“The Golden Dome”. The US is developing an orbital nuclear missile interceptor over enemy territory
The United States has taken a discreet but significant step toward building a new generation of anti-missile defense: The US Space Force has completed the first procurement process for the development of prototypes of a space-based interceptor (SBI), designed to neutralize enemy missiles in the first minutes after launch. Several contracts have already been awarded, but the identity of the companies remains classified, Breaking Defense reports.
The Golden Dome presented by the US Secretary of War/PHOTO:X
A Space Force spokesman said the names of contractors are protected by “enhanced security measures” and Defense Department contracts — worth up to $9 million — are not published in open records.
The SBI is considered one of the central elements of the future global missile defense architecture, known within the Trump administration as the “Golden Dome”. The American president had announced in February the intention to invest about 175 billion dollars in this project. Since then, the Pentagon has avoided discussing the program publicly, citing “operational security considerations,” including at high-profile conferences.
According to the publication, each of the winners will initially receive approximately $120,000, an amount associated with a ground test phase that includes three-year extension options. A good part of the demonstration costs will be borne by the companies themselves.
Despite these modest amounts, the program is part of a much more ambitious budgetary direction. Congress has already earmarked $25 billion for the Golden Dome initiative, and the Trump administration's 2026 budget proposal includes an additional $45.3 billion. Officially, the competition in this early phase paves the way for much more substantial contracts in the years to come.
The acquisition plan foresees two distinct lines of development for the interception of missiles in the ascent phase:
-Endoatmospheric interception, targeting missiles immediately after launch, before leaving the atmosphere;
-Exoatmospheric interception, which targets the missile shortly after exiting space.
Defense Express analysts point out that such an orbital interceptor could attack a ballistic missile anywhere in the world. In the first moments after launch, an ICBM cannot perform complex maneuvers and has not yet separated individual warheads or dummy targets, making its neutralization much simpler. In theory, a missile shot down in this phase would fall back into the territory of the state that launched it.
But the early-stage program raises major questions — technical, financial and strategic — and many of the details remain classified. What is clear, experts say, is that the U.S. is trying to accelerate a new approach to missile defense, one that moves air and sea interception directly into space.
