Krona-N

Krona-N (Russian: Радиолокационный комплекс "Крона-Н", tr. Radiolokatsionny kompleks Krona-N[2]:93) is a Russian military complex which uses radar to analyse satellites and other spacecraft. It is located in Nakhodka in the Russian Far East and is part of the Centre for Outer Space Monitoring, the space surveillance section of the Russian Space Forces. Krona-N is the second Krona, the first Krona is in Zelenchukskaya in the North Caucasus.

For other uses, see Krona (disambiguation).
Krona-N
Крона-н
Russia
Krona-N
Coordinates42.9357°N 132.576769°E / 42.9357; 132.576769
TypeSpace surveillance station
Site history
Built2008 (2008)?
Garrison information
GarrisonMilitary unit в/ч 29982 [note 1][1]

History

Krona-N was mentioned in a 1980 report by Soviet military contractor Vympel on the future development of the Soviet system of space monitoring and control. This report stated that the Krona in Zelenchukskaya should be completed and proposed the development of Krona-N in the far east, and a complex called Krona-V (Russian: Крона-В). Krona-V was to detect space craft in high earth orbits, and Krona-N to detect craft in low earth orbits.[2]:216[3]

Work on Krona-N stopped in the mid 1980s but restarted sometime later.[4] In 2005 it was described as being under construction[5] and in late 2007 the then Space Forces commander Vladimir Popovkin was quoted as saying it would be commissioned in 2008.[6][7]

Facility

Krona complexes have been described as counter-intelligence facilities which identify and study hostile military satellites.[8] The first Krona in Zelechukskaya is on two sites with an optical telescope and a LIDAR as well as two radars. Krona-N has no optical component, it is on one site and entirely radar based.[4]

In common with Krona in Zelechukskaya there are two radars on this site. The largest one, the tree-like antenna giving the facility its name,[note 2] is a decimeter band (UHF)[note 3] phased array radar designed by NIIDAR.[8] The other radar, operating in the centimeter band (SHF),[note 4] consists of 5 rotating parabolic dishes in a cross which work on the basis of interferometry.[4][8][9]

Krona-N has GRAU index 40Zh6 (Russian: 40Ж6) and the military unit is number 29982. The town is called Fokino-1 (Russian: Фокино-1) after the nearest settlement, the closed naval town of Fokino.[1]

Notes
  1. в/ч nnnnn is the standard way of writing Russian military units, standing for войсковая часть (military unit)
  2. from the crown of a tree, krona dereva
  3. Russian sources describe this as being in UHF channel A
  4. Russian sources describe this as being in SHF channel N

References
  1. ИЗВЕЩЕНИЕ № _____________ о проведении открытого конкурса ... аппаратуры комплекса 40Ж6 "Крона-Н" по Государственному оборонному заказу на 2009 год. [NOTICE number _______ of the open tender ... set of equipment 40Kh6 "Krona-N" on the state defence order of 2009.] (in Russian). Russian Ministry of Defence. 2009. Retrieved 2012-08-06.
  2. Sourcebook on the Okno (в/ч 52168), Krona (в/ч 20096) and Krona-N (в/ч 20776) Space Surveillance Sites (PDF). Federation of American Scientists. 2008-12-30. Retrieved July 31, 2012.
  3. СККП: Система контроля космического пространства Российской Федерации [SKKP: A system of space monitoring of the Russian Federation] (in Russian). Vympel. 2006-10-04. Retrieved 2012-03-17.
  4. O'Connor, Sean (2008-06-13). "Soviet & Russian Space Surveillance Facilities". Retrieved 2012-03-12.
  5. Sofronov, Ivan (2005-05-28). Космические войска получили лазерный локатор [Space forces have a laser radar] (in Russian). Kommersant. Retrieved 2012-03-17.
  6. В 2007 году Космические войска обеспечили реальность сроков сдачи в эксплуатацию перспективного РКК "Ангара" [In 2007 the Space Forces gave a time for the commissioning of Angara] (in Russian). ITAR-TASS. 2007-12-29. Retrieved 2012-03-17.
  7. Podvig, Pavel (2012-01-30). "Early warning". Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces. Retrieved 2012-03-17.
  8. "Russia's Krona Space Reconnaissance System Profiled, Praised in TV Programme". BBC Monitoring/Red Orbit. 2007-10-21. Retrieved 2012-03-17.
  9. Контроль над космосом на высоте, или "Крона" в Зеленчуке [Control of space at a height, or 'crown', in Zelenchukskaya] (in Russian). Novosti Kosmonavtiki. April 2007. Archived from the original on 2010-10-20. Retrieved 2012-03-17.
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