Congressional Budget Office Projects $1.2 Trillion Cost for National Missile Defense System Over 20 Years
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that a notional national missile defense system, designed to meet the objectives of the 'Golden Dome' plan, could cost approximately $1.2 trillion over a 20-year period. This figure is based on a system that would include around 7,800 space-based interceptor satellites, with the satellites alone accounting for $720 billion of the total cost. The CBO's projection also highlights that such a system would require the replacement of roughly 1,600 satellites annually, as they have a short orbital lifespan of about five years due to atmospheric drag. This indicates a continuous, rather than one-time, procurement expense. Other estimates, such as those from the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), suggest even higher costs, with a robust Golden Dome architecture potentially reaching $3.6 trillion over two decades, and space-based interceptors alone costing up to $6 trillion under a separate scenario. The Pentagon has not released the actual objective architecture fo...
