New Boston Space Force Station (BOSS) is a
United States Space Force
The United States Space Force (USSF) is the space force branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces, armed forces of the United States and one of the eight uniformed services of the Unite ...
facility located in
Hillsborough County in south central
New Hampshire
New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
. It was transferred from the
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...
to the Space Force in the summer of 2020.
The installation occupies more than in three towns:
New Boston,
Amherst, and
Mont Vernon. It was originally established in 1942 as a practice area for bombers and fighter planes from nearby Grenier Army Air Field (now
Manchester–Boston Regional Airport
Manchester–Boston Regional Airport , informally referred to as Manchester Airport, is a public use airport south of the central business district of Manchester, New Hampshire, United States on the border of Hillsborough and Rockingham coun ...
). Starting in 1959, it was turned into a satellite-tracking station, providing the facility's most prominent feature, the weatherproof
radome
A radome (a portmanteau of "radar" and "dome") is a structural, weatherproof enclosure that protects a radar antenna (radio), antenna. The radome is constructed of material transparent to radio waves. Radomes protect the antenna from weathe ...
s which dot the hillside. BOSS has been providing support for northernly launches from KSC/
Cape Canaveral
Cape Canaveral () is a cape (geography), cape in Brevard County, Florida, in the United States, near the center of the state's Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. Officially Cape Kennedy from 1963 to 1973, it lies east of Merritt Island, separated ...
for decades, and has supported the
Shuttle
The original meaning of the word shuttle is the device used in weaving to carry the weft. By reference to the continual to-and-fro motion associated with that, the term was then applied in transportation and then in other spheres. Thus the word ma ...
and
Titan IV
Titan IV was a family of heavy-lift space launch vehicles developed by Martin Marietta and operated by the United States Air Force from 1989 to 2005. Launches were conducted from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida and Vandenberg Air Forc ...
programs. Since 2020 the facility has also provided line of sight
telemetry
Telemetry is the in situ collection of measurements or other data at remote points and their automatic transmission to receiving equipment (telecommunication) for monitoring. The word is derived from the Greek roots ''tele'', 'far off', an ...
tracking for commercial space launches by
SpaceX
Space Exploration Technologies Corp., commonly referred to as SpaceX, is an America, American space technology company headquartered at the SpaceX Starbase, Starbase development site in Starbase, Texas. Since its founding in 2002, the compa ...
.
New Boston SFS is operated by the
23rd Space Operations Squadron
The 23rd Space Operations Squadron (23 SOPS) is a satellite control unit of the United States Space Force. It is part of Space Delta 6 and is located at New Boston Space Force Station, New Hampshire. Prior to July 2020, part of the 50th Network ...
(23 SOPS), a geographically separated unit (GSU) of
Space Delta 6
Space Delta 6 (DEL 6) is a United States Space Force unit which assures access to space through the $6.8 billion Satellite Control Network and defensive cyberspace capabilities for space mission systems.
Tracing its history to 1965, the delta i ...
, part of
Space Base Delta 1 at
Schriever Space Force Base
Schriever Space Force Base, previously Schriever Air Force Base, Falcon Air Force Base, and Falcon Air Force Station, is a base of the United States Space Force located approximately east of Peterson Space Force Base near Colorado Springs, Col ...
, Colorado.
The 23rd SOPS operates and maintains the largest
Satellite Control Network
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. This in ...
remote tracking station at
New Boston SFS, as well as at three other GSU's located at
Thule Air Base
Pituffik Space Base ( ; ; ), formerly Thule Air Base (), is a United States Space Force base located on the northwest coast of Greenland in the Kingdom of Denmark under a defense agreement between Denmark and the United States. 150 United Stat ...
, Greenland,
RAF Oakhanger
RAF Oakhanger was a Royal Air Force station in Hampshire split over three operational sites; with accommodation in nearby Bordon. The main site and operations centre is located near the village of Oakhanger, the two other sites being nearby. ...
, United Kingdom, and the Eastern Vehicle
Checkout Facility located at Cape Canaveral, Florida. The squadron provides real-time capability to users performing on-orbit tracking, telemetry, commanding and mission data retrieval services.
Additionally, the squadron provides remote command and control capability through two
Global Positioning System
The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-based hyperbolic navigation system owned by the United States Space Force and operated by Mission Delta 31. It is one of the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that provide ge ...
Control stations located at Cape Canaveral and
Ascension Island
Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island, 7°56′ south of the Equator in the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic Ocean. It is about from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America. It is governed as part of the British Overs ...
in the South Atlantic Ocean. The squadron also operates and maintains a
Defense Satellite Communications System
The Defense Satellite Communications System (DSCS) is a United States Space Force satellite constellation that provides the United States with military communications to support globally distributed military users. Beginning in 2007, DSCS began ...
Heavy Earth Terminal, and additional equipment in support of the
National Oceanographic Atmospheric Administration and other mission partners.
The installation and infrastructure are said to be worth more than $106 million.
History
The New Boston Space Force Station dates back to 1942, when what was then
Grenier Field Grenier is a surname. It is a French word for ''attic, loft,'' or ''granary''. Notable people with the surname include:
* Adrian Grenier
* Angèle Grenier, Canadian maple syrup producer
* Auguste Jean François Grenier (1814–1890), French docto ...
in
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
was preparing to meet the demands of World War II.
On September 5, 1941, Colonel John Moore, commanding officer of the U.S. Army Air Corps at Grenier Field, wrote a letter proposing the government create a bombing range in New Boston near Joe English Pond. "The nature of the terrain around the pond is such that aerial bombing thereon would offer the elements of surprise, concealed approach and navigation to a point," Moore wrote. "It is believed that Joe English Hill (altitude 1,245 feet) would be a satisfactory stop for any ricochet bullets from ground machine gun targets."

Eventually, land belonging to 16 families, 12 of them in New Boston, was taken at a cost of $23,200.
There was no electricity on site, and water had to be brought from Dodge's store in the center of New Boston. Nail kegs were used as chairs. Locals felt so sorry for the soldiers that they donated used furniture.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, local residents remember watching fighters and bombers train at the Air Force station and learned to recognize the sounds of strafing and bombing as they went about their tasks. "I'd watch from the kitchen window," 89-year-old Evelyn Barss told the
''Nashua Telegraph'' newspaper in a 2005 story. "They would come in across the hill and drop their bombs and we would see them. These little black specks would go down, and you would hear a small discharge - they didn't use a lot of powder because it was scarce during the war."

Roland Goodwin worked at the base on and off for three decades and remembers seeing the tail fins of bombs sticking out of the pond. Planes at one time practiced dropping depth bombs for sinking submarines. "Every building we built down there in the early days ... we usually ran into a buried bomb of some kind. We'd have to bring people up from
Fort Devens
Fort Devens is a United States Army Reserve military installation in the towns of Ayer, Massachusetts, Ayer and Shirley, Massachusetts, Shirley, in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County and Harvard, Massachusetts, Harvard in Worcester ...
to detonate it." Ordnance has been detonated as late as 2010.
After the war, the station took a lower profile. The bombing range was deactivated and after a long debate about the site's future, it became home to new satellite tracking antennas.
Satellite support operations at New Boston Satellite Tracking Station began April 1, 1960, using van-mounted equipment. Simultaneous with van operations, the installation of equipment in permanent facilities began under the Weapons Systems 117L program. Van operations were gradually phased out, and by June 1964, the entire station was operating in permanent facilities. By the summer of 1964, the station had dual satellite tracking, telemetry and commanding capabilities. (During the late 1970s and early 1980s it was known as Detachment 1 of the 2014th Communications Squadron located at
Hanscom Air Force Base
Hanscom Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base located predominantly within Bedford, Massachusetts, with portions extending into the adjoining towns of Lincoln, Concord and Lexington. The facility is adjacent to Hanscom Field ...
in
Bedford, Massachusetts
Bedford is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population of Bedford was 14,161 at th2022 United States census
History
''The following compilation comes from Ellen Abrams (1999) based on information from Abram Engl ...
''Not true, see the following'') It first was the 6594th Instrumentation Squadron in 1959 and then Detachment 2 of the AFSCF in 1979 until 1987. The squadron was transferred to
Air Force Space Command
An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosphere ...
, and the station moved from a research and development environment into the operational Air Force Oct. 1, 1987. The 23rd Space Operations Squadron was realigned under the 50th NOG March 10, 2004, and the station celebrated its 50th anniversary. Assigned to the 50th NOG, the unit later gained responsibility and oversight of the 23rd SOPS began supporting three other AFSCN sites including 23rd SOPS Detachment 1, located at
Thule Air Base
Pituffik Space Base ( ; ; ), formerly Thule Air Base (), is a United States Space Force base located on the northwest coast of Greenland in the Kingdom of Denmark under a defense agreement between Denmark and the United States. 150 United Stat ...
, Greenland, and
RAF Oakhanger
RAF Oakhanger was a Royal Air Force station in Hampshire split over three operational sites; with accommodation in nearby Bordon. The main site and operations centre is located near the village of Oakhanger, the two other sites being nearby. ...
, United Kingdom, Oct. 1, 2010. The third site, the Eastern Vehicle Checkout Facility is located at Cape Canaveral and ensures operation of satellites prior to and during initial launch. The 23rd SOPS began supporting two GPS ground antennas and monitor stations Aug. 1, 2011. One is located at Cape Canaveral and the other is located at Ascension Auxiliary Air Field on
RAF Ascension Island
RAF Ascension Island , also known as Wideawake Airfield or Ascension Island Auxiliary Field, is a military airfield and facility located on Ascension Island in the Atlantic Ocean. The airfield is jointly operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) an ...
.
Space Force
In July 2021 the facility was renamed from New Boston Air Force Station to New Boston Space Force Station.
On July 19, the facility was upgraded, with a new hybrid automated remote tracking system for the facility's 13 meter antenna, and a new
radome
A radome (a portmanteau of "radar" and "dome") is a structural, weatherproof enclosure that protects a radar antenna (radio), antenna. The radome is constructed of material transparent to radio waves. Radomes protect the antenna from weathe ...
installed over the antenna.
Based units
Notable units based at New Boston Space Force Station.
United States Space Force
Space Operations Command
Space Operations Command (SpOC) is the United States Space Force's space warfare, space operations, cyber warfare, cyber operations, and military intelligence, intelligence field command. Headquartered at Peterson Space Force Base in Colorado ...
(SpOC)
* Space Delta 6
**
23rd Space Operations Squadron
The 23rd Space Operations Squadron (23 SOPS) is a satellite control unit of the United States Space Force. It is part of Space Delta 6 and is located at New Boston Space Force Station, New Hampshire. Prior to July 2020, part of the 50th Network ...
23 SOPS is a Geographically Separate Unit, which although based at New Boston SFS, is subordinate to the Space Delta 6 based at
Schriever AFB
Schriever Space Force Base, previously Schriever Air Force Base, Falcon Air Force Base, and Falcon Air Force Station, is a base of the United States Space Force located approximately east of Peterson Space Force Base near Colorado Springs in E ...
in
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...
.
Geography

A few working farms are in the vicinity; however, most of the surrounding area is heavily wooded with pockets of residential development. Commercial development consists primarily of small shopping centers with a few office complexes along
NH State Route 101 to the southeast.
New Boston SFS consists mostly of undeveloped, forested land with extensive wetlands. Local, state, and federal laws governing the preservation of natural, cultural, and environmental resources play a major role in limiting development on and around the station.
The station lies within the
Merrimack River
The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into M ...
watershed. Fourteen freshwater ponds fed by springs or streams, which occupy approximately 100 acres (405,000 m
2), and of streams exist on the station. The ponds are bordered by wetlands, and the streams by riparian vegetation. Riffle and pool habitats are favorable for many cold water fish species. Wetland types include freshwater emergent marshes of variable depths,
wet meadow
A wet meadow is a type of wetland with soils that are Solubility, saturated for part or all of the growing season which prevents the growth of trees and brush. Debate exists whether a wet meadow is a type of marsh or a completely separate type of ...
s, shrub and deciduous wooded swamps such as red maple and black gum swamps, and a red spruce
bog
A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and musk ...
. This bog contains a deep
peat
Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most ...
layer.
Of all the water bodies on the station, only Joe English Pond appears on the list of protected water bodies under the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services Comprehensive Shoreline Protection Act (CSPA).
References
External links
23rd Space Operations Squadronat New Boston AFS (fact sheet)
*
*
*
{{USAF Space Command
Installations of the United States Space Force
Buildings and structures in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire
Historic American Engineering Record in New Hampshire