Advertisement

Space Fence facility opens in New Jersey

A Space Fence test site has opened to validate hardware and software for the program to detect and track debris orbiting the Earth.

By Richard Tomkins
The new Space fence test facility opened in New Jersey. Photo courtesy Lockheed Martin
The new Space fence test facility opened in New Jersey. Photo courtesy Lockheed Martin

MOORESTOWN, N.J., March 29 (UPI) -- Lockheed Martin has opened a site in New Jersey for early validation of hardware, formware and software to be used in the Space Fence program.

Space Fence is a U.S. Air Force program to detect, track and catalogue orbital objects/debris orbiting the Earth to predict and prevent space-based collisions.

Advertisement

The test facility is representative of the much larger Space Fence facility being built on Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific and will provide early lessons learned on installation of the S-band ground-based radars, support maintenance training and allow engineers to test verification procedures.

"The opening of this test facility marks an exciting milestone for Space Fence," said Bruce Schafhauser, director, Lockheed Martin Space Fence. "We are one step closer to dramatically improving space situational awareness and increasing orbital debris monitoring by tenfold.

"By using an open-architecture system, Space Fence can adapt to future missions requiring various tracking and coverage approaches."

Latest Headlines