Satellite maker Terran Orbital Corp. says it expects to have a role in President Donald Trump’s proposed Golden Dome project, which is designed to protect the U.S. against incoming hostile missiles.
The president’s proposal has sparked a public scramble among defense companies to secure a piece of the action, including SpaceX, Palantir Technologies, Anduril Industries and Terran Orbital’s parent, Lockheed Martin. Cost estimates for the enormous system range from $175 billion to an eye-popping speculation that runs into the trillions.
“I have a high level of confidence that we’re going to play some role in Golden Dome,” says Terran Orbital CEO Peter Krauss, adding that the president’s idea could require “thousands of satellites to build a constellation to defend our country.”
A role in the Golden Dome project could help revive the company, which was on the verge of collapse over the past two years.
After going public in 2022, it soared to a market cap reaching almost $2 billion before it gradually fell back to Earth amid a series of employee departures, falling sales and squabbles with investors; it was running out of cash and faced a delisting on the New York Stock Exchange.
Lockheed Martin, which owned 28% of Terran, rescued the company by acquiring it last year in a deal valued at $450 million.
Golden Dome participation could also spur expansion of Terran Orbital’s current sprawling site in Irvine.
“We are absolutely at the forefront and determined to have a robust industrialized manufacturing plan to meet those challenges and meet those demands. We feel we’re in a better position than anybody else to do so,” Krauss told the Business Journal on Sept. 17.
The Irvine-based company makes systems that track what’s happening in outer space, such as monitoring communications and detecting missiles.
“There’s a network of satellites that picks up the launch, tracks the missile and then directs the assets that are available to destroy said ordnance,” according to Krauss. That kind of capability would be key to a project such as Golden Dome.
While a little more than $24 billion has been budgeted as a possible start to the program so far, much more federal funding would be needed if it gains traction in Washington. The future of the proposal itself is open to question given the varying opinions in Washington. The White House has disclosed few details of the Golden Dome plan.
Meanwhile, China is already well on the way to developing a similar system, Newsweek magazine said last month.
‘At the Forefront’
Terran Orbital says it’s already playing a central, foundational role in the transport infrastructure that supports the near-term goals of the Space Development Agency, a part of the U.S. military.
Whether that leads cleanly into Golden Dome may depend on how that missile defense architecture is laid out and whether future segments known as “tranches” or add-ons get explicitly branded as “Golden Dome.”
Terran Orbital has expanded from just building the “bus” or framework holding the satellite’s sophisticated electronics.
“We don’t only build buses. We also build complete space vehicles with payload integration and provide launch services and many other things,” Krauss said. “We are going to have an automotive-like assembly line.”
Lockheed Martin:
Terran Orbital’s parent company Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) has already tossed its hat into the ring for a role in Golden Dome.
“Lockheed Martin has the proven, mission-tested capabilities and track record of integration to bring this effort to life,” Lockheed Martin says on its website.
Outer space threats go beyond science-fiction-like images of classic warfighting to include defending the orbiting satellites that provide vital communications and defense systems for the U.S. and its allies.
“If you take out a network of satellites, then all of a sudden we’ve lost critical communication both commercially and militarily,” says CEO Krauss, who is also Terran Orbital’s president.
Krauss said that protecting those assets is “a very big part” of the charter of Space Force, the branch of the U.S. Armed Services created in 2019.
“We’re in a race with certain adversaries, China to name the largest,” according to Krauss.
Race with the Chinese
Terran is considering an expansion in Irvine, depending on its contract wins.
The company already has 200,000 square feet in Irvine, according to CEO Krauss.
“Something like the Golden Dome would definitely warrant us having to build out that additional 100,000 square feet and stand it up to help with square footage we would need for a project of that magnitude.” (see story, this page).
Krauss emphasizes Terran Orbital’s full array of offerings.
“We also build complete space vehicles with payload integration and provide launch services and many other things,” according to the CEO.
Krauss says it’s “fair” to say Terran Orbital is moving more toward the military while maintaining a balance with its commercial goals.
“Space is a domain that we must have a meaningful presence in and must defend at all costs,” according to Krauss.
Irvine Expansion Possible if Terran Orbital Gets Golden Dome Contract
A Golden Dome missile defense contract for Terran Orbital would lead to significant expansion, and while the company is committed to Irvine, it’s not ruling out looking elsewhere.
The company now has 200,000 square feet of space and could add another 100,000, depending on the contract, according to Terran Orbital CEO Peter Krauss.
“We’re committed here to the Irvine market,” says Krauss. “We’re not ruling out looking outside of Irvine.”
The company now has about 500 employees in Irvine and approximately 600 companywide.
Like many other CEOs, Krauss emphasizes that California is “not the lowest-cost place to manufacture or do business in general,” but it “does provide a very high level of talent” that’s hard to replicate elsewhere.
“We’re going to look at ways to reduce our overall operating and manufacturing costs. And that includes looking outside of Orange County. But we are very committed to our base of operation here for the foreseeable future.”
“Something like the Golden Dome would definitely warrant us having to build out that additional 100,000 square feet and stand it up to help with square footage we would need for a project of that magnitude.”
“We’re not just going to do it and hope the business comes. We’re going to do it because the business came.”
Anduril is ‘Top Tier,’ Lacks Space ‘Flight Heritage’
Terran Orbital Chief Executive Peter Krauss says cross-county rival Anduril Industries is “very, very, very good,” especially with drones, but Palmer Luckey’s rapidly growing military defense company doesn’t have outer space experience.
“They are top tier,” Krauss told the Business Journal on Sept. 17.
Anduril and Terran Orbital are among the many companies likely to be vying for a piece of President Donald Trump’s hoped-for Golden Dome missile defense project.
Speaking of competitors, including Anduril, Krauss said: “They don’t have the flight heritage.”
He says that Anduril hasn’t flown anything in outer space, while Terran Orbital has a flight heritage dating back 10 years.
“They’re learning very quickly space is hard,” Krauss added. “It’s not the same thing as flying a drone.”
