Starfire Optical Range

The Starfire Optical Range is a high-security U.S. Air Force research laboratory located at Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico. As part of the Directed Energy Directorate of the Air Force Research Laboratory, the facility focuses on developing and demonstrating techniques for controlling optical wavefronts. At its heart is a 3.5-meter mirror telescope that has been equipped with adaptive optics since the 1990s and is occasionally used for astronomical observations as well. The facility also includes a 1.5-meter telescope and a laser emitter with a one-meter aperture. According to reports, researchers here are also working on methods for disabling satellites with ground-based lasers, which makes the site an important center for the development of directed-energy weapons.