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The Print
21-05-2025
- Business
- The Print
All about Golden Dome, Trump's $175 billion plan to shield America
First ordered via executive order in January 2025, the system's design is said to counter threats from Russia and China, particularly emerging capabilities such as hypersonic glide vehicles and the Fractional Orbital Bombardment System (FOBS), systems that are considered too fast and complex for the existing ballistic missile defence (BMD) networks to neutralise. 'This is our national Iron Dome, but on a much grander scale,' Trump said Wednesday at a press briefing at the Oval Office, referencing Israel's short-range missile defence system. 'It will protect our homeland from threats no matter where they originate, even from space.' New Delhi: US President Donald Trump formally unveiled the concept of his administration's $175 billion 'Golden Dome' missile defence system, aimed at shielding America from aerial threats, including hypersonic weapons and space-launched projectiles. At a press briefing in the White House, Trump said that the U.S. Space Force General Michael Guetlein would lead the programme. 'Once fully constructed, the Golden Dome will be capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from other sides of the world, and even if they're launched from space,' Trump said, adding that it is projected to be fully operational by the end of his current term in January, 2029. The Elon Musk-led SpaceX is reportedly among the leading contenders for major contracts under the mega project. Canada, he said, had expressed interest in joining. A statement from the office of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney confirmed ongoing talks with Washington to enhance the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), the binational U.S.-Canada aerospace command responsible for air defence across North America. Trump also went on to compare Golden Dome to Ronald Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), popularly dubbed 'Star Wars', which was shelved due to technological limitations in the 1980s. 'Reagan wanted this, but we now have the technology to make it real,' Trump added. Earlier this month, both Russia and China slammed the project as 'destabilising', warning that it could trigger a new arms race and turn space into a battlefield. The same month, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that the Golden Dome could cost as much as $831 billion over two decades. Also Read: What is Akashteer & why it's dubbed as 'hell for Pakistan's air adventures' The concept Although inspired by Israel's Iron Dome, the Golden Dome is still in its conceptual phase, but with far greater scope and complexity. It aims to combine existing US missile defence systems with a new generation of space-based and terrestrial weapons. The Golden Dome, according to US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, will protect the homeland from 'cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, hypersonic missiles, drones, whether they're conventional or nuclear.' At its core, the Golden Dome is designed as a multi-layered system that integrates low-Earth orbit satellites, radar sensors, kinetic interceptors and potentially even space-borne weapons like laser-based systems. The space-based sensors to be integrated, such as the US Missile Defense Agency's Hypersonic and Ballistic Tracking Space Sensor (HBTSS), are already under development and are expected to provide real-time data on incoming missile launches. In terms of interception, the system would use a combination of existing and future assets, working in tandem to provide multiple opportunities to neutralise incoming aerial threats during different phases of flight. An US official had confirmed to the Associated Press that the Pentagon is assessing three levels of capability—medium, high, and 'extra high'—depending on how many interceptors and satellites are deployed. For boost-phase (the missile's earliest stage of flight) intercepts, space-based kill vehicles are envisioned to be employed. The missile shield will include space-based interceptors and sensors. Meanwhile, for the mid-course phase, the US intends to expand its Ground-based Midcourse Defense (GMD) system at Fort Greely in Alaska, which is already operational with Next-Generation Interceptors (NGIs). The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense system, deployed aboard Navy ships and Aegis Ashore sites, are also said to provide additional interception during the midcourse and terminal phases using SM-3 and SM-6 missiles. On the ground, systems such as the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) and PAC-3 Patriot batteries will be used to intercept missiles in the terminal stage, when they re-enter the atmosphere or approach their targets. Additionally, the Department of Defense is also reported to be investing in directed-energy weapons like high-powered lasers and microwave systems, which may offer an additional layer of interception in the future. While still in its early stages, Golden Dome is currently backed by an initial $25 billion R&D budget within a broader $175 billion defence proposal submitted to the US Congress. (Edited by Tony Rai) Also Read: How upgraded L/70 guns, or 'original Bofors', became India's frontline defence against Pakistan UAVs
Time of India
21-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Donald Trump announces ‘Golden Dome' missile shield to intercept hypersonic & space-launched threats by end of his term
As part of his renewed focus on national security, US President Donald Trump has confirmed that a design has been finalized for the ambitious 'Golden Dome' missile defence system. The system, intended to shield the United States from next-generation aerial threats, is expected to be operational by the end of Trump's term in office. The project was set in motion just days after his return to the White House in January. The proposed system is aimed at tackling advanced threats such as ballistic and cruise missiles, and possibly missiles launched from space. With a preliminary funding of $25 billion approved through a budget bill, Trump has described the initiative as vital to protect the country from what the White House has called 'the most catastrophic threat' facing the US today. Technology across land, sea, and space President Trump explained that the Golden Dome would involve next-generation technologies spread across land, sea, and space. He stated that the system will use both space-based sensors and interceptors. 'It will even be capable of intercepting missiles launched from the other side of the world, or launched from space,' he said from the Oval Office. Drawing inspiration from Israel's Iron Dome system, which has been used since 2011 to intercept short-range threats, the Golden Dome will be significantly larger and designed to address a broader range of attacks. This includes new-age hypersonic weapons and systems like FOBS (Fractional Orbital Bombardment Systems), which can deliver warheads from space. Costs and capability challenges Though Trump has projected an overall cost of $175 billion, the Congressional Budget Office warns the real figure could exceed $542 billion over two decades, especially for space-based components. The expansive geography of the US and the variety of threat directions present significant challenges that are not present in countries like Israel. Marion Messmer, a senior research fellow at Chatham House, noted that the US faces a 'much more complex' missile defence problem due to its size and threat landscape. Shashank Joshi, defence editor at The Economist, told the BBC that the Golden Dome would likely use thousands of satellites to detect missile launches and then intercept them using space-based weaponry. However, he added that while the military may treat the plan seriously, completing such a system within Trump's term would be difficult. The high costs would also heavily impact the rest of the defence budget. International involvement and command structure Trump confirmed that Canada had expressed interest in joining the initiative. During a visit to Washington earlier this year, then-Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair said it was 'in the national interest' for Canada to participate in the project. Oversight for the entire system will fall under a single command structure. US defence officials have appointed Space Force General Michael Guetlein to oversee the development and coordination of the ambitious missile shield may reshape defence planning, but cost and complexity remain major hurdles to timely delivery.
Time of India
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Nuclear hypersonic missiles from space: US faces its biggest threat from Chinese, Russian FOBS
A recent assessment by the US Defense Intelligence Agency paints a grim picture for the Americans. The threats from China and Russia is increasing with the former, too, now in a position to hit target all across the US mainland. The large variety of missiles with China and Russia make defending the US mainland a herculean task. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads China, Russia missile stockpile makes US jittery Hypersonic missiles Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads America's biggest fear of a nuclear-tipped missile hitting it from space is coming true and the Chinese are on course to militarily push it into a corner in the next 10 years. The world's primary military power since the collapse of the USSR in 1991 is now faced with the dreaded prospect of a lethal new weapon in China's arsenal called the fractional orbital bombardment system ( FOBS ). The missile threats to the US is going to expand both in scale, modern technology and sophistication in the next 10 years, according to a recent US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) Russia, the primary military rival of the US since the 1990s is building on its missile strength, it's China which is taking rapid strides in developing a wide range of delivery systems to exploit gaps in current American ballistic missile defenses. And, the US forces are keeping a wary eyeAlthough the FOBS technology is not a new one as it was developed decades back in the 1960s by the erstwhile USSR and is known to exist with the current Russian armed forces, the rapid pace of development and the projected deployment by China is giving sleepless nights to the United States to the DIA assessment titled 'Golden Dome for America: Current and Future Missile Threats to the U.S. Homeland', the picture is not so rosy for the American military as it gears up to face not only a belligerent China but also the growing arsenal of Russia despite the war with Ukraine, which has been going on for over three years a chart prepared by the DIA, the missile threats have been categorized under six categories which are as follows: intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM), submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM), two types of hypersonic weapons, land attack cruise missiles (LACM), and fractional orbital bombardment systems (FOBS). All these systems have nuclear of the above-mentioned missiles have the capability to inflict unimaginable damage to the US, but the most lethal is the FOBS, which is essentially an ICBM that flies in a low-earth altitude orbit before reentering to strike its target. A FOBS takes much shorter flight time to reach its target if flying the same direction as traditional ICBMs. The FOBS can also be programmed to fly over the South Pole to avoid early warning systems and missile defenses and strike its target before completing a full neither Russia not China have operationalised FOBS, the DIA assessment projects that the former can deploy 12 such missiles by 2035 while China will have a bigger arsenal with 60 in and Russia have several nuclear-capable ICBMs which can hit any target in the US. While China currently has 400 ICBMs, many of them having Multiple Independently Targetable Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) versions, the number is projected to go over 700 by 2035. On the other hand, Russia is likely to increase the number of ICBMs in its forces to 400 plus from the 350 that it currently other countries - North Korea and Iran - are also building missiles which can hit targets on US mainland. Iran also has an advanced space program and can develop and deploy ICBMs by 2035 if its government decides to go ahead with military use of the capability and SLBMs could rise to 132 from the current 72 10 years down the line while Russia is likely to have the same number as it has now - two countries are also in the fast lane to develop and deploy boosted hypersonic weapons which can fly at speeds over Mach 5+. Russia has already used some of these in the ongoing war against Ukraine while China also also operational hypersonic are two types of hypersonic missiles - aeroballistic and Hypersonic Glide Vehicle (HGV) - and both can be nuclear missiles can be fired from land, air or sea, they use aerodynamic maneuvers with phases of ballistic loft to extend range. HGVs are highly maneuverable sporting an aerodynamic built body and are mounted on ballistic missile. They are programmed to fly at altitudes of 15-50 km with sustained hypersonic Russia has demonstrated the capability to use both aeroballistic missiles and HGVs to target the US mainland, China is most likely armed with the latter which can hit targets in currently possess 600 such missiles with the number reaching 4,000 by 2025 while Russia will see its current arsenal of 200-300 go up to 1,000 during the same time it come to LACMs, the Russian have enough to take out targets in the US while the Chinese are rapidly expanding their capability and range with its current missiles only able to hit Alaska, Hawaii, and the American west coast. Russia is projected to increase its LACM stockpile to 5,000 in the next 10 years from the current 300-600. China will also reach the figure of 5,000 by mid-2030s from the 1,000 it has now.
Japan Times
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
U.S. warns of missile threats that it says can be stopped by 'Golden Dome'
China may within a decade possess scores of orbiting missiles with nuclear payloads capable of reaching the U.S. with much shorter flight times than traditional intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), the Defense Intelligence Agency said Tuesday. The agency released a chart as a prelude to a White House announcement regarding threats to the U.S. that the "Golden Dome" missile defense umbrella, a priority of President Donald Trump, would counter. The chart depicted potential advancements in increased traditional ICBM capabilities among adversaries, including China, Iran and Russia. China, according to the chart, could field as many as 700 nuclear-tipped ICBMs by 2035 up from 400 today; Iran 60, up from none today. Russia's inventory could grow to 400 from 350 now. More significantly, the chart showed the potential growth in China and less in Russia of orbiting, nuclear-armed space-based missiles in a "Fractional Orbital Bombardment System,' or FOBS. The weapon enters "a low-altitude orbit before reentering to strike its target, with much shorter flight times if flying the same direction as traditional ICBMs, or can travel over the South Pole to avoid early warning systems and missile defenses,' the agency said. "It releases its payload before completing a full orbit.' DIA projected China could possess 60 of these weapons by 2035 from none today, and Russia 12 from zero today. The disclosure in 2021 that China executed a FOBS test flight set off alarms within the U.S. military. "What we saw was a very significant event of a test of a weapon system. And it is very concerning,' Mark Milley, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in an October 2021 interview on Bloomberg Television. "I don't know if it's quite a Sputnik moment, but I think it's very close to that. It has all of our attention.' Separately, the DIA chart forecast that China might field by 2035 as many as 4,000 "Hypersonic Glide Vehicles,' up from 600 today. The vehicles are launched by ballistic missiles and glide for at least half of their flight to targets. They can be armed with a nuclear warhead, but China may already "have deployed a conventional' weapon "with sufficient range to strike Alaska,' according to the chart. As of now, the Defense Department and White House have offered few specifics regarding the Golden Dome's architecture, timelines and cost. "No one has really defined what the Golden Dome is,' Rep. Ken Calvert, chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, said in an interview last week. "Is it defending the entire Lower 48 and Alaska? What are we doing and how are we doing it? I've heard from every consultant in town that's trying to get in the middle of this thing.' The U.S. may have to spend as much as $542 billion over 20 years to develop and launch the least proven and likely most contentious segment of the system — the network of space-based interceptors, the Congressional Budget Office said last week. That network could cost $161 billion even at the low end, the office said in an assessment prepared for a subcommittee of the Senate Armed Services Committee. The price tag will depend on launch costs and the number of weapons put into orbit, it said. Trump's plan harkens back to former President Ronald Reagan's unfulfilled quest for a space-based missile defense system that was widely known as "Star Wars.'
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Business Standard
14-05-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
US warns of missile threats that Donald Trump's Golden Dome may face
The DIA released a chart as a prelude to a White House announcement regarding threats to the US that the Golden Dome missile defense umbrella, a priority of President Donald Trump, would counter Bloomberg China may within a decade possess scores of orbiting missiles with nuclear payloads capable of reaching the US with much shorter flight times than traditional intercontinental ballistic missiles, the Defense Intelligence Agency said Tuesday. The agency released a chart as a prelude to a White House announcement regarding threats to the US that the Golden Dome missile defense umbrella, a priority of President Donald Trump, would counter. The chart depicted potential advancements in increased traditional intercontinental ballistic missile capabilities among adversaries, including China, Iran and Russia. China, according to the chart, could field as many as 700 nuclear-tipped ICBMs by 2035 up from 400 today; Iran 60, up from none today. Russia's inventory could grow to 400 from 350 now. More significantly, the chart showed the potential growth in China and less in Russia of orbiting, nuclear-armed space-based missiles in a 'Fractional Orbital Bombardment System,' or FOBS. The weapon enters 'a low-altitude orbit before reentering to strike its target, with much shorter flight times if flying the same direction as traditional ICBMs, or can travel over the South Pole to avoid early warning systems and missile defenses,' the agency said. 'It releases its payload before completing a full orbit.' DIA projected China could possess 60 of these weapons by 2035 from none today, and Russia 12 from zero today. The disclosure in 2021 that China executed a FOBS test flight set off alarms within the US military. 'What we saw was a very significant event of a test of a weapon system. And it is very concerning,' Mark Milley, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in an October 2021 interview on Bloomberg Television. 'I don't know if it's quite a Sputnik moment, but I think it's very close to that. It has all of our attention.' Separately, the DIA chart forecast that China might field by 2035 as many as 4,000 'Hypersonic Glide Vehicles,' up from 600 today. The vehicles are launched by ballistic missiles and glide for at least half of their flight to targets. They can be armed with a nuclear warhead, but China may already 'have deployed a conventional' weapon 'with sufficient range to strike Alaska,' according to the chart. As of now, the Defense Department and White House have offered few specifics regarding the Golden Dome's architecture, timelines and cost. 'No one has really defined what the Golden Dome is,' Representative Ken Calvert, chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, said in an interview last week. 'Is it defending the entire Lower 48 and Alaska? What are we doing and how are we doing it? I've heard from every consultant in town that's trying to get in the middle of this thing.' The US may have to spend as much as $542 billion over 20 years to develop and launch the least proven and likely most contentious segment of the system — the network of space-based interceptors, the Congressional Budget Office said last week. That network could cost $161 billion even at the low end, the office said in an assessment prepared for a subcommittee of the Senate Armed Services Committee. The price tag will depend on launch costs and the number of weapons put into orbit, it said. Trump's plan harkens back to former President Ronald Reagan's unfulfilled quest for a space-based missile defense system that was widely known as 'Star Wars.'
