The Satellite Control Network (SCN), operated by the United States Space Force's Space Delta 6, provides support for the operation, control, and maintenance of a variety of United States Department of Defense and some non-DoD satellites.
These SOCs are staffed around the clock and are responsible for the command and control of their assigned satellite systems.
The Satellite Control Network was originally activated to support the CORONA (Discoverer) program in 1959.
An interim satellite control center was initially established in Palo Alto, California, and by June 1960, a permanent control center had been established Sunnyvale AFS, later renamed Onizuka AFS, Sunnyvale, California.
[3] It was a three-sided site until the summer of 2011, when the "C" side was decommissioned and dismantled in preparation for system upgrades.
As of February 2015, the RBC installation is nearly complete, with just a few minor details to be finished before the formal testing gets underway in the May/June timeframe.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the RTSs were modernized with the addition of the Automated Remote Tracking Station (ARTS) systems.
The ARTS systems provided more responsive support and reduced the manpower required at each site through semi-automation.