Israel’s Ministry of Defense has finalized a contract exceeding $500 million with Elbit Systems and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems for the high-power lasers that help form the Iron Beam air defense system.

Expected to be operational within a year, the 100-kilowatt, high-energy Iron Beam system is designed to complement the existing Iron Dome defense system by shooting down missiles, rockets and drones. The Iron Dome, developed by Rafael with US backing, is Israel’s key anti-missile shield. The Iron Dome detects and tracks incoming projectiles within a 100-kilometer (62-mile) radius with radar and calculates which ones could reach populated areas. It then fires Tamir missiles at these rockets to destroy them before hitting their targets. 

The Iron Beam, meanwhile, uses extremely concentrated bursts of light of up to 150 kilowatts to shoot down projectiles with pinpoint accuracy.

Israel also has other missile defense systems: David's Sling, Arrow 2 and Arrow 3. David's Sling can intercept missiles within a 300-kilometer (186-mile) radius (up to 15 kilometers [9 miles] in altitude), while the Arrow system can stop missiles up to 2,400 kilometers (1,491 miles) away (up to 100 kilometers [62 miles] in altitude).