Bistatic Radar

Students set their sights on space, building a rooftop radar system that helps safeguard the nation from above.

In the summer of 2026, cranes lifted two new antennas onto the rooftops of the Collaborative Energy Complex (CEC) and Odegard Hall, marking a major milestone for UND’s new bistatic radar system. Backed by the state of North Dakota, the College of Engineering & Mines will host the system that will give researchers a new tool to study and track objects in low Earth orbit.

Leaders in National Security

UND rooftop radar sets sights on space activity that will support student research, space domain awareness and UND's growing national security role.

Explore Bistatic Radar

Tracking Space Objects with Bistatic Radar

The system is unique because it separates its transmitter and receiver, placing them in two different locations rather than combining both functions in a single antenna. The antenna on the CEC sends signals into the sky, while a second antenna about a mile away listens for the signals that bounce back off objects in orbit. Because one antenna stays dedicated to transmitting and the other to receiving, UND’s radar can operate continuously.

Bistatic Radar

Tracking Space Objects with Bistatic Radar

View of Leonard Antenna

View of Odegard Antenna

Bistatic Radar

Tracking Space Objects with Bistatic Radar

View of Leonard Antenna

View of Odegard Antenna

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