Area51

Area51

The original rectangular base of 6 by 10 miles (10 by 16 km) is part of the "Groom box", a rectangle of restricted airspace measuring 23 by 25 miles (37 by 40 km). The area is connected to the internal Nevada Test Site (NTS) road network, with paved roads leading south to Mercury and west to the NTS's Yucca Flat region. Leading northeast from the lake, the wide and well-maintained Groom Lake Road runs through a pass in the Jumbled Hills. The road formerly led to mines in the Groom basin; it has been improved since their closure. It winds past a security checkpoint; the restricted area around the base extends farther east. After leaving the restricted area, Groom Lake Road descends eastward to the floor of the Tikaboo Valley, passing the dirt-road entrances to several small ranches before converging with State Route 375, the "Extraterrestrial Highway", south of Rachel.

Area51

The origin of the name "Area 51" is unclear. It is believed to be from an Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) numbering grid, although Area 51 is not part of this system; it is next to Area 15. Another explanation is that 51 was used because it was unlikely that the AEC would use the number.[18] According to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the facility is called Homey Airport (XTA/KXTA) and Groom Lake,[19][20] though the name "Area 51" was used in a CIA document from the Vietnam War.[21] Nicknames for the facility include "Paradise Ranch" and "Dreamland";[22] the latter is the approach control call sign for the surrounding area.[23][24] Air Force public relations has referred to the facility as "an operating location near Groom Dry Lake". The special use airspace around the field is referred to as Restricted Area 4808 North (R-4808N).

Lead and silver were discovered in the southern part of the Groom Range in 1864,[26] and the English company Groome Lead Mines Limited financed the Conception Mines in the 1870s, giving the district its name (nearby mines included Maria, Willow, and White Lake). J. B. Osborne and partners acquired controlling interest in Groom in 1876, and Osborne's son acquired it in the 1890s.[27] Mining continued until 1918, then resumed after World War II and continued until the early 1950s.

The airfield on the Groom Lake site opened in 1942 as Indian Springs Air Force Auxiliary Field [28] with two unpaved 5,000-foot (1,524 m) runways.

U-2 program

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) established the Groom Lake test facility in April 1955 for Project AQUATONE: the development of the Lockheed U-2 strategic reconnaissance aircraft. Project director Richard M. Bissell Jr. understood that the flight test and pilot training programs could not be conducted at Edwards Air Force Base or Lockheed's Palmdale facility, given the extreme secrecy surrounding the project. He conducted a search for a suitable testing site for the U-2 under the same extreme security as the rest of the project.[30]: 25 He notified Lockheed, who sent an inspection team to Groom Lake. According to Lockheed's U-2 designer Kelly Johnson:[30]: 26

Area51

Project OXCART was established in August 1959 for "antiradar studies, aerodynamic structural tests, and engineering designs" and all later work on the Lockheed A-12.[32] This included testing at Groom Lake, which had inadequate facilities consisting of buildings for only 150 people, a 5,000 ft (1,500 m) asphalt runway, and limited fuel, hangar, and shop space.[30]: 58 Groom Lake had received the name "Area 51"[30]: 59 [33] when A-12 test facility construction began in September 1960, including a new 8,500 ft (2,600 m) runway to replace the existing runway.[34]

Area51

U-2 program

U-2 program

OXCART program

OXCART program

Area51