DAHLGREN, Va. — The Navy transferred operation of the former Naval Space
Surveillance System, the nation’s oldest sensor built to track satellites and
debris in orbit around the Earth, to the Air Force during formal ceremonies here
Oct. 1.

The Secretary of Defense directed the Navy to transfer program management of the
system to the Air Force beginning in October 2003. The Air Force requested that
the Navy continue to operate the space surveillance sensor, also known as the
“Fence,” through fiscal year 2004.

The newly created 20th Space Control Squadron Detachment 1 assumes operation of
the Fence from the Naval Network and Space Operations Command. At the
establishment ceremony, Rear Admiral John Cryer, the commander for NNSOC,
reminded the audience that the nation’s space surveillance mission has been a
joint service effort from its beginnings.

“Even as Navy developed the unique capability we have in the Fence, we have
always worked closely with the Air Force,” which is responsible for maintaining
space control, Admiral Cryer emphasized. “We will continue that tradition of
joint service cooperation in the years ahead.”

Admiral Cryer expressed pride in the command’s employees who have been critical
to the success of the Navy’s space surveillance operation for the past several
decades. “And I’m pleased the Air Force has elected to continue operation of the
Fence from Dahlgren, partly in recognition of the invaluable expertise our
personnel bring to the mission,” he continued.

The transfer of Fence operations to the Air Force brings an end to more than 40
years of Navy control of the sensor from Dahlgren, first by the Naval Space
Surveillance System, then assumed by Naval Space Command in 1993 and finally by
NNSOC when that organization was established in 2002.

In addition to assuming operation of the Navy’s space surveillance system, the
20th SPCS Detachment 1 is also taking on the Alternate Space Control Center
mission, which was first assigned to NAVSPASUR in 1987. In its ASCC role,
NAVSPASUR — followed by Naval Space Command and finally NNSOC — served as the
backup computational and command and control node for the Space Control Center
at Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Base, Colo.

The new Air Force detachment is a component of the 20th Space Control Squadron
headquartered at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. During the ceremony, Lt. Col. James
Hogan, squadron commander, presented the detachment’s new flag to Maj. Donald
Daugherty, the unit’s first officer in charge.

Colonel Hogan remarked, “For 43 years, Navy has stood watch over space with the
Fence and has one of the first seats at the table of space surveillance. In
addition, the Navy has operated the free world’s only Alternate Space Control
Center for 17 years.

“Today marks this country’s continued commitment to these two very important
missions,” Colonel Hogan emphasized. “Through the Air Force’s strong cadre of
space professionals, we stand before you today, ready to accept this role.”

Approximately 60 civilian personnel at Dahlgren — former NNSOC employees who
directly support Fence and ASCC operations — will continue to work in their
current functions, only as Air Force employees. Eleven Air Force military
personnel have reported on board as the first uniformed members of 20th SPCS
Detachment 1.

An additional 100-plus contractor personnel will continue to support Dahlgren
operations and operate nine remote field stations that make up the space
surveillance sensor.

Major Daugherty has been stationed at Dahlgren since 2002, initially as an
exchange officer for 14th Air Force working with NNSOC. He supported Fence
operations as well as NNSOC’s mission as the Alternate Space Control Center for
U.S. Strategic Command.

During the ceremony, Admiral Cryer awarded the Navy and Marine Corps
Commendation to Major Daugherty in recognition of his service at NNSOC and his
leadership in developing a test plan for the first evaluation of the Fence’s
contribution to the nation’s Space Surveillance Network.

“The Air Force unit we’ve established at Dahlgren is an extension of the 20th
Space Control Squadron primarily because their mission is to maintain space
situational awareness,” says Major Daugherty. The squadron, which includes
approximately 115 military and civilian personnel, operates another
space-looking radar in Florida as one of 17 Air Force units that support the
21st Space Wing.

“We’re one of only two Air Force units within the 21st Operations Group that is
collocated on a Navy installation,” adds Maj. Daugherty. 20th SPCS Detachment 1
is also the most geographically dispersed unit within the 21st Space Wing,
consisting of 10 locations.

The Naval Space Surveillance System field stations comprise a bi-static radar
that points straight up into space and produces a “fence” of electromagnetic
energy. The system can detect basketball-sized objects in orbit around the Earth
out to an effective range of 15,000 nautical miles. More than five million
satellite detections, or observations, are collected by the surveillance sensor
each month.

Data collected by the Fence is transmitted to a computer center at Dahlgren,
where it is used to constantly update a database of spacecraft orbital elements.
This information is reported to Fleet and Fleet Marine Forces to alert them when
particular satellites of interest are overhead.

Today, the Navy’s space surveillance system is one of about 20 sensors that
together comprise the nation’s worldwide Space Surveillance Network directed by
U.S. Strategic Command in Omaha, Neb.

“The Fence is unique to the Space Surveillance Network in that it is the only
non-cued sensor,” explains Dr. Paul Schumacher, technical advisor to NNSOC’s
operations department.

“It does not need to be pointed in any one direction to track specific objects.
As a constantly radiating radar, it detects everything that crosses its path,”
he adds. “This makes the Fence especially critical for detecting object breakups
or orbital maneuvers as they occur.”

Today, the Fence sees about 60 percent of today’s space object catalog, which
contains more than 10,500 objects. Among those objects, only about 500 are
working satellites. The rest of the items are dead satellites and debris.

Jim Rose oversees NNSOC’s Surveillance Operations Branch, which provides Fleet
support, manages the Fence’s mission system operational software and assists the
Alternate Space Control Center.

“The warfighter is obviously interested in the relatively small number of active
payloads,” Rose observes. “But it’s hard to know where one object is without
knowing where [the other] 10,000 objects are.”