I see it every month, but I don't know what it is.

September 7, 2012 10:04 AM

Anyone know what this is? I drive by it every few weeks, and I can't identify it for the life of me.

It's on the east side of IN-9 just south of LaGrange, Indiana. There aren't any signs out front, and the place doesn't appear to be any kind of secure facility.

Any ideas?

posted by valkyryn to Grab Bag (15 answers total)

My guess is that it's a doppler radar.
posted by inturnaround at 10:07 AM on September 7, 2012

My guess too (especially after I Googled "doppler radar tower" to confirm)
posted by MCMikeNamara at 10:08 AM on September 7, 2012

Maybe National Weather Service Northern Indiana Doppler Radar?
posted by Dansaman at 10:08 AM on September 7, 2012

That's the weather RADAR for NE Indiana!
posted by TheNewWazoo at 10:09 AM on September 7, 2012

They vary in appearance, but they're usually white like that and spheroid in shape, like this.
posted by inturnaround at 10:10 AM on September 7, 2012

Yup, the golf ball of Thor. Got a few 'round here, too.
posted by tilde at 10:12 AM on September 7, 2012

Best answer: An FAA "QTZ ARSR" LAGRANGE RADAR TOWER, whatever QTZ ARSR stands for.
posted by ceribus peribus at 10:14 AM on September 7, 2012 [2 favorites]

Oh! ARSR = Airport surveillance radar.
posted by ceribus peribus at 10:15 AM on September 7, 2012

Ooh, looks like ceribus has it - the NWS NEXRAD sites are close, but aren't apparently colocated with the ARSR.
posted by TheNewWazoo at 10:20 AM on September 7, 2012

And QTZ is the site code. It's listed on this page about the Joint Surveillance System, a jointly run USAF/FAA system for North American defense.
posted by ceribus peribus at 10:21 AM on September 7, 2012

jinx
posted by ceribus peribus at 10:21 AM on September 7, 2012

Or... ECHELON! *X-Files theme song*

But seriously, it's probably a regular radar tower.

Hey NSA agents who just found this page by automated flag! How's your day going?
posted by nickhb at 10:36 AM on September 7, 2012 [1 favorite]

And lastly, the LAGRANGE part only means it's near the city of LaGrange, IN, not that it's some kind of doppler alternate technology based on Euler-Lagrange transforms like I was thinking in my head.

I mean, it's an operation closely related to probability density functions and to Fourier signal transformations; it's a totally plausible name for secret NSA stealth penetrating radar technology.
posted by ceribus peribus at 10:43 AM on September 7, 2012 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Yep: totally the QTZ radar site.

Thanks guys! I figured it was some kind of radar, but I didn't think it was weather, as I never saw any forecasts or maps centered there.
posted by valkyryn at 10:56 AM on September 7, 2012

It's a cemetery, people! Geez...
posted by deborah at 5:05 PM on September 7, 2012 [2 favorites]