Tuberville, Strong Push for U.S. Space Academy to Come to Alabama

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) joined U.S. Representative Dale Strong (R-AL-05) and the entire Alabama delegation in sending a letter to the commission charged with building the U.S. Space Academy, highlighting why Huntsville is the best possible location for it.

The letter outlines the Tennessee Valley's legacy and commitment to U.S. space superiority. On August 28, President Trump signed an executive order proposing the creation of the U.S. Space Academy, led by NASA, to "train the next generation of astronauts, scientists, engineers, operators, entrepreneurs, civil servants, and warfighters to ensure that they are capable of advancing American interests in space."

"There is no better place for President Trump's U.S. Space Academy than the great state of Alabama," said Sen. Tuberville. "Nicknamed 'The Rocket City,' Huntsville is already home to U.S. Space Command, NASA, and the Missile Defense Agency, not to mention the hundreds of private companies who support America's space and defense industries. We have the resources, infrastructure, and personnel to support this mission and I'm confident that anyone attending the Academy would be proud to call Alabama home."

Read full text of the letter here or below.

"Dear Chairman Isaacman and Members of the Presidential Commission on the United States Space Academy:

We commend President trump and his Administration for their commitment to ushering in the Golden Age of American space exploration and maintaining U.S. space superiority. From establishing the United States Space Force in his first term to reestablishing the United States Space Command, advancing the Artemis Program, and strengthening America's commercial space sector, President Trump has demonstrated an unprecedented commitment to advancing U.S. interests in space.

As envisioned by the President, a United States Space Academy would present an opportunity to build on that commitment. We recognize that the Commission will consider a range of factors in developing recommendations on the Agency's governance, leadership, academic curriculum, service opportunities, and partnerships. As the Commission undertakes this work, we believe certain criteria should be taken into strong consideration.

Specifically, we encourage you to prioritize co-locating the Academy in states where equities already exist, such as locations that bring together a NASA center, a strong federal and military presence, and an established research and technology park. This would give students direct exposure to the nation's space missions, defense capabilities, and research and development activities. It would allow the Academy to leverage existing infrastructure, expertise, and partnerships, ensuring taxpayer resources are focused on developing the nation's next generation of space talent.

North Alabama brings together the civil, commercial, and national security capabilities necessary to support the next generation of space leaders. In addition to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, the region is home to a significant federal space and defense presence, including the Missile Defense Agency, the future permanent headquarters of the United States Space Command at Redstone Arsenal, and U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command.

With these considerations in mind, North Alabama stands uniquely prepared to support the Academy's mission and build upon NASA's efforts to recruit, train, and retain the next generation of highly educated and technically specialized aerospace talent. For generations, the region has been at the center of American space exploration - from the Saturn V rocket that put American boots on the Moon to the Space Launch System that carried our astronauts farther than ever before, just five months ago. Today, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center remains a national leader in propulsion, human spaceflight, and deep-space exploration, and maintains a workforce with the institutional knowledge needed to support the nation's most complex space missions.

Alabama's robust network of higher education institutions has a legacy of contributions to U.S. space superiority, and those contributions continue today through partnerships with NASA from schools across the state, as well as through the highly specialized curricula offered at many of these institutions. Additionally, more than 400 aerospace, defense, and technology companies operate throughout the Tennessee Valley, alongside a strong system of research organizations and universities. Together, these capabilities have helped build a workforce of more than 40,000 STEM professionals, including nearly 4,000 aerospace engineers, working across the space, defense, research, engineering, and technology sectors. This concentration of expertise would provide the Academy with immediate access to scientists, engineers, researchers, and technical professionals who can educate and mentor future graduates while continuing to advance our civil and national security space missions.

For these reasons, we respectfully urge the Commission to consider such criteria to form the qualifications used to evaluate potential sites, and, moreover, whether such infrastructure, personnel, and ecosystem currently exist at sites under consideration.

The Alabama Congressional Delegation stands united in support of the President's vision to establish the United States Space Academy, and we believe there would be no more qualified place than North Alabama to undertake this critical mission.

We look forward to working with the Commission and the Administration as this effort moves forward, and we stand ready to provide any information, resources, or assistance necessary to support the Commission's work.

Sincerely,"

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Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans' Affairs, HELP and Aging Committees.

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