PETERSON SPACE FORCE BASE, Colo. –
U.S. Space Command and the Missile Defense Agency partnered to execute the first for Space Domain Awareness Army Navy/Transportable Radar Surveillance live radiate event Oct. 24-26, 2022.
The primary purpose of the Army Navy/Transportable Radar Surveillance, or AN/TPY-2 radar, is to detect, classify, track and intercept ballistic missiles for U.S. Army Air Defense Artillery units. The live radiate event provided USSPACECOM and the MDA the opportunity to test broader applications of the AN/TPY-2 capability.
"The MDA is proud to partner with USSPACECOM in the development, testing and delivery of the Space Domain Awareness capability,” said Craig Reed, MDA director of ground test. “This live event provided the first-ever demonstration of the integrated end-to-end capability, assuring that the missile defense radars can support this critical mission area."
This event included tactical participants from the National Space Defense Center (NSDC), 18th Space Defense Squadron (SDS) Detachment 1, and the 94th Army Air and Missile Defense Command’s Sensor Manager Cell.
“This test is a great step on our path to leverage the AN/TPY-2 capability to simultaneously provide support to the SDA and missile defense missions,” said Derek Andersen, USSPACECOM Global Sensor Management division chief.
In addition to demonstrating these missile-defense radars can be optimized in support of other missions like SDA, the event marked the first tasking of non-organic assets by the 18th SDS Det. 1 on behalf of the NSDC, symbolizing a milestone for the tactical unit’s support of the protect-and-defend mission.
"We appreciate the opportunity to contribute to the live radiate event and were able to validate procedures and training with global sensors,” said U.S. Space Force Maj. Nathan Glandon, 18th Space Defense Squadron Det. 1 commander. “We look forward to future opportunities to integrate non-traditional sensors into the SDA mission area.”
The data captured in this event will solidify how MDA sensors can provide support to USSPACECOM's SDA mission and in turn, ensure space superiority across combatant commands. This is the first of future live radiate events expected to be executed in support of demonstrating multi-mission sensors.