Interesting Aerial Photo

[alfsauve]

I confess, I'm a junkie when it comes to aerial photos.   I've spent countless hours searching through satellites photos around airports/bases for pictures of planes caught in mid-air.   I find interesting structures on the ground and want to know what they are.   Part of my military background (navigator to pilot:  is that Miami Beach or Daytona down there?)

Anyway, I have a friend moving to Moyock, NC and she will live near BlackwaterUSA.   So I was "perusing" her new neighborhood and I came across this picture.   Any ideas?

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=36.549483,-76.258206&spn=0.007361,0.013304&t=h&z=16

Doesn't look like there are any guard gates.  The interior fencing doesn't go 360degrees, but is open at the 1o'clock position.  Some people can park inside the circle but some can't.  1,500' WNW are gun ranges and 1,500' N of the ranges are some serious sat dishes.  And it sits right on VA/NC border.

[fightingquaker13]

I confess, I'm a junkie when it comes to aerial photos.   I've spent countless hours searching through satellites photos around airports/bases for pictures of planes caught in mid-air.   I find interesting structures on the ground and want to know what they are.   Part of my military background (navigator to pilot:  is that Miami Beach or Daytona down there?)

Anyway, I have a friend moving to Moyock, NC and she will live near BlackwaterUSA.   So I was "perusing" her new neighborhood and I came across this picture.   Any ideas?

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=36.549483,-76.258206&spn=0.007361,0.013304&t=h&z=16

Doesn't look like there are any guard gates.  The interior fencing doesn't go 360degrees, but is open at the 1o'clock position.  Some people can park inside the circle but some can't.  1,500' WNW are gun ranges and 1,500' N of the ranges are some serious sat dishes.  And it sits right on VA/NC border.

You do realize someone will be slipping into your bedroom window at 3am for your post and commentary, right?
FQ13

[WatchManUSA]

Here is what I found:

Naval Support Activity
Chesapeake, VA

As to what they really do - who knows...

[alfsauve]

Naval Support Activity
Chesapeake, VA

I saw those annotations on the map.   And the initial are "NSA".....hmmm?   The sat dishes could be for communicating with ships, but the circle area ? ? ?

[Timothy]

I've emailed my brother, a retired Naval Officer who at one time was roaming the country reviewing bases for closure.  I'll see what he says, if he can say anything...  He spent nearly ten years in and around the Norfolk and VA Beach area.

[Sponsor]

[Pathfinder]

I saw those annotations on the map.   And the initial are "NSA".....hmmm?   The sat dishes could be for communicating with ships, but the circle area ? ? ?

It's called a free-fire zone.

And did the pilot respond back "Nav, you don't know where we are? We are sooooo screwed!!!"     

[bjc1369]

Another internet mapping site, Bing.com/maps, identifies this as US Navy Northwest Radio Station.

[fightingquaker13]

Another internet mapping site, Bing.com/maps, identifies this as US Navy Northwest Radio Station.

Deep Space Radar Telemetry! If only the weekly World News was still around.
FQ13 who is looking for his pack or Morleys

[WatchManUSA]

"The truth is out there."

[Timothy]

Big bro's reply.....

Translation:  HFDF = High frequency direction finding - COMSTA = Communications Station = CT Communications Technician (Spook) - NavSecGru - Naval Security Group

"That's what was called Northwest Radio Station back in the old days... I think it was originally a Comsta.  Somewhere along the way it became a spook HFDF site - that's the circle.  It was a NavSecGru asset when I was at Dam Neck...  one of the guys I worked with knew someone at Northwest (CT type) and used to be able hunt down there. No civilians and extremely restrictive for the military so they had deer running around in swarms...

Looking at the google shot, I'm not seeing a lot of antenna's in the HFDF circle... but it looks like the concrete bases are still there.  I suspect most of the HF stuff is gone from military comms and secgru stuff - replaced by them there big dishes and cellular towers...  
 
Pretty darn good resolution... didn't have overhead imagery near that good when I was chasing bad guys, much less in color...  
 
Mikey"