Global InformationMissile Defense Agency information
 | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | January 2002 |
| Preceding agencies |
|
| Jurisdiction | Federal government of the United States |
| Headquarters | Headquarters Command Center, Fort Belvoir, Virginia[1] |
| Employees | Approx. 2500 (3000 with non-MDA support personnel) (2016)[2] |
| Annual budget | $9.187 billion (FY 2021)[3] |
| Agency executives |
|
| Parent agency | Department of Defense |
| Website | www |
The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is a component of the United States government's Department of Defense responsible for developing a comprehensive defense against ballistic missiles. It had its origins in the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) which was established in 1983 by Ronald Reagan and which was headed by Lt. General James Alan Abrahamson. Under the Strategic Defense Initiative's Innovative Sciences and Technology Office[5][6][7] headed by physicist and engineer Dr. James Ionson,[8][9][10][11] the investment was predominantly made in basic research at national laboratories, universities, and in industry. These programs have continued to be key sources of funding for top research scientists in the fields of high-energy physics, advanced materials, nuclear research, supercomputing/computation, and many other critical science and engineering disciplines—funding which indirectly supports other research work by top scientists, and which was most politically viable to fund from appropriations for national defense.[12] It was renamed the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization in 1993, and then renamed the Missile Defense Agency in 2002.[13] The current director is U.S. Navy Vice Admiral Jon A. Hill.[14]
Rapid changes in the strategic environment due to the rapid dissolution of the Soviet Union led, in 1993, to Bill Clinton focusing on theater ballistic missiles and similar threats, and renaming it the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization, BMDO. With another change to a more global focus made by George W. Bush, in 2002 the organization became the Missile Defense Agency.
The Missile Defense Agency is partially or wholly responsible for the development of several ballistic missile defense (BMD) systems, including the Patriot PAC-3, Aegis BMD, THAAD and the Ground-Based Midcourse Defense system with a cost of $194 billion.[15] They also led the development of numerous other projects, including the Multiple Kill Vehicle and the newer Multi-Object Kill Vehicle, the Kinetic Energy Interceptor and the Airborne Laser. As the inheritor of the SDI and BMDO work, the MDA continues to fund fundamental research in high-energy physics, supercomputing/computation, advanced materials, and many other science and engineering disciplines.[12]
- ^ "MDA Breaks Ground on New Headquarters Facility" (PDF).
- ^ Missile Defense Agency Notification and Federal Employee Antidiscrimination and Retaliation Act (NoFEAR) Fiscal Year 2016 Report (PDF) (Report). Missile Defense Agency. 2016. p. 1. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
- ^ Missile Defense Agency Budget Estimates Overview Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 (PDF) (Report). Missile Defense Agency. 2020. p. 1, 15. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
- ^ "MDA Leadership". mda.mil. Missile Defense Agency. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
- ^ "SDIO Funds Research". MIT: The Tech. November 5, 1985. Archived from the original on August 8, 2012. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
- ^ "Special Presentation: Innovative Science and Technology Programs". SPIE – Digital Library. June 3, 1988. doi:10.1117/12.947548.
- ^ "Star War's Inc". Inc. Magazine. April 1987.
- ^ Goodwin, Irwin (June 1988). "Washington's Ins & Outs: Ionson and Mense Leave SDIO". Physics Today. 41 (6): 53. Bibcode:1988PhT....41f..53G. doi:10.1063/1.2811448.
- ^ "Low Profile for SDI Work on Campus". The Scientist Magazine. May 1988.
- ^ "Ionson Counters SDI Dispute". MIT: The Tech. November 1985. Archived from the original on 2012-08-08. Retrieved 2018-05-25.
- ^ "Ionson Defends SDI Program". MIT: The Tech. October 1985. Archived from the original on 2012-06-16. Retrieved 2018-05-25.
- ^ a b 85-25: National Policy on Transfer of Scientific, Technical and Engineering Information, Security Innovation for Estate Protection
- ^ "MDA History". mda.mil. January 23, 2019. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
- ^ "Missile Defense Agency Completes Change of Responsibility Ceremony". www.mda.mil (Press release). Fort Belvoir, Virginia: Missile Defense Agency. May 31, 2019. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
- ^ Hitchens, Theresa (2023-05-18). "Watchdog slams Missile Defense Agency for delivery, testing shortfalls in 2022". Breaking Defense. Retrieved 2023-05-25.