Is the proposed Golden Dome of US the ultimate shield against all incoming threats? All you need to know

The ambitious missile defence shield, proposed by US President Donald Trump, a system of systems which seeks to double down on the protection for the US against a highly sophisticated array of missile threats, including ballistic missiles that are capable of hosting multiple warheads, is expected to be the first time the US deploys weapons in space.

 

Trump, on Tuesday, said the $175 billion multilayered weapon system which is capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from space, will be operational in in less than three years.

 

Although Golden Dome was inspired by the land-based defence system of Israel, the Iron Dome, the US system of systems—still in the conceptual stage—is expected to be much more extensive, sophisticated and layered, with space-based sensors and interceptors, combined with ground and naval assets.

 

Golden Dome is envisioned to include ground- and space-based capabilities that are able to detect and stop missiles at all four major stages of a potential attack: detecting and destroying them before a launch, intercepting them in their earliest stage of flight, stopping them midcourse in the air, or halting them in the final minutes as they descend toward a target. This, then, will be a system of systems that will have space-based satellites for early detection and tracking, space-based interceptors potentially armed with missiles or lasers, ground-based and sea-based interceptors, and centralised command and control to coordinate these elements. 

 

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Trump said Vice Chief of Space Operations Gen. Michael A. Guetlein will lead the effort as direct reporting programme manager for the Golden Dome. “He has an unmatched background in missile warning technology and defence procurement,” the US President added.

 

According to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the weapon system is designed to protect the US against cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, hypersonic missiles, and drones—both conventional and nuclear. The system is being developed amid Pentagon warnings that the latest missiles developed by China and Russia are so advanced that updated countermeasures are necessary.

 

Gen. Guetlein pointed out that the adversaries of the US have been modernising their nuclear forces, building ballistic missiles capable of hosting multiple warheads, hypersonic missiles capable of attacking the US within an hour and traveling 6,000 miles an hour, cruise missiles that can navigate around the US radar and its defences, and submarines that can sneak up on the US shores. They are also building space weapons, he said, adding, “It is time that we change that equation and start doubling down on the protection of the homeland.”

 

The US already has missile defence capabilities, such as the Patriot missile batteries to defend against incoming missiles as well as an array of satellites in orbit to detect missile launches. Some of those existing systems will be incorporated into Golden Dome.

Defence