Golden Dome

Venture capital funding in American defense startups is on track for its best year ever, according to private market data firm PitchBook.

RTX argues that fielding a Golden Dome capability quickly means relying on systems that are currently fielded.

Firefly Aerospace intends to make a second attempt to launch the seventh mission of its Alpha rocket by early next calendar year.

Technology company Varda Space Industries wants the U.S. military to use its reentry capsule for Golden Dome-related reps and sets.

Voyager Technologies expects to complete the critical design review (CDR) for the Starlab commercial space station soon.

Voyager Technologies has acquired ExoTerra Resources, a Hall-effect propulsion developer, for an undisclosed amount.

Trump’s Golden Dome is driving calls for a new layer in the Pentagon’s future on-orbit architecture.

The U.S. Space Force has tapped Vantor to help it track high-interest objects on orbit using non-Earth imaging, the company announced Oct. 22.

Satellite bus manufacturer Apex is funding and organizing a space-based interceptor technology demonstration within the next year.

Firefly Aerospace will pay $855 million to acquire defense technology company SciTec, the Texas-based startup said on Oct 5.

AeroVironment is looking to parlay its work on counter-uncrewed air system (C-UAS) laser weapons to go after anticipated business to combat higher-end threats.

Our roundup of the main aerospace and defense stories making the news this week.

Firefly Aerospace is looking at potential ways to secure a share of the space-based interceptor market emerging from the Pentagon’s Golden Dome effort.

The U.S. Space Force on Sept. 18 released a request for prototype proposals for space-based interceptors, with responses due Oct. 2.

Satellite bus manufacturer Apex has raised $200 million in a Series D funding round and reached a $1 billion valuation, the company said on Sept. 12.

President Trump’s goal of a Golden Dome to protect against a broad range of threats to the homeland is likely to cost far more than originally advertised.

When lawmakers return to Capitol Hill after Labor Day, they will be staring down a government shutdown deadline.

Defense companies are bracing for risk as the Pentagon signals it may require self-funded prototypes for space-based interceptors.

The military alliance between Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States faces formidable challenges four years after its establishment.

The U.S. Space Force plans to solicit prototype designs for space-based interceptors around Sept. 5, an Aug. 21 notice says.

Signs of activity on the arctic archipelago of Novaya Zemlya point to a resumption of flight tests on Russia’s 9M370 Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile.

The architecture would comprise surface batteries in the homeland with launchers positioned inside of standard, 40-ft.-long shipping containers and silos, according to slides presented to industry.

KBR hopes tech and tools developed for its Iron Stallion space domain awareness monitoring platform will enable it to play a key role in Golden Dome.

The Missile Defense Agency is targeting a new launcher for Golden Dome under layer interceptors to be operational within two years.

The MDA has released a solicitation for a new southern-facing radar to be operational within three years to support the Golden Dome for America missile shield.