During the Soviet Union's heyday, when the shadow of the Cold War loomed over the world, the Soviet Union deployed a radar system that amazed the world and not only set a world record for size, but also sparked international conversation for its powerful features and side effects.
This radar, called the "Duke Long-Range Warning Radar", has a huge power consumption, and can affect the world's short-wave communications as soon as it is turned on, which has deeply disturbed radio enthusiasts and communication experts in various countries.
In the 70s and 80s of the 20th century, when the Cold War gradually rose to the peak of tension, the strategic contest between the two major superpowers in the world, the United States and the Soviet Union, became more and more intense.
The Soviet Union, in the midst of this invisible war, realized that it faced not only political and ideological challenges, but also the growing military power of the United States, especially in the field of intercontinental ballistic missiles.
Feeling an unprecedented threat, the Soviet government and military were determined to devote significant resources to the research and development of high-tech weapons to enhance national defense security.
In an extremely closed and confidential R&D environment, Soviet scientists and engineers finally succeeded in developing an over-the-horizon long-range warning radar system that shocked the world after painstaking efforts and countless trials and errors.
At 700 meters long and 150 meters high, this jumbo system is as impressive as a medium-sized skyscraper. However, what this system really prides itself on is its unmatched detection capabilities.
It was able to detect objects up to 10,000 kilometers away and as small as 5 centimeters in diameter, and its accuracy and range were world-class at the time.
Beginning in July 1976, the world's largest radar system became an important part of the Soviet Union's anti-missile network across its territory and continued to operate until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. It provided powerful early warning information for the Soviet Union's air defense and was a cornerstone of the Soviet Union's security line.
However, the operation of this super radar did not come without a price. Its start-up disrupts global shortwave communications. In any corner of the world, anyone tuned into a particular shortwave channel is likely to hear a helicopter-like roar — the sound of this set of radars when it is fired.
This phenomenon was particularly prominent in the 70s and 80s of the 20th century, when it caused great interference and impact to radio amateurs, international radio stations and other users who relied on radio communications.
As a result of this interference, the Soviet Union reportedly received thousands of international complaints, especially radar stations in the Soviet Union near the Chinese border, one of which was close to China, which, due to its sensitive geographical location, not only interfered with local communications, but also caused reactions and even serious political and military concerns from neighboring countries.
Although the Soviet technology demonstrated its military might, it undoubtedly increased tensions between the Cold War sides and further revealed the double-edged sword effect of scientific and technological development on a global scale.
The Duke Long-Range Warning Radar is a suite of advanced military surveillance equipment developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War to monitor potential nuclear threats.
This radar system uses the principle of ionospheric reflection, that is, when electromagnetic waves are emitted into the sky, they can be reflected back to the ground by charged particles in the upper atmosphere, the ionosphere, so as to achieve the detection of targets beyond the horizon.
The system pays particular attention to changes in the propagation of ions to electromagnetic waves, especially the ionic activity generated by the combustion exhaust gases emitted by ballistic missiles.
In the early stages of a missile's launch, its engines emitted large amounts of gases that left behind ion trajectories that could be picked up by long-range warning radar as they passed through the ionosphere, allowing the Soviet Union to detect missile launches thousands of kilometers away, providing valuable early warning time for its defense.
The radar facility, located near Mykolaiv, Ukraine, has demonstrated not only its combat effectiveness but also its ability to track submarine ballistic missiles launched from the Pacific region, through numerous tests and experiments. This advanced technology demonstrated the Soviet Union's military strength and technological innovation at the height of the Cold War.
However, this powerful radar system also generates a lot of electromagnetic noise that interferes with global radio communications. Radio operators have had to resort to noise shielding technology—a way to increase the complexity of signal processing — in an attempt to reduce the interference generated by radar.
This technique can filter out noisy signals to some extent, allowing radio communication to continue, but it is often an expensive and impractical solution for amateur radio enthusiasts. As a result, the Ducker long-range warning radar system was a major challenge for the radio community until December 1989, when it was decommissioned.
With the collapse of the Soviet Empire, the revolutionary fortifications of those days have faded into obscurity, and their former glory is now only an echo of history.
Alone in the wilderness of Ukraine, these massive radar structures stand in silence as a testament to those turbulent times, and now the once proud radar sites have become a new frontier for tourists seeking extraordinary adventures.
At the same time, the Duke long-range warning radar, as a part of the video game, evokes nostalgia and emotions for many people of that era. For many game lovers, they are not only a part of the game world, but also a fond memory of that historical moment.
The narrative of the "world's best" radar is not only about the birth and abandonment of a technological miracle, but also reflects the fierce technological wars and political wrestles of an era, and although it once caused global communication interference, it also represents the pinnacle of human technological innovation.
As we look back on this period today, we can appreciate the amazing power of technology and cherish the importance and longing for freedom of communication in times of peace.