Radars
1973 photo - AN/FPS-90 Radar Support Area the Semi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) search radar (white radome), the submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) detection radar (grey/green radome) and the SAGE height finder radar (no radome).The AN/FPS-107 search radar operated with a 360° continuous spin, at a rate of 5 rotations per minute. It transmitted ten megawatt pulses of radio frequency energy, with each pulse having a duration of six microseconds. It had a detection range of 250 miles, up to an altitude of 100,000 feet. The search radar facility was originally built in 1959 by the General Electric company.
The AN/FPS-90 Radar height finder antenna could be positioned to point in any direction to determine the altitude of aircraft. The antenna performed its vertical sweep by nodding up and down at a rate of 30 times per minute. Once the position was approximated, an operator would fine-tune the position to measure the altitude of a single aircraft of interest. The height finder radar transmitted five megawatts of radio frequency energy in a two microsecond pulse. Its range was about 180 miles and up to 75,000 feet in altitude. While the height finder antenna could be pointed in any direction, pointing it in the direction of the search radar was avoided, as the beam would strike the top of the search radar's tower. The beam was considered harmful to personnel out to a distance of 212 feet.
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