Britain lends support to U.S. plan to base space radar sensors in United Kingdom to monitor orbiting objects

Aug. 9, 2021
Current early warning systems can detect objects in space as high as 12,400 miles from earth, while the new radar sensor could double that distance.

LONDON – A U.S. Space Force plan to position a system in Britain to monitor spacecraft as high as 22,400 miles from earth drew the approval of the Royal Air Force chief. UPI reports Continue reading original article

The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:

9 Aug. 2021 -- Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Wigston, in the United States to examine the plans, said Britain is "very interested" in hosting an element of the Deep Space Advanced Radar Capability, under development by the Space and Missile Systems Center of the U.S. Space Force.

The project, known as DARC, would double the range of detection of objects in space, with an array of 10 to 15 parabolic antennas, or large satellite dishes, covering about 0.4 square miles.

Each dish would be about 50 feet in diameter, with additional DARC locations in Texas and Australia. The Space Force will seek a request for proposals to develop prototypes of deep space radar sensors that can monitor satellites and space debris in geostationary orbits.

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John Keller, chief editor
Military & Aerospace Electronics

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