Now that the new US Space Force uniforms have been gutted on social media (it was so last week), it’s up to their new logo to maintain the uproar. The new branch of the US armed forces did not disappoint: its logo resembles the Star Fleet logo from Star Trek, inviting all sorts of spiteful comparisons on the internet.
The comparison is quite clear and the two logos share many of the same elements. There is the delta shape, the star background and the swoosh. So how did the Space Force logo designer come to this? Why did they make it so similar to the Star Fleet logo? Are they planning to unite humanity and embark on a daring mission where no one has gone before? Did they think no one would notice?
Well, hold back your keyboard reviews. Turns out there’s something bigger at play here.
It is therefore not an involuntary copy worthy of derision. Is it a tribute?
Then there is this:
So it looks like the new Space Force logo is a mix of the old Air Force Space Command logo and the NASA logo. (Air Force Space Command was the precursor to Space Force.) That’s pretty cool. But will that calm an upset internet? May be.
“… for 50 years, star trek influenced scientists, engineers and even astronauts to reach beyond their potential.
Excerpt from NASA article “50 Years of NASA and Star Trek Connections”
NASA and Star Trek have a history together. You can read all about it in this 2019 NASA article titled “50 Years of NASA and Star Trek Connections”. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that people at NASA are Star Trek fans. NASA even hosted actors at various events and also handed out plaques.
Then there is the logo and name of WORF, the Window Observational Research Facility on the ISS. The name is taken from Commander Worf, the Enterprise’s head of Klingon security. The logo contains Klingon script below the WORF at the top.
NASA and Star Trek therefore have a long history together. It’s easy to see why. Star Trek has inspired many people to pursue space science. In the NASA article, it is written: “…over the past 50 years, star trek influenced scientists, engineers and even astronauts to reach beyond their potential.
Rather than being a mistake worthy of your derision, the new logo is actually a deliberate homage to a groundbreaking TV show that reached further than anyone realized. Star Trek has inspired many with its vision of humanity overcoming old feuds and working together. In the 1960s when it came out, there was a lot of racial and societal turmoil. Race riots, protests in Vietnam, civil rights movement. Even though it was just a TV show, and in retrospect a bit cheesy, it struck a chord. He still does it today.
The current uproar over all things Space Force may have a more modern cause: the current political situation in the United States.
The current President of the United States is surrounded by controversy, allegations of corruption and ill will. Right now, the Senate decides whether or not to kick him out, after his impeachment by the House of Representatives. And for better or worse, the president is associated with the establishment of Space Force.
It’s possible that since he was the one who announced the Space Force, everything about it is tainted with enmity. But let’s be reasonable. It’s not like POTUSA itself designed the logo. Presidents have nothing to do with it.
