Thule AB was constructed in secret under the code name Operation Blue Jay, but the project was made public in September 1952. Five KC-97s prepared for flight with engines running in temperatures of −50 °F (−46 °C) in order to ensure three could achieve airborne status. 1, 23rd Space Operations Squadron. Thule AB hosts a variety of organizations with logistical support in the Arctic, including NASA, the Royal Canadian Air Force and the National Science Foundation climatic, seismic and deep space research. P-S GAR consists of one medical group, one Air Base Group and two mission support groups for Peterson AFB, Schriever AFB and Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in Colorado, Thule Air Base in Greenland, New Boston Air Force Station in New Hampshire, and Kaena Point Air Force Station in Hawaii. At the time of its completion it was the third tallest man-made structure on earth[citation needed] and the tallest structure north of the Arctic Circle in the Western hemisphere. A cluster of huts known as Pituffik ("the place the dogs are tied") stood on the wide plain where the base was built in 1951. Located more than 1100 km north from the Arctic Circle and about 1500 km away from the North Pole, Thule Air Base is the northernmost military base located of the United States of America. Trevor Derr, 821st Support Squadron transient alert technician and his team during the Greenlandic Heritage Week Dogsled Race at Thule Air Base, Greenland, March 29, 2021. It was subsequently supported by the Joint Chiefs of Staff and approved by President Truman. The construction of Thule is said[by whom?] [19] More than 700 Danish civilians and US military personnel worked under hazardous conditions, the former without protective gear, to clean up the nuclear waste. Finally, Thule is home to the northernmost deep water port in the world. During the proceedings it was recognized by the Danish government that the movement was a serious interference and an unlawful act against the local population. The Thule tribe was awarded damages of 500,000 kroner, and the individual members of the tribe who had been exposed to the transfer were granted compensation of 15,000 or 25,000 each. Source for major commands and major units assigned: NATO Parliamentary Assembly, press release 6 September 2010. Starting in July 1965, there was a general downsizing of activities at Thule. The first US-sponsored installations at Thule were established after the US Secretary of State Cordell Hull and the defected Danish Minister to the United States Henrik Kauffmann signed The Agreement relating to the Defense of Greenland in Washington, D.C. on the symbolically chosen date of 9 April 1941. The ratification of the treaty in 1951 did not change much, except that the Danish national flag must be side by side with the US national flag on the base. Thanks to everyone for coming out to Thule AB this year. Despite two major storms, the base hosted its annual dog sled race, which awarded the top three winners with a rifle, sled tent and a generator, respectively. He gave special thanks to the Col. David Hanson, 821st Air Base Group commander, for making the event possible this year, highlighting that the children would have great memories of the event for years to come. (U.S. Space Force photo by Lt. Col. Christopher Ivarone), Marcus Hansen, sled driver, leads the dogsled rides during Greenlandic Heritage Week at North Star Bay, near Thule Air Base, Greenland, April 4, 2021. The base host unit was discontinued. He’s attended the event almost since the start and is still proud of his record eight consecutive wins in the dogsled race. It is located in the eastern part of Greenland. In the late 1950s, the DEW 1 to 4 were built as "weather stations". By January 1968, the population of Thule was down to 3,370. We can’t wait to see you again next year. The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron (12 SWS) which operates a Ballistic Missile Early Warning System (BMEWS) designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America. As travel restrictions remain in effect, Ryanair sees a business case for increasing Baltic flights. One the biggest events of Greenlandic Heritage Week is the annual dogsled race which has been held for 40 years. Ocean Transportation is provided by Schuyler Line Navigation Company, a US Flag Ocean Carrier. 13:33 Uannga: Bibi Nathansen, Signe Haahr Pedersen . The base hosts the 12th Space Warning Squadron (21st Operations Group, 21st Space Wing), a Ballistic Missile Early Warning Site designed to detect and track ICBMs launched against North America. At this time, Thule was at its peak with a population of about 10,000. Thule's arctic environment includes icebergs in North Star Bay, two islands (Saunders Island and Wolstenholme Island), a polar ice sheet, and Wolstenholme Fjord – the only place on Earth where four active glaciers join together. [7] Carved into the ice, and powered by a nuclear reactor, PM-2A Camp Century was officially a scientific research base, but in reality was the site of the top secret Project Iceworm. Missile warning and space surveillance information flows to NORAD command centers located at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. In 1946–1951, the airstrip played an important role in Arctic resupply, aerial mapping, research, and search-and rescue. [citation needed]. Thule AB is located on the northwest coast of Greenland, 700 miles north of the Arctic Circle and approximately 946 miles from the North Pole. [20] In 1987, nearly 200 of the Danish workers tried unsuccessfully to sue the United States. Thule Air Base would act as a supply station for the DYE bases. (U.S. Space Force photo by Lt. Col. Christopher Ivarone). Defensively, Thule could serve as a base for intercepting bomber attacks along the northeastern approaches to Canada and the US. BMEWS was developed by the RCA Corporation in order to provide North America warning of a transpolar missile attack from the Russian mainland and submarine-launched missiles from the Arctic and North Atlantic oceans. Thule AB is located 750 miles north of the Arctic Circle, where it provides an important view of the northern hemisphere in order to defend our nation’s critical infrastructure, and maintain the safe and responsible use of space. Kimberly Garcia, 12th Space Warning Squadron operations flight commander and her dogsled team pass U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Thule Air Base is the US Armed Forces' northernmost installation. (U.S. Space Force Photo by Master Sgt. / Published April 27, 2021, U.S. Space Force Capt. (A main base street was named Pituffik Boulevard.) On 16 June 1951, the base was accidentally discovered by French cultural anthropologist and geographer Jean Malaurie and his Inuit friend Kutikitsoq, on their way back from the geomagnetic North Pole.[6]. Micah Graves, right, 821st Security Forces Squadron chief enlisted manager, at the Dundas Dining Facility, Thule Air Base, Greenland, April 4, 2021. The location changed from the civilian village at Thule (Dundas) to mainland Pittufik. For more than 40 years, the men and women of the 821st Air Base Group have welcomed nearby Greenlanders to “Greenland Heritage Week,” a chance for everyone in Greenland’s far north to get together and share traditions, handicrafts and meals during three days in April.