SpaceX just locked in what might be its most consequential government deal yet: a contract worth approximately $2 billion to build a constellation of 600 satellites for the US Space Force. The satellites will track missiles and aircraft as part of the Pentagon’s Golden Dome program, a space-based missile defense system inspired by Israel’s Iron Dome.
The work will be handled by Starshield, SpaceX’s military-focused satellite division.
What Golden Dome actually is
Golden Dome is the Trump administration’s flagship missile defense initiative, officially announced in 2025. The specific capability SpaceX is building is called the air moving target indicator, or AMTI. It’s designed to detect and track objects moving through the atmosphere, whether that’s a ballistic missile or a hostile aircraft. Deploying 600 satellites for this purpose creates a persistent surveillance mesh that’s far harder to evade or disable than ground-based radar systems.
The target for full operational capability is January 2029.
