The US Space Force is expanding its Ground-Based Radar Digitization (GBRD) program to modernize all eight of its aging missile-warning and space-surveillance radars, shifting from partial upgrades to a full digital overhaul, according to Theresa Hitchens of Defense News. The effort will replace outdated analog systems with advanced antennas, standardized software, and shared computing architecture to improve detection of faster, more complex threats.
The upgraded network will enhance missile defense, reduce long-term costs, and provide a more unified picture of space activity. Initial operational capability is targeted for 2030, with full deployment expected by 2031. Hitchens writes:
The Space Force has broadened its plans to upgrade its legacy ground-based radars to improve their missile defense and space monitoring capabilities, now envisioning a sweeping program to digitize the mostly analog antennas and computer processors for all eight of the aging systems, according to a Space Systems Command (SSC) spokesperson.
The expanded Ground Based Radar Digitization (GBRD) effort is “transformational,” as it will allow the service to put into place “better ways to defeat modern digital threats (smaller, faster, more numerous objects),” the spokesperson said. […]
SSC “is seeking industry inputs on a potential larger scope program to include all eight of our ground-based strategic radars,” a Space Systems Command (SSC) spokesperson told Breaking Defense. “In addition to the five Upgraded Early Warning Radars (UEWRs) and the PARCS radar in North Dakota, the RFI now includes the Cobra Dane radar in Alaska and the AN/FPS-85 radar at Eglin AFB, Florida.”
“These aging systems are nearing obsolescence, necessitating technological upgrades. GBRD aims to digitize these radars for enhanced battlespace awareness, reduced sustainment costs, and resolution of obsolescence challenges,” according to the RFI. […]
“Digitizing the front end is like upgrading from an old analog television camera to a new 8K digital camera. It provides the new brain with an incredibly clear, high-fidelity data stream, unlocking the system’s full potential and allowing us to see the threats we couldn’t see before.” […]
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