US Space Force Eyes More Space-Based Interceptors to Destroy Missiles In Midcourse.

Washington; December 2025: The United States Space Force is requesting prototype proposals for space-based interceptors that can destroy a missile during the midcourse phase of flight, superceding  its previous efforts to develop interceptors that take down missiles in their boost phase.

Both kinds of interceptors would be part of the Pentagon’s Golden Dome missile defence architecture, which is being designed to protect the U.S. from a range of high- and low-end missile threats.

The December 07th notice for midcourse interceptors is light on details but says the prototype effort is focused only on kinetic solutions rather than nonkinetic systems that use directed energy to intercept a missile. Offers are due December 19th. The said notice reads:

“The United States Space Force (USSF) Space Systems Command (SSC) Space Combat Power (SCP) Program Executive Office is releasing Request for Prototype Proposal (RPP) FA8819-25-9-1002 for

the USSF Space Based Interceptor (SBI) LOE 2M. SSC/SCP will be looking for kinetic midcourse solutions only. The Government intends to competitively award multiple fixed price Other

Transaction Agreements (OTA) for the USSF SBI program in accordance with 10 USC 4022.

In addition, the Government anticipates the awards will also incorporate Prize Competitions

in accordance with 10 USC 4025. This courtesy Notice of Contract Action shall not be

construed as an obligation on the part of the Government and does

not commit the Government to making any awards”.

Space-based interceptors present one of Golden Dome’s bigger technical lifts. The Space Force has already awarded its first contracts for them in November, focusing on boost-phase interceptor prototypes. Speaking on December 06th at the Reagan National Defense Forum, Golden Dome Director General Michael Guetlein said the service awarded 18 contracts using Other Transaction Authorities under that effort.

Separately, the Missile Defense Agency on December 02^nd has identified more than 1,000 companies eligible to compete for its Scalable Homeland Innovative Enterprise Layered Defense effort, or SHIELD. While the contract isn’t solely devoted to Golden Dome, it will issue task orders for prototyping and experimentation efforts that are linked to the larger program.

The technology behind space-based interceptors has been demonstrated through past efforts like the “Brilliant Pebbles” and the Strategic Defense Initiative, but it still new and requires maturation. The bigger challenge, Guetlein said at the Reagan Forum, is scaling that technology and making it affordable.

Achieving that, the General said, will require a change to the department’s “warfighting culture” that demands exquisite, highly lethal kit with such a high cost that the Pentagon can’t afford to buy it in large numbers.

“When we start talking about things like space-based interceptor, I’ve got to switch that equation on its head. I’ve got to have high magazine depth, low cost per shot. How do I do that? We’re going to have to tap into industry innovation and bring it to bear to solve those problems”.

President Donald Trump has said he expects Golden Dome to cost $175 billion over the next 03 years, but experts have said that price will likely grow depending on how many space-based interceptors the department expects to need for U.S. coverage. The American Enterprise Institute, a Washington think tank, estimated in a September report the 20 years cost could range anywhere from $252 billion to $3.6 trillion.

Kathy Warden, CEO of Northrop Grumman, said during the panel it will take “a whole of government and industry approach” to determine the right design for SBIs that can be fielded “aggressively” and in significant numbers.

“The design has to not only be to develop a system”, she said. “It has to be to develop a system that can scale and scale affordably”.

Cost is also a “huge concern” for Congress, according to Senator Deb Fischer, who was also on the panel. Making sure Golden Dome is adequately funded to meet homeland defence requirements will demand close coordination between Congress and the Pentagon, she said.

“We have to be able to know what we need and prioritize that. And I think those decisions are becoming clearer for those of us in Congress when we work with the department and with the military and really get the information there”.

Lawmakers included provisions in the fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorisation bill aimed at fostering transparency on the program. In a compromise version of the bill that is expected to be voted on by the House on Dec. 10, members of Congress call for an annual report on Golden Dome’s architecture, cost, schedule, test plans, and operational concepts, among other details.

The bill also directs that until Golden Dome is fully operational, the Defense Secretary must brief Congress quarterly on the program’s progress.

Team Maverick.