In the aerospace context, BMEWS stands for "Ballistic Missile Early Warning System". It is a system of radar and other sensors that is designed to detect and track incoming ballistic missiles, and to provide early warning of a potential missile attack.
BMEWS systems typically consist of a network of radar sites, which are used to detect and track incoming missiles, as well as communication and control centers, which are used to process the data from the radar sites and to provide early warning of a missile attack.
Examples of BMEWS systems include:
- The United States Air Force's BMEWS, which consists of radar sites in Alaska, Greenland, and England, and is operated by the Air Force Space Command.
- The Russian Aerospace Defense Forces’s early warning system, which includes radar sites in Russia, Belarus, and other countries.
- The Indian Ballistic Missile Defence Programme, which includes the integrated missile warning system and the advanced early warning system.
BMEWS is an essential part of the missile defense system of a country, it provides early warning of an incoming missile attack which allows the country to take necessary actions to defend itself. BMEWS is also used for the tracking and monitoring of the space debris and other space objects that could pose a threat to the country's assets in space.