Dividing the shield horizontally, across its right half, is a line of "Ts", which were adopted from previous patches reflecting the history of the wing's installations as a test center for missiles and space vehicles.

Nine pimento red flight arrows indicated the normal equatorial departure routes for missiles and space vehicles on the Eastern Range.

A string of white "clouds" across the center of the large globe represent abnormal conditions, weather and radiation with which range personnel have to contend.

[1] The Air Force Division, Joint Long Range Proving Ground was established on 1 October 1949.

Assigned to Headquarters Command, the Air Force Division include the 4800th Guided Missile Wing, which was gained on 30 December 1950.

[1][2] On 16 May 1950 the Air Force Division, Joint Long Range Proving Ground was redesignated as the Long Range Proving Ground Division and reassigned from Headquarters Command to Air Research and Development Command.

[1][2] Less than a year later, on 30 June 1951, the Long Range Proving Ground Division was redesignated again, becoming the Air Force Missile Test Center, gaining the 6541st Missile Test Wing, later redesignated as the 6541st Operations Group (Range).

In addition to performing national security space launches, the Air Force Eastern Test Range also supported all NASA launches out of Kennedy Space Center, including Project Mercury, Project Gemini, and the Apollo program.

Air Force Systems Command resumed direct oversight of the Air Force Eastern Test Range on 1 February 1972, before inactivating the range on 1 February 1977 and centralizing its management through the Space and Missile Systems Organization's Space and Missile Test Center.

[6][2] On 12 November 1991, as part of a larger Air Force heritage initiative, the Eastern Space and Missile Center was redesignated as the 45th Space Wing (45 SW), with the 45th Operations Group assuming the lineage of the World War II-era 45th Bombardment Group (Medium).

[2][8] The first launch under the 45th Space Wing was STS-44, with the Atlantis deploying a Defense Support Program (DSP) satellite.