Space Surveillance Fence or "Space Fence"

The "Space Fence" is a product of Raytheon and it can track and detect space objects. It is essentially like a space radar. It can even track objects very small in size. The system is comprised of three transmitters in Lake Kickapoo, Texas, which is the primary; Gila River, Arizona; and Jordan Lake Alabama. There are six receivers located at San Diego, California; Elephant Butte, New Mexico; Red River, Arkansas; Silver Lake, Mississippi; Hawkinsville and Tattnall, Georgia. This system has been around for a while Raytheon is only giving it a big time upgrade, as before it could only pick up larger items and could not track them. Now it can pick up much smaller objects and even track them. Now the question is what are they trying to watch? Is it just satelites and the possibility of missile attack or are they trying to track something else up there?


www.spacedaily.com...
www.spacedaily.com...
raytheon.mediaroom.com...
www.secureworldfoundation.org...
www.fas.org...

Junk. There's so much crap drifting around, you have to keep up with nuts, bolts and gloves to make sure you're not about to get holed by flying space crap.

Before, you couldn't see anything that small, IIRC the resolution limit was maybe 20", depending on shape and orientation.

reply to post by Bedlam


Yeah I realize there is alot of crap in the Earth's orbit you gotta watch out for, I was just being ambiguous when I said "are they trying to track something else up there?". Although it is being put on by the Air Force and that is something to think about. I had never heard of the "Space Fence" until I came across an article on it today, so I thought I would throw it out there so others could see it.

A few years ago, the Chinese intentionally blew up a satellite of theirs which was in an irresponsibly high orbit---so that the debris is not burning up quickly. In one boom this greatly increased the amount of space junk, maybe 50% or 100% as compared to all the space junk accumulated since 1957.

It's just plain pollution.

reply to post by mbkennel


The U.S. also blew up a satelite, USA 193, in 2008. Also a U.S. communications satelite collided with a Russian military satelite Feb. 2009.
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