A new and very large missile defense project called the Golden Dome was officially announced in the United States. This defense shield is planned to protect the country from missile attacks, including those coming from long distances or even from outer space.
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The announcement was made at the White House. It was shared that this system will be ready in about three years. A large sum of $25 billion has already been given to start the work. But the total cost may go up to $175 billion once the project is completed. This shows how big and serious this project is.
The Golden Dome will be different from other missile defense systems. It will not only rely on land-based radar and interceptors but will also include parts in space. The shield will include advanced technology like space-based sensors and interceptors. These tools are meant to stop any missile that may target the United States, whether it comes from land, sea, air, or space.
The system is expected to detect and destroy different kinds of threats like cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, hypersonic missiles, and even drones. These are dangerous weapons that can travel very fast and are difficult to catch. That’s why the Golden Dome will be built using modern tools that can respond quickly and from multiple locations, including space.
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How the Golden Dome Will Work
The Golden Dome defense system will work by using sensors placed in space. These sensors can look down at the Earth and detect if a missile has been launched. Once a missile is seen, the system will send a signal to interceptors. These are high-speed missiles that will fly toward the threat and try to destroy it before it can hit any target in the U.S.
This system will also use help from land and sea. Ground-based radar stations and naval ships will be part of the plan. These parts will work together with the space sensors to track and stop dangerous missiles.
All of this will happen very fast. To help with this, the system will use modern communication networks. These networks will let all parts of the Golden Dome talk to each other in real time. This means information can be shared in just seconds, allowing a quick response to danger.
The name “Golden Dome” was chosen because it was inspired by a similar system called the Iron Dome used by another country. But while the Iron Dome mainly protects against short-range rockets, the Golden Dome is built to defend against very powerful and long-range missiles that may come from across the globe—or even space.
This makes the Golden Dome much more advanced and bigger in size. Its reach is meant to cover the entire United States. It will not just look for threats nearby but will scan the entire sky above the country and even space.
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Reactions and International Concerns
The Golden Dome project has sparked reactions from countries around the world. Nations like Russia and China have expressed concern, saying that putting weapons in space could lead to a new arms race. They believe space should be used for peace, not turned into a battlefield, and fear other countries might respond by building their own space-based weapons.
In North America, some neighboring countries have shown interest in the Golden Dome. There have been early talks about possible cooperation, such as sharing technology, working on joint research, or setting up combined defense systems. These discussions show that the project could grow beyond just the United States.
Experts who study defense spending say the Golden Dome could cost much more than expected. While the project was first announced with a $175 billion budget, official estimates suggest it might cost between $161 billion and $542 billion over the next 20 years. This makes it one of the most expensive defense programs in U.S. history.
The system is being built in response to modern threats, especially new missiles like hypersonic weapons that are very fast and hard to stop. Although it is inspired by Israel’s Iron Dome, the Golden Dome is designed for much larger threats and uses space-based technology, making it very different and much more powerful.
