Colorado space company hopes to land contract for President Trump's Golden Dome project
President Donald Trump is moving forward with his plans for a $175 billion Golden Dome defense system. While the federal government is still working on developing the architecture, one Denver space company is hoping to be a part of its construction.
The president's ambitious plans to increase national security through a defense system similar to Israel's Iron Dome have caught the attention of Denver-based York Space Systems.
"York is really well positioned, uniquely suited to support the Golden Dome," said Melanie Preisser, the company's executive vice president and general manager.
Preisser believes they have the quick production capabilities to keep up with President Trump's 3-year timeline and the innovative abilities to deliver.
"We've been able to make a laser communication link between our satellites and satellites that were developed by another company," said Preisser. That's kind of a first heard, and we're very proud of that accomplishment."
Preisser says York has been participating in industry days to learn about the project.
"What does a space-based interceptor constellation look like? What does the ground integration look like? We've been participating in many of those, learning about what the government is envisioning for the Golden Dome."
In the meantime, the company is continuing what they do best.
"We are executing programs for the government and our commercial customers."
The company just launched satellites into space in June and July.
"Within a few weeks, we're going to launch yet another set of satellites, actually 21 of them all at the same time for the Space Development Agency," Preisser. "We actually have a pretty large backlog of over 100 satellites that we are building for various customers. "
And whether you're the federal government or an average citizen, you're probably relying on satellites without realizing it.
"When you turn on your phone to get directions to Starbucks, when you go to the ATM and get some cash out of the machine, the timing signal that is used by that ATM is also based on a satellite capability. So, space capabilities are everywhere in your life."
If you've been to a Colorado Rockies game recently, York Space Systems may seem familiar. That's because the company is a new sponsor of the team, and its logo is now patched onto the players' jerseys. They say for years they've been quietly proving what they can do in the space industry, and now it's time to showcase those capabilities.
