A White House ceremony unveiled the new US Space Force flag, which has been mocked for ripping off 'Star Trek'

• President Donald Trump and senior military leaders unveiled the US Space Force flag on Friday.
• The symbol was first unveiled in January, where it was widely mocked for resembling an emblem from "Star Trek," the long-running science-fiction TV show.
• The Space Force's symbol was first used as early as 1942 by the US Army Air Forces.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

President Donald Trump and senior military leaders on Friday unveiled the US Space Force flag, a symbol of the country's first service branch in over 70 years.

"Space is going to be the future, both in terms of defense and offense and so many other things," Trump said during the unfurling ceremony at the Oval Office of the White House. "And already, from what I'm hearing and based on reports, we're now the leader in space."

Also making its first appearance was the rank for the senior enlisted Space Force airman, Chief Master Sgt. Roger Towberman. The rank appears nearly identical to the US Air Force's rank, except for the Space Force insignia in the center.

The Space Force's symbol was first used as early as 1942 by the US Army Air Forces. The delta insignia in the center was a feature in military space community emblems, and the North Star illustrated signified "our core value, our guiding light," according to US Space Force Gen. Jay Raymond. Additionally, Raymond said the circling the globe on the emblem was the fuel of the "American way of life."

The Roman numerals on the bottom signifies the year it was first established under the Department of the Air Force.

—Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 24, 2020

The symbol was first unveiled in January, where it was widely mocked for resembling an emblem from "Star Trek," the long-running science-fiction TV show.

People on social-media outlets like Twitter pointed to the similar qualities between the Space Force symbol and the fictional Starfleet logo from the show. According to the Star Trek's fans, the shape of the large centered chevron and the accompanying stars mimic the logo from the show.

George Takei, the actor who starred in show as Hikaru Sulu, jokingly suggested that the show ought to be compensated: "Ahem. We are expecting some royalties from this," he said in a tweet.

The Space Force intends to assign 16,000 airmen from the US Space Command by the end of 2020.

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