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Revision as of 23:01, 23 December 2020

GLOBUS station above Vardø, with Globus II at left and Globus III at right

GLOBUS is a radar system in Vardø, on the island of Vårberget in Norway. It is operated by the Norwegian Intelligence Service (NIS) and its official uses are primarily space observation and Arctic airspace monitoring for Norway's national interest, though the site's close proximity to known Russian naval bases as well as U.S. involvement in construction and funding have fueled suspicions that it also serves as part of an American missile defense system.

Cold War and Globus I

Norway and the United States, both founding members of the newly-formed NATO, began cooperation on the GLOBUS project began during the Cold War era of the 1950s.[1] By 1988, the Globus I radar array was built and operational in the town of Vardø, just 50 km (31 mi) from the border between Norway and the Soviet Union[2] and within visible range of the Kola Peninsula, which is known to contain high-security Russian naval bases.[3] This came within the same year that the U.S. condemned the deployment of a large Soviet radar array near Krasnoyarsk, claiming that this violated the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.[4]

Globus II

Globus II (2009)

Originally known as HAVE STARE, the Globus II radar was built by the Raytheon Company at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California and became operational in 1995. Although the cost of the radar is classified, it is believed to have cost more than 100 million U.S. dollars.[5] In 1999 Raytheon moved the array to Vardø, Norway in fulfillment of a $23.5 million contract with the U.S. Defense Department and operations resumed under Norwegian control in 2001.[6]

Technical specifications of the system include:[7]

  • Frequency: X-band, 9.5 – 10.5 GHz
  • Range: 40,000 km (25,000 mi)
  • Peak power: 200 kW
  • Cassegrain feed antenna
    • Parabola: 27 m (89 ft)
    • Sub-reflector: 3.15 m (10.3 ft)
    • Focal length: 9.144 m (30.00 ft)
    • Beam width: <0.1°

Globus III

In 2016 construction began on a new array dubbed the Globus III to replace Globus I and work in concert with Globus II.[8][3] On 13 February 2018 it was reported that the local population felt misled about the size of the radar. The construction work was shrouded in secrecy, and many locals were critical, but they were reluctant to speak out because the project brought sorely needed employment to the community.[9] Testing was set to begin in autumn of 2018 with an expected operational date of 2022.[10]

Purpose and controversy

The site is administrated by NIS, which maintains that GLOBUS is operated by Norwegian personnel only and data is not sent to the United States. Their website officially states that the radar is used to:[11]

  • Monitor, track and categorize objects in space
  • Monitor our national area of interest in the north
  • Carry out fundraising for national use in research and development

Raytheon, the company that built Globus II, previously described it on their website as a radar "originally designed to collect intelligence data against ballistic missiles". The website has since been removed by request of the US DoD.[12][13]

In April 1998 a Norwegian journalist, Inge Sellevåg, from the daily newspaper Bergens Tidende discovered that NASA had no knowledge of a new radar being added to the system, despite the Globus II nearing operational condition. This led him to suspect it had other purposes and Mr. Sellevåg discovered that it was also going to be used for national purposes such as intelligence gathering.[13]

In 2000, during a storm, the radome was torn off and uncovered the Globus II radar dish. At that time it was pointing directly towards Russia. A local newspaper editor commented: "I'm not an expert, but I thought space was in the sky." Official comments claimed that the radar was still being tested and that it being pointed towards Russia was a pure coincidence. NIS official Tom Rykkin stated "if you use a small part of the brain, you know this also has an intelligence mission. ... In the intelligence business, there are certain things you don't make public. It is the nature of the business."[5]

In March 2017 nine Russian bombers took off from Russia's nearby Kola Peninsula and executed a mock air strike against the radar station, flying in attack formation and turning back just before breaching Norwegian airspace.[14] Then in February of the following year a very similar mock strike was carried out by eleven Russian fighter jets.[15] Regarding the GLOBUS system, Russian spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated in 2019 "It’s no secret that the information it receives is transmitted to the United States" and "...there is every reason to believe that the radar will monitor precisely the territory of the Russian Federation and will become part of the US missile defense system."[15][1]

References

  1. ^ a b O'Connor, Tom (23 May 2019). "Russia Will 'Take Measures' Against U.S. Radar Near Its Border, Thought to Be Part of Missile Defense". Newsweek. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
  2. ^ Saradzhyan, Simon (15 March 2000). "Russia Says U.S. Radar Violates ABM Treaty". The Moscow Times. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  3. ^ a b Higgins, Andrew (13 June 2017). "On a Tiny Norwegian Island, America Keeps an Eye on Russia". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
  4. ^ "New Hard Line Ties A-Arms Cut, Razing of Soviet Radar Site". Los Angeles Times. United Press International. 31 August 1988. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  5. ^ a b Higgins, Andrew (6 June 2000). "How A Storm Spread A Cold War Chill". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  6. ^ Nilsen, Thomas (17 November 2011). "Claims Vardø radar can be used in missile defence system". The Barents Observer. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
  7. ^ "A GLOBUS II / HAVE STARE SOURCEBOOK" (PDF). Federation of American Scientists. 20 September 2013. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
  8. ^ "Modernisering av radaranlegget i Vardø" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Armed Forces. April 6, 2016. Archived from the original on 14 June 2017.
  9. ^ Wormdal, Bård (13 February 2018). "Lokalbefolkningen raser mot feilinformasjon om ny topphemmelig radar". NRK (in Norwegian).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference eye was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ "Upgrade of The GLOBUS system" (in Norwegian). Norwegian Intelligence Service. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
  12. ^ Raytheon Systems Company (15 November 1999). "AN/FPS-129 HAVE STARE" (PDF). Center for Arms Control, Energy and Environmental Studies. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  13. ^ a b Sellevåg, Inge (March–April 2000). "Vardø Exposed". Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. 56 (2): 26–29. doi:10.1080/00963402.2000.11456939.
  14. ^ Nilsen, Thomas (13 March 2018). "Norway says Russia's mock attack on Vardø radar troubles stability in the north". The Barents Observer. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
  15. ^ a b Nilsen, Thomas (23 May 2019). "Moscow threatens response against Norwegian radar near Russian border". The Barents Observer. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
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