About the NATO Space COE
The NATO Space COE is the 30th NATO-accredited Centre of Excellence, providing Space expertise and enhancing the Alliance’s Space capabilities.
What is a Centre of Excellence?
A NATO-accredited Centre of Excellence (COE) is a multi-nationally or nationally established and sponsored entity which, for the benefit of the Alliance, offers recognised expertise and experience within a defined subject matter area, and within the four NATO COE pillars.
NATO COEs span a diverse range of specialities, offering specialised support in areas including civil-military operations, cyber defence, military medicine, energy security, naval mine warfare, defence against terrorism, cold weather operations, counter-IED, climate change and security, and space.
They train and educate leaders and specialists from NATO member and partner countries. They assist in doctrine development, identify lessons learned, improve interoperability and capabilities, and test and validate concepts through experimentation. They offer recognised expertise and experience that is of benefit to the Alliance, and support the transformation of NATO, while avoiding the duplication of assets, resources and capabilities already present within the Alliance.
The first NATO COE was formally accredited on 1 June 2005. In order to become a COE, an organisation must first demonstrate expertise in four transformational pillars:
Concept Development & Experimentation
Doctrine &
Standardization
Education &
Training
Analysis &
Lessons learned
Allied Command Transformation has overall responsibility for COEs and is in charge of the establishment, accreditation and periodic assessments of the centres, as well as preparation of candidates for approval. => A COE does not fall under the NATO command structure, but instead forms part of the wider framework, contributing to the Alliance.
The NATO Space COE
In January 2023, 15 Sponsoring Nations signed the COE’s Operational Memorandum of Understanding.
Six months after,on 14 July 2023, the NATO Space COE’s official accreditation was announced during the NATO Summit in Vilnius.
The NATO Space COE will be a key catalyst for the comprehension, improvement, and transformation of Space Power, delivering effective solutions, and providing relevant expertise for the benefit of NATO and the Allies.
Through its 4 pillars (Concept Development and Experimentation, Doctrine and Standardisation, Education and Training, Analysis and Lessons Learned), the NATO Space COE delivers increased awareness across the three operational functions:
Space Domain Awareness
Operational Space Support
Space Domain Coordination
The COE goals are to:
- Deliver effective solutions through independent analysis and critical thinking, in support of NATO and Sponsoring Nations.
- Provide unique expertise on combined joint activities in Space and be an open venue for collaboration within NATO, its Allies and partners, by developing, accumulating, and harmonising knowledge, and creating and disseminating products.
- In close coordination with NATO, serve as a venue for experimentation within the Space Domain, connected to the other domains, and supporting initiatives to meet the Alliance’s future needs.
- Contribute to the development of the Space Community of Interest through engagement with relevant stakeholders, both inside and outside of NATO.
In addition to the tasks mentioned above, the NATO Space COE has been appointed:
Department Head for the Space discipline. Within this role, the NATO Space COE is responsible for translating space-related Education & Training (E&T) requirements into solutions, such as virtual and residential courses, and for ensuring the overall coordination of these solutions. The Department Head maintains a discipline-related E&T Programme and works to ensure that the selected solutions are delivered in the most effective, efficient and affordable manner by NATO, Allies, Partners and Non-NATO Entities.
Custodian for the NATO Doctrine for Space Operations – Allied Joint Publication 3.29 – which is currently in draft. Custodians of NATO doctrine take responsibility for the its maintenance, update, and implementation within the NATO framework.
