Solid State Phased Array Radar System: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|American radar network}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}

[[File:PAVE PAWS&BMEWS.svg|thumb|300px|Coverage of the original [[PAVE PAWS]] and [[BMEWS]] systems, later upgraded to SSPARS and eventually to UEWR]]

[[File:Radar RAF Fylingdales.jpg|thumb|BMEWS solid-state phased-array radar at [[RAF Fylingdales]]]]

The '''Solid State Phased Array Radar System'''{{r|Chapman}} ('''SSPARS'''), [[colloquialism|colloquially]] '''Ballistic Missile Early Warning System radar network''' ('''BMEWS radar network'''),<ref>{{Cite report |editor1=Carter, Austin |editor2=Mattorano, Gino |year=2004 |title=Space Command Almanac 2004-2005 |url=http://www.afspc.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-060316-011.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060711202348/http://www.afspc.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-060316-011.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=11 July 2006 |publisher=HQ AFSPACECOMM Public Affairs }}</ref> is a [[United States Space Force]] radar, computer, and communications system for missile warning and space surveillance. There are SSPARS systems at five sites: [[Beale Air Force Base]], CA, [[Cape Cod Space Force Station]], MA, [[Clear Space Force Station]], AK, [[RAF Fylingdales]], UK, and [[Pituffik Space Base]], Greenland.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Operations, Maintenance and Support for the Solid State Phased Array Radar System (SSPARS) at 5 Geographically Separated Units WorldWide |url=https://www.fbo.gov/?s=opportunity&mode=form&tab=core&id=caf2eb4dbcca881980fb2e403a8e3194&_cview=0 |number=FA2517-04-R-0016 |publisher=FedBizOpps.gov |access-date=2014-03-13}}</ref> The system completed replacement of the [[Ballistic Missile Early Warning System|RCA 474L Ballistic Missile Early Warning System]] when the last SSPAR wasbecame operational at then-[[Clear Space Force Station|Clear Air Force Station]] in 2001.{{r|Chapman}}

==Classification of radar systems==

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The Solid State Phased Array Radar System is a phased array radar with 2500 "solid state transmitter" modules.<ref>{{Cite web| title=Radar Handbook | first=Merrill I. | last=Skolnik | url=http://www.geo.uzh.ch/microsite/rsl-documents/research/SARlab/GMTILiterature/PDF/Skolnik90.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140416175805/http://www.geo.uzh.ch/microsite/rsl-documents/research/SARlab/GMTILiterature/PDF/Skolnik90.pdf | archive-date=2014-04-16}}</ref>

It began replacing PAVE PAWS when the first AN/FPS-115 face was taken off-line for the radar upgrade. New [[PAVE PAWS#Replacement|AN/FPS-123]] Early Warning Radars became operational inat (Beale) and (Cape Cod) in each base's existing PAVE PAWS "Scanner Building".<ref name=HAER>{{Cite report |title=Photographs [and<nowiki>]</nowiki> Written Historical and Descriptive Data: Cape Cod Air Station Technical Facility/Scanner Building and Power Plant |url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/ma/ma1600/ma1633/data/ma1633data.pdf |access-date=2014-06-10 |quote=Technical Facility/Scanner Building (HAER No. MA-151-A), which houses the AN/FPS-1152 radar and related equipment… PAVE PAWS Site 1 … AN/FSS-7…designed by [[Avco|Avco Electronics Division]]… The first two PAVE PAWS sites in Massachusetts and California represented the first two-faced phased array radars deployed by the U.S. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140715034251/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/ma/ma1600/ma1633/data/ma1633data.pdf |archive-date=2014-07-15 }}</ref>

In 2001 SSPARS equipment included:

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|image1=[https://www.flickr.com/photos/usairforce/7414560082/ AN/FPS-132 UEWR]

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* [[Solid-state (electronics)|Solid-state]] [[phased -array radar]]

** Each radar installation has multiple faces, where each face provides a 120-degree coverage.<ref name="MDA"/>

* Operating frequency: [[Ultra high frequency]] (UHF)<ref name="MDA"/>

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{{Reflist}}

==See Alsoalso==

{{Portal|Electronics}}

*[[List of radars]]