Building Golden Dome, with Lt Gen (Ret) Nahom & Mike Dickey (Elara Nova)

Lt. Gen. (Ret.) David “Abu” Nahom spent decades defending the American homeland, from commanding Alaska Command and the 11th Air Force to shaping Air Force budgets and strategy as the A8. Mike Dickey started his career in the original Strategic Defense Initiative, helped build the USSF and now advises companies and government leaders on the future of national security. Together, they unpack the realities behind Golden Dome: what it is, what it isn’t, and why it may be the most complex defense undertaking of our time.

Inside the episode:

• Why homeland defense is no longer a Cold War problem and why threats across all domains demand a fundamentally new architecture
• What it actually takes to detect, track, and intercept advanced weapons, from ballistic missiles to hypersonics to low-observable cruise missiles
• How command & control is the real bottleneck, and why BMC2 will define the success or failure of Golden Dome
• Why integrating F-35s, space sensors, legacy radars, and new AI systems is a social-engineering challenge as much as a technical one
• The role of startups in a mission where “move fast and break things” collides with the reality of life-or-death stakes
• Why public perception lags far behind the actual threat picture and what Americans get wrong about homeland defense
• The technologies on the horizon that could completely reshape missile defense in the next decade

• Chapters •

00:00 – Intro
00:41 – David's and Mike's Backgrounds
04:01 – How Elara Nova has grown since last episode
05:17 – What makes Golden Dome different?
08:00 – How exposed has the US been to missile threats?
10:53 – What is the Golden Dome supposed to look like today?
14:02 – Not reinventing the wheel
16:38 – Capabilities of today and tomorrow
23:00 – How new modes of launch change missile defense
24:57 – Integrating new solutions with current systems
27:15 – Golden Dome isn't a technology problem
29:41 – How much does ego play into the social engineering challenge of the Golden Dome?
32:47 – Unable to fail in this startup-driven golden age of space and defense tech
36:11 – Risks of the Golden Dome budget ballooning
39:29 – The deterrence calculus
42:12 – How will Golden Dome interface with our allies
44:20 – Exciting defense tech being developed or doesn’t exist yet
46:29 – How putting weapons in space changes things
48:13 – Golden Dome issues they wish were fixed today
50:24 – What everyday Americans don't understand about the Golden Dome
53:01 – Measurable outcomes that the Golden Dome works
54:56 – What Mike and David do for fun

• Show notes •

Elara Nova’s website — https://elaranova.com/
Mo's socials — https://twitter.com/itsmoislam
Payload’s socials — https://twitter.com/payloadspace / https://www.linkedin.com/company/payloadspace
Ignition’s socials — https://twitter.com/ignitionnuclear /  
https://www.linkedin.com/company/ignition-nuclear/
Tectonic’s socials  — https://twitter.com/tectonicdefense / https://www.linkedin.com/company/tectonicdefense/
Valley of Depth archive — Listen: https://pod.payloadspace.com/

• About us •

Valley of Depth is a podcast about the technologies that matter — and the people building them. Brought to you by Arkaea Media, the team behind Payload (space), Ignition (nuclear energy), and Tectonic (defense tech), this show goes beyond headlines and hype. We talk to founders, investors, government officials, and military leaders shaping the future of national security and deep tech. From breakthrough science to strategic policy, we dive into the high-stakes decisions behind the world’s hardest technologies.

• Payload: www.payloadspace.com
• Ignition: www.ignition-news.com
• Tectonic: www.tectonicdefense.com