11/25/2025

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By Sandra Erwin

Welcome to this week's edition of SpaceNews' Military Space, your source for the latest developments at the intersection of space and national security. In this week's edition: Saltzman urges patience on Golden Dome; industry gets notice on "midcourse" space-based interceptors and the Space Force "objective force" plan near completion

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Rocket Lab last week launched a suborbital mission with its HASTE launch vehicle for the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) and Missile Defense Agency. HASTE is Rocket Lab's commercial launch vehicle used for hypersonic test flights. The launch took place from Rocket Lab Launch Complex 2 on Wallops Island, Virginia. The mission was to test technologies for missile defense applications and it was contracted through the DIU's Hypersonic and High-Cadence Airborne Testing Capabilities (HyCAT) program. Credit: Rocket Lab

Saltzman calls for patience while Golden Dome plan remains under review

"Give him a little more time," said Space Force Chief of Space Operations Gen. Chance Saltzman when asked when he expects the head of the Pentagon's Golden Dome program office to share with industry the planned architecture of the missile defense shield.

Speaking last week at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Saltzman said he is frequently asked about Golden Dome's projected timeline and program details but stressed that he cannot answer those questions. Anything tied to Golden Dome falls under Gen. Michael Guetlein, the former vice chief of space operations of the Space Force, who now reports through a separate chain directly to Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg.

Saltzman acknowledged impatience across the industrial base. Defense contractors are preparing to commit billions of dollars to President Trump's signature missile defense initiative even though the Pentagon has released very little about requirements or system architecture.

He urged industry to hold tight. "I'll just maybe try to defend this process by saying this is pretty complex … and Mike's the right guy to do it," he said. "He's got the background experience to really pull this off."

A system of systems, not a traditional program

Saltzman emphasized that Golden Dome is far from a standard acquisition effort. He described it as a "system of systems," one that will require new sensors, data transport, link structures and data fusion at unprecedented scale. He said it will demand "new effectors" alongside existing ones and will need a decision support layer capable of tying everything together.

In Pentagon-speak, the term "effectors" refers to the weapons that would actually stop an incoming missile. The definition spans traditional kinetic interceptors, directed energy options and non-kinetic tools like electronic or cyber disruption.

Saltzman called the job ahead "a complex system that Mike's been asked to do ... I would just ask for grace and give him a little more time, because it is so complex. To get it right, he really needs to do the mission analysis ... He's working hard to make sure he's got the landscape right."

"But I'd say, let him do his job. He's going to get it right. But we don't want to rush to something that doesn't work," he added.

According to media reports, Guetlein met a mid-November deadline to submit a plan, which remains under review.

Industry sees openings as it waits for specifics

Even with sparse details, Golden Dome remains one of the most talked about initiatives in national defense. Its reach has expanded beyond the major primes to commercial space firms exploring dual-use avenues.

"There's going to be a real opportunity for industry," said Mikhail Grinberg, partner at Renaissance Strategic Advisors, speaking at the Baird Defense and Government Conference.

Grinberg argued that Golden Dome is a legitimate national security need regardless of its association with the administration that launched it. "There are a lot of things that Golden Dome could accomplish however it evolves," he said. "It might get renamed in the future, but the things that are really important is that there are real challenges to be solved."

He pushed back on the idea that the program remains completely undefined. He pointed to the 2025 appropriations bill enacted through reconciliation, which he said provides insight into "more than 80% of what will comprise Golden Dome. Between sensors and effectors, we know what these systems will be. Many of them are programs of record, and they're going to continue to be funded, and reconciliation funding being a plus up."

Grinberg predicted Golden Dome will become a "flagship initiative" made up of dozens of programs and will serve as an early test of the administration's acquisition transformation plans aimed at bringing commercial technology into national security programs faster.

Harrison: Still too early for forecasts

At the same conference, Todd Harrison, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, took a more restrained view.

"What is Golden Dome? We don't yet know," Harrison said. "We don't know the architecture. We don't know what threats it's going to be targeted at, or what capacity of threats it's going to be designed to intercept."

Still, he said it is reasonable to expect space technologies to dominate the architecture. "Space is going to be an integral part of nearly all of that. Space is the ideal domain for sensing for many of the types of threats." Some threats, such as small drones, must be detected from the ground. But for faster moving systems, "aircraft, cruise missiles, all the way up to ICBMs and FOBS," he said space based sensors offer the best chance to track from launch to impact.
A Fractional Orbital Bombardment System, or FOBS, places a payload into a partial low orbit before deorbiting it toward a target. Unlike traditional ICBMs, which follow predictable polar trajectories, a FOBS can approach the United States from any direction.

Harrison also highlighted the need for space-based communications nodes to tie sensors and interceptor weapons together.

"There is no better place to do that than space," he said.

Ground and airborne sensors will remain important, but the speed and precision required for Golden Dome will depend heavily on orbital infrastructure. "Space is going to play a huge role regardless of what the ultimate Golden Dome architecture ends up being," he added. In efforts to tighten timelines and close the kill chain, "space is going to be the key ingredient in all of this."

Notice to industry on 'midcourse' space interceptors

A new Golden Dome contracting notice offers a glimpse into the Pentagon's current thinking on the program.

The Space Systems Command last week alerted contractors to expect a solicitation, formally a "request for prototype proposal," around Dec. 7 for space based interceptors. The opportunity focuses on "kinetic midcourse interceptor solutions only," with awards projected for February 2026. SSC plans to issue multiple fixed price other transaction agreements and may fold in prize competitions as part of the effort.

The emphasis on midcourse interceptors is notable. President Trump's executive order frames space-based interceptors as tools to strike missiles during the boost phase, or in the first minutes after launch, when the rocket is bright and easier to track. Achieving that from orbit requires a large constellation positioned close enough to engage within seconds, a demanding requirement both technically and financially.
Midcourse interceptors pursue a warhead later, after the boost phase is complete. The extra time to react reduces the constellation size and engagement speed needed, but it shifts the burden to the sensor side.
Distinguishing a live warhead from decoys in midcourse is one of the hardest problems in missile defense.
Experts note that each option carries different architectural demands, and analysts like Harrison have argued that midcourse defense is the more realistic near-term path.

FROM SPACENEWS

Watch or listen to the latest episode of Space Minds

Reimagining space stations for the commercial age: On the latest episode of Space Minds, tune in to host Mike Gruss' fireside chat with Starlab Space CEO Marshall Smith. Their conversation explores how today's commercial space pioneers are turning concepts once rooted in science fiction into operational reality. Smith reflects on his path from NASA engineer to leading the development of a next-generation commercial space station—one designed for science, manufacturing, and a future where private industry drives a sustainable economy in low Earth orbit. Watch or listen now.

Space Force targets early 2026 release of 'objective force' blueprint

The U.S. Space Force is close to finishing a 15-year roadmap that sketches what the service will build, buy and field as space shifts into a contested military domain.

Gen. Chance Saltzman said the plan, called the "objective force," is wrapping up. "The bulk of the work is almost complete," he said Nov. 20 at CSIS.

The plan is intended to guide decisions and shape a service built to fight and defend in orbit, Saltzman said. He expects the objective force plan will send a clear "demand signal" to Congress and companies. "We must formalize our approach to force design," he said. "We have to clearly communicate the war fighting space architecture we need now and in the future."

The blueprint draws on years of analysis by the Space Warfighting Analysis Center. Saltzman said that work set the baseline for what a "combat credible force" looks like. The new review encompasses key mission areas such as missile warning. For example, it will spell out "the systems that we believe will be in place in the next 15 years … in order to continue to do missile warning."

Saltzman previously targeted late 2025 for release but that will likely slip. "While you may not see a published document before the end of December, I can pretty much tell you that the work will be complete by the end of December," he said. The Department of the Air Force will review it before public release, expected in 2026.

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