Golden Dome Missile Shield Faces Technical, Funding Delays

One year after its launch, the Golden Dome missile‑defense initiative has shown limited visible progress, slowed by technical disputes over space‑based components and delayed large‑scale spending.
Signed on January 27, 2025, the executive order set a 2028 target to field a comprehensive homeland shield; roughly $25 billion was appropriated last summer but most funds remain unspent while officials finalize a classified space architecture.
Debates center on proposed satellite networks and disputed on‑orbit capabilities—ranging from communications standards to potential anti‑satellite functions—which raise policy concerns about space debris and offensive uses.
Program director General Michael Guetlein cannot begin major procurements until key architectural choices are resolved. To date the Space Force has issued about half a dozen small prototype contracts (roughly $120,000 each) to firms including Northrop Grumman, True Anomaly, Lockheed Martin and Anduril.
Analysts say a year of security reviews, staffing and planning was inevitable, and a full 2028 completion is unlikely; near‑term gains will focus on integrating existing ground systems with new sensors.
Although the president has linked Greenland to the initiative, officials say Greenland is not part of Golden Dome’s proposed architecture.