The Space Force is requesting prototype proposals for space-based interceptors that can destroy a missile during the midcourse phase of flight, on top of its previous efforts to develop interceptors that take down missiles in their boost phase.
golden dome
The Golden Dome air and missile defense shield to protect the United States will have some “operational capability” in 2028, the program’s leader said Dec. 6 at the Reagan National Defense Forum.
The Missile Defense Agency chose a diverse pool of more than 1,000 companies to compete for task orders through its Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered defense effort—a $151 billion contract mechanism to experiment, test, and prototype capabilities for Golden Dome and other homeland defense needs.
The Space Force has awarded initial prototype contracts to multiple firms to develop space-based interceptors designed to take down missile threats within minutes after launch.
When Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth rolled out an expansive acquisition reform agenda earlier this month, he promised aggressive implementation and reorganization aimed at transforming the way the Pentagon develops and fields weapons and platforms. The plan appears to have been well-received by past administration officials and ...
The blueprint is coming into focus; the road map remains cloudy. Golden Dome is one of the most ambitious defense projects ever mounted. It seeks to develop a missile defense shield for the entire continental United States (CONUS) against ballistic,...
The Pentagon should establish a dedicated budget to support Golden Dome’s positioning, navigation, and timing needs and assign a PNT lead to coordinate needed improvements to ground and space-based navigation systems, according to a new report from the National Security Space Association.
Companies planning to compete for Golden Dome contracts say they’re already investing in capabilities that could have a range of defense and commercial applications—regardless of whether they’re selected for the Pentagon’s sweeping program to create an advanced homeland missile defense shield.
Satellite manufacturer Apex announced it would launch a space-based interceptor demonstration next summer—the latest company to unveil plans to prototype technology that could contribute to the Pentagon’s Golden Dome missile defense project.
Firefly Aerospace, the small launch company that helped the Space Force send a satellite into orbit on a record-fast timeline, plans to acquire software and data company SciTec in an $855 million deal that will further its reach in the defense market.
Industry proposals were initially due Oct. 10, but after a flurry of responses, the agency extended the deadline to Oct. 16. MDA received more than 1,500 questions from companies over the last three weeks, it said in an Oct. 2 memo.
Industry executives poised to compete for the Pentagon’s behemoth homeland missile defense initiative, Golden Dome, said the biggest risk to the project’s success is not technical but bureaucratic in nature.
