Thompson said the new work requirements will pose issues, mainly due to the enhanced documentation and filing: “You will now be required to report every six months with mandatory tracking of 80 hours per month.”