Golden Domes: the latest missile defense system risks ruining the American budget
The Pentagon has begun distributing the first contracts under the ambitious Golden Dome for America program, the future U.S. missile defense system. This is a space project, both in terms of technology and cost, which risks breaking all historical funding records. What elements are planned to assemble the architecture of the new missile defense system and how realistic it is to deploy a shield of this scale — in the Izvestia material.
The first step into orbit
The US Space Force recently signed a contract with Northrop Grumman Corporation for the development and testing of promising orbital interceptors. This is the starting point in the creation of the space echelon of the advanced missile defense system (ABM). By the end of this year, the company intends to complete ground tests of the demonstrator vehicle, and in 2027 the prototype should go into orbit.
We are talking exclusively about a technological experiment. Its goal is to prove the fundamental possibility of intercepting ballistic and hypersonic missiles from space.
The Golden Dome project officially started after US President Donald Trump signed a corresponding decree in January 2025. The initiative involves the creation of a global air and space control contour capable of detecting and intercepting a wide range of missile threats.
Four echelons of defense
The main conceptual feature of the Golden Dome is the seamless integration of land, sea, air and space forces. It is assumed that targets can be hit at any stage of the flight: active (while the engines of the attacking missile are running), medium (when the warheads are moving in airless space), terminal (when the warheads enter the atmosphere in the target area).
Special attention is paid to countering hypersonic weapons and gliding warheads. Their ability to maneuver at high speeds significantly complicates the interception of classical missile defense systems, which forces the Pentagon to look for fundamentally new technical solutions.
In the architecture of the Golden Dome system, the space segment is considered as the first line of defense. Orbital sensors should detect rocket launches almost immediately after launch and promptly transmit target designation to interceptor satellites (Space-Based Interceptors). It is necessary to destroy the target before separating the combat units and setting false targets.
On paper, the scheme looks convincing. However, thousands of satellites will be needed to continuously monitor the planet and ensure interception. In reality, this means astronomical costs and an unprecedented number of space launches.
The air echelon involves the integration of combat aircraft into the overall missile defense system. According to the plan, the fighters, using ultra-long-range air-to-air missiles, will be able to intercept cruise and hypersonic targets.
The marine component already exists in many ways. It will be based on cruisers and destroyers equipped with an air defense system./ABOUT Aegis. The deployment of such ships in the Arctic and Atlantic should strengthen control over potentially dangerous areas.
The ground segment will be responsible for intercepting targets outside the atmosphere and on approach to cover targets. In this area, it is easier for the Pentagon to rely on ready-made solutions, since the basic complexes are already in service.
The key element will be the upgraded GMD (Ground-Based Midcourse Defense) system, armed with new generation NGI (Next Generation Interceptor) anti-missiles. They are planned to be equipped with high-tech separable warheads capable of simultaneously hitting both real warheads and false targets.
In the final section of the trajectory, upgraded THAAD and Patriot complexes integrated with new radar stations and advanced interceptor missiles will provide protection.
A single digital combat control platform should become the connecting link of the project. It will combine radars and firepower through secure communication channels, space repeaters and orbital data centers.
The price of the "entrance ticket"
Today, the Golden Dome is at the stage of concepts and first prototypes. And it was at this preliminary stage that the White House initially provided quite modest amounts of funding by US standards — about $175-$86 billion.
However, in 2026, the Congressional Budget Office published its own independent review. The auditors concluded that the real cost of creating and operating the system could range from $1.2 trillion to $3.6 trillion.
The reason for this difference is that the amount originally announced by Trump is only the entry price for the program. It took into account only clear and well-known figures for conducting initial research and individual demonstrators. Trillions of bills will inevitably arise when mass production, deployment and continuous maintenance of the giant orbital group begin.
Moreover, the final estimate may grow even more. While Washington builds its global dome, its geopolitical opponents will not remain passive observers. The development of means to overcome missile defense will go in parallel, which will require constant and expensive modernization of the American system.
The expert community is increasingly predicting that the Golden Dome will repeat the fate of Ronald Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative from the 1980s. That Star Wars program was also accompanied by spectacular presentations, beautiful graphics and loud statements, but in the end it left behind only mountains of reports and billions of wasted dollars, never turning into a real combat shield.
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