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Pre-positioned satellites capable of in-space servicing could add a logistics layer to Golden Dome.
Military leaders have long extolled the value of logistics across physical domains—except in space. As the Pentagon refines requirements for a space-based missile defense shield under the Golden Dome initiative, space servicing companies are pitching a logistics layer.
Keeping U.S. space assets operating beyond the early stages of conflict and maintaining an edge over adversaries will require “the right mix” of capabilities, including responsive launch, on-orbit maneuvering and logistics, U.S. Space Command Commander Gen. Stephen Whiting said Aug. 5 at the Space and Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama. Mission areas such as on-orbit refueling or repairs will become as critical as filling up a tank or changing a flat tire in a self-driving car, he said.
- The Pentagon debates value of in-space servicing
- Potential vendors eye lucrative Golden Dome opportunities
Since President Donald Trump formally announced the Golden Dome initiative in May, technology companies across capability areas have scrambled to participate. The White House says the endeavor would cost $175 billion and take three years to build, although independent analysts estimate the cost could run into the trillions.
A key component of Golden Dome is space-based, including new interceptors for boost-phase missile interdiction and missile warning/tracking sensors. As the U.S. Space Force embraces commercial technology, in-space servicing companies are urging the Pentagon to consider a logistics layer.
The Defense Department is planning several demonstrations next year related to on-orbit refueling and in-space servicing. In one effort, it is partnering with Astroscale U.S. to develop a 300-kg (660-lb.) satellite to refuel two Space Force assets in geostationary orbit. It is slated to launch next summer.
As on-orbit assets grow more vulnerable to attacks, companies like Astroscale U.S. see opportunities to support Golden Dome and other space-based assets, says company President Ron Lopez, a former U.S. Air Force intelligence officer.
“We’re at a stage right now where the national security domain of space is the only domain of operations that isn’t backed up and supported by a logistics tail,” he tells Aviation Week.
A potential logistics layer would include five capability areas, Lopez says: inspection, maneuver and orbital transfer, refueling and life extension, removal and deorbiting, and on-orbit storage and pre-positioning of space-based assets.
Since Space Force Gen. Michael Guetlein’s confirmation as the Golden Dome acquisition czar in July, the Pentagon has limited public statements about the program, but it has released a handful of solicitations. None have specifically mentioned a logistics layer. However, the possibility is “not difficult to imagine,” says Dallas Kasaboski, principal analyst at Analysys Mason.
“Unofficially, trends are moving in that direction, and it wouldn’t surprise me that these capabilities will be required,” he adds.
Kasaboski says a “huge disconnect” remains between the investment needed to develop such commercial capabilities, what a Golden Dome might require and how the program is now budgeted.
The acquisition process has always lagged behind the introduction of novel mission areas, Lopez says. Pentagon offices, including the Air Force Research Laboratory and DARPA, are partnering more frequently with commercial companies to hone new technology, and those businesses need follow-on contracts, he notes. “We need to make sure that these [demonstrations] don’t just become one-off cool technology development programs,” he says.
While Golden Dome is not the only major opportunity in town, “it is a very large game with a large amount of funding behind it and likely to have more funding,” Kasaboski says.
A broader issue is how to secure military funding for in-space servicing. Some Space Force leaders favor a proliferated architecture that can be rapidly launched and replaced, thanks to declining launch costs. They argue that it is now more cost-effective to replenish a satellite constellation than to repair individual spacecraft.
Defense contractor Anduril is aware of both arguments, as it develops technologies for rendezvous and proximity operations that could support an on-orbit logistics layer, says Adam Thurn, chief engineer for space missions. While declining to provide specifics, Thurn tells Aviation Week that Golden Dome offers opportunities for “tactically responsive capabilities” that allow the U.S. military to pre-stage logistics support differently.
That could mean positioning on Earth satellites and launch vehicles that are ready to launch at a moment’s notice, or on-orbit capabilities “that have a day job [and are] ready to perform a second job when called upon,” he says.
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