Cavalier Air Force Station
Encyclopedia
Cavalier Air Force Station is a United States Air Force
installation in Pembina County, North Dakota
, home to the 10th Space Warning Squadron
of the 21st Space Wing
based at Peterson Air Force Base
in Colorado
.
), a phased array
radar
system housed in a 37m-tall structure. Both American and Canadian military members are assigned to the facility, as well as contractor employees.
. PARCS can spot an object the size of a basketball
at 3000 km. It analyzes more than 20 000 tracks per day, from giant satellites to space debris.
The station is located approximately 5 km north and 3 km west of Mountain
, about 20 km from Cavalier
.
Image: Perimeter Acquisition Radar Characterization System.png|Perimeter Acquisition Radar Characterization System (PARCS)
Image: Mangy Moose.png|Mangy Moose Base Club
Image: Mangy Moose Inside.png|Inside the Mangy Moose Club
Image: Cav Bowling.png|Cavalier AFB Bowling Alley
Image: Cavalier AFS sign.png|Cavalier AFS sign
Image: PARCS rear.png|Rear of PARCS Structure
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
installation in Pembina County, North Dakota
Pembina County, North Dakota
Pembina County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Dakota. At the time of the 2010 Census its population was 7,413. The county seat is Cavalier....
, home to the 10th Space Warning Squadron
10th Space Warning Squadron
The United States Air Force's 10th Space Warning Squadron , is a missile warning unit located at Cavalier AFS, North Dakota.-Mission:...
of the 21st Space Wing
21st Space Wing
The 21st Space Wing is a unit of the Air Force Space Command based at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. The unit is tasked with the operation of early missile warning and space object detection equipment around the world in support of NORAD and USSTRATCOM through a network of command and control...
based at Peterson Air Force Base
Peterson Air Force Base
Peterson Air Force Base is a base of the United States Air Force located at Colorado Springs in El Paso County, Colorado, United States and it provides runways for the adjacent City of Colorado Springs Municipal Airport under a shared joint civil-military airport arrangement...
in Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
.
Mission
The station monitors and tracks potential missile launches against North America with a AN/FPQ-16 Perimeter Acquisition Radar Characterization System (PARCSPARCS (radar)
The Perimeter Acquisition Radar and Attack Characterization System is a concrete structure 121ft high which continuously provides critical missile warning and space surveillance data to North American Aerospace Defense Command , United States Strategic Command , and regional combatant commanders...
), a phased array
Phased array
In wave theory, a phased array is an array of antennas in which the relative phases of the respective signals feeding the antennas are varied in such a way that the effective radiation pattern of the array is reinforced in a desired direction and suppressed in undesired directions.An antenna array...
radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
system housed in a 37m-tall structure. Both American and Canadian military members are assigned to the facility, as well as contractor employees.
Equipment
PARCS observes sub-orbital and orbital objects in support of NORAD's early warning and space surveillance programs. Its single-faced phased array radar is pointed northward over Hudson BayHudson Bay
Hudson Bay , sometimes called Hudson's Bay, is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada. It drains a very large area, about , that includes parts of Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Alberta, most of Manitoba, southeastern Nunavut, as well as parts of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota,...
. PARCS can spot an object the size of a basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
at 3000 km. It analyzes more than 20 000 tracks per day, from giant satellites to space debris.
The station is located approximately 5 km north and 3 km west of Mountain
Mountain, North Dakota
As of the census of 2000, there were 133 people, 43 households, and 26 families residing in the city. The population density was 978.4 people per square mile . There were 55 housing units at an average density of 404.6 per square mile...
, about 20 km from Cavalier
Cavalier, North Dakota
Cavalier is a city in Pembina County, North Dakota in the United States. It is the county seat of Pembina County. The population was 1,302 at the 2010 census. Cavalier was founded in 1877 and became the county seat in 1911....
.
Chronology
- 1976: SafeguardSafeguard ProgramThe Safeguard Program was a United States Army anti-ballistic missile system developed during the late 1960s. Safeguard was designed to protect U.S. ICBM missile sites from counterforce attack, thus preserving the option of an unimpeded retaliatory strike. Safeguard used much of the same technology...
system is deactivated. - 1977: USAFUnited States Air ForceThe United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
acquires the former PAR, using the name Concrete Missile Early Warning System (CMEWS) (named for the hamlet of Concrete, N.D., just west of the PAR site). - 1983: With the closing of the post office at Concrete, N.D., the name is changed to Cavalier Air Force Station (named for the town of Cavalier, N.D., 11 miles east of the site).
- 1993: Name shortened to Cavalier Air Station.
- 2000: Name changed back to Cavalier Air Force Station.
Previous Designations
- Cavalier Air Force Station (2000–present)
- Cavalier Air Station (1993–2000)
- Cavalier Air Force Station (1983–1993)
- Concrete Missile Early Warning System (1977–1983)
Photo gallery
Image: Perimeter Acquisition Radar Characterization System.png|Perimeter Acquisition Radar Characterization System (PARCS)
Image: Mangy Moose.png|Mangy Moose Base Club
Image: Mangy Moose Inside.png|Inside the Mangy Moose Club
Image: Cav Bowling.png|Cavalier AFB Bowling Alley
Image: Cavalier AFS sign.png|Cavalier AFS sign
Image: PARCS rear.png|Rear of PARCS Structure