spacetoday.net: Air Force to shut down space fence

Posted: Wed, Aug 14, 2013, 8:51 AM ET (1251 GMT)
The US Air Force confirmed this week that it plans to shut down a network of radars that track space objects, raising concerns about increased risks of satellites colliding with orbital debris. The Air Force said it would shut down the Air Force Space Surveillance System, also known as the "Space Fence", by the end of the current fiscal year. The Air Force cited the need to save money because of budget sequestration for the move; shutting down the system would save $14 million in 2014. The Air Force Space Surveillance System consists of three transmitters and six receivers aligned along the 33rd parallel in the US, tracking objects as they pass overhead and feeding that information into the broader Space Surveillance Network. Some observers worry that the shutdown of the system could degrade the quality of tracking information on space objects, which in turn could raise the risks of satellite colliding with poorly-tracked space debris objects.