Between 1915 and 1972, Orford Ness on the Suffolk coast was the site of a series of top-secret military experiments. The area is now a nature reserve, under the care of the National Trust since 1993, but remnants of its military past remain.
Among them is a ‘mysterious’ concrete ring, 50m in diameter, the purpose of which has been a subject of curiosity for decades. Now, thanks to the volunteer-led International Research Group Orford Ness (IRGON), we know that it was part of the R-System, an innovative over-the-horizon radar built by the US Air Force in the early 1960s to detect nuclear explosions and rocket launches during the Cold War. The round concrete base once supported a steerable helical transmitter, which was accompanied by double rows of receivers, measuring 150m end-to-end. These allowed the system to sense activity thousands of miles away. However, by the end of the decade, the technology had been phased out and replaced with satellites. Only eight examples are known to have been built anywhere in the world.
Having formed a working theory about the Orford Ness ring’s purpose through study of technical drawings, aerial photos, and declassified files, researchers from IRGON visited the USA to learn more. There they identified similar rings at Roswell in New Mexico and Muirkirk in Maryland – no one at either site was aware of their original purpose either. The researchers also talked to 94-year-old Edwin Lyon, the R-System’s chief designer. They discovered that Edwin had no idea that it had been installed in the UK, but – after getting security clearance – he was able to confirm the system’s existence and give them a first-hand account of Cold War intelligence-gathering systems, as well as sharing photo and video evidence from 60 years ago.
The extreme secrecy that surrounded the military experiments at Orford Ness means that little information is available about these projects, even today. The IRGON team says it is proud to be working with the National Trust ‘to tell the stories of the place and its people, and ensure their achievements are never forgotten.’
