Mike Casey
In my last post, we examined the vast, multi-layered sensor network behind America’s “Golden Dome” initiative, exploring the satellites and radars designed to detect and track hypersonic threats. But finding the needle in the haystack is only the first part of the problem. How does the U.S. military take that sensor data, make sense of it, and guide an interceptor to a target moving at over a mile per second?
This is where the command and control (C2) and data fusion systems come in—the digital “brains” of the operation that pull everything together. Let’s try to unpack that C2 architecture. We will explore the immense requirements, the key technologies and systems like the Army’s IBCS, and how they are being tested in practice.
U.S. Army soldiers in an Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) command post manage a successful missile intercept during a test at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. (image: defensenews.com).
First a recap of the operational and technical requirements for hypersonic missile defense: The entire C2 architecture for Golden Dome is shaped by the brutal reality of time. Unlike traditional ballistic missiles, which follow predictable parabolic arcs and allow defenders tens of minutes to react, hypersonic glide vehicles fly lower, faster, and maneuver unpredictably. This compresses the engagement timeline from detection to interception to mere tens of seconds.
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