21st SOPS moves to Vandenberg

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif -- Mr. Mitch Tharaldson, RQ Construction, Col. Stephen Tanous, 30th Space Wing Commander, Lt. Col. Sam MCneal, 21st Space Operations Commander, and Lt. Col. Martha Kiene, Army Corps of Engineers, break ground to kick off the construction phase of the new Satellite Control Facility on Jan. 23. The new facility finds its home at Vandenberg due to the close of Onizuka Air Force Base in Sunnyvale, California where the 21st Space Operations Squadron resides. The new infrastructure will house command and control instruments as well as satellite operators to support the space mission. These operations include missile warning systems, meteorological data, NASA launch and re-entry missions, and intelligence related projects. As many as 500 operations a day can take place using antennas around the world to link to network and satellites which is essential to National Security. (U. S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Adam Guy)