China's New Satellite Can Capture Hi-Res Images In Seconds

 

Insider: China's small Beijing-3 satellite can take high-resolution images of US cities within seconds, a speed its American counterparts can't match, scientists say 

* The Beijing-3 snapped hi-res images of a 1,470 square-mile area of the US in 42 seconds. 

* The satellite can rotate rapidly in orbit without compromising image quality, researchers said. 

* This unprecedented feat means China can scan large areas in a single sweep, all in high definition. 

A small, one-ton Chinese satellite can quickly snap high-resolution images of US cities that are so detailed they can identify individual military vehicles and the weapons they carry, Chinese scientists involved in the Beijing-3 satellite project said on Tuesday. 

The commercial Beijing-3 satellite, launched by China in June, conducted an in-depth scan of a 1,470 square-mile area in the San Francisco Bay. 

The satellite captured the area within 42 seconds, The South China Morning Post first reported, citing results published this month in the Chinese peer-reviewed journal Spacecraft Engineering.  

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WNU Editor: The Chinese are showing once again that they are capable leap-frogging everyone in certain areas of science and engineering. 

China's New Satellite Can Capture Hi-Res Images In Seconds  

A Chinese Satellite Can Allegedly Take High-Res Images of US Cities In Seconds -- Interesting Engineering 

Chinese AI satellite takes ultra-high res images from orbit at speeds ‘never before seen’ -- NYPost/The SUN  

China launches nimble satellite capable of taking images three times faster than US counterpart -- The Telegraph  

China Successfully Tests Satellite Able to Capture HQ Photos of US City in Less Than 1 Min - Report -- Sputnik  

Chinese satellite snaps hi-res imagery of San Francisco in seconds -- RT

Space Force Launches Billion-Dollar Missile Early Warning Satellite Into Orbit

 

CBS News: Space Force launches billion-dollar satellite to warn of missile launches 

A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket blasted off from Cape Canaveral on Tuesday, boosting a billion-dollar missile early warning satellite into orbit to scan the Earth below for the tell-tale heat generated by a threatening rocket launch. 

Once operational, after tests and checkout, the new satellite will join four other Space Based Infrared System — SBIRS — spacecraft already in orbit 22,300 miles above the equator that use telescopes and state-of-the-art infrared sensors to provide early warning of unusual heat "signatures."  

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More News On Space Force Launching Billion-Dollar
Missile Early Warning Satellite Into Orbit  

Missile detection satellite launches from Florida -- UPI  

Atlas V rocket launches SBIRS Geo-5 missile warning satellite for US Space Force -- Space.com  

Liftoff to orbit in under an hour: Space Force launches missile warning satellite -- C4ISRNet 

US Space Force blasts missile-warning satellite into orbit around Earth -- Live Science

U.S. Space Force To Get Three Next-Gen Missile-Warning Satellites From Lockheed Martin

Notional Next Gen OPIR GEO satellite. Credit: Lockheed Martin 

Space News: Lockheed Martin gets $4.9 billion contract to build three missile-warning satellites for U.S. Space Force 

The satellites will be operated by the U.S. Space Force and provide initial warning of a ballistic or tactical missile launch anywhere on the globe. 

WASHINGTON — Lockheed Martin has been awarded a $4.9 billion contract for the production of three geosynchronous Next-Generation Overhead Persistent Infrared satellites, the Pentagon announced Jan. 4. 

The satellites will be operated by the U.S. Space Force and provide initial warning of a ballistic or tactical missile launch anywhere on the globe. The Space Force is acquiring five Next-Gen OPIR satellites — the three geosynchronous orbit satellites made by Lockheed Martin and two polar orbit satellites made by Northrop Grumman. 

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 More News On U.S. Space Force Getting Three Next-Gen Missile-Warning Satellites From Lockheed Martin 

Space Force awards Lockheed Martin $4.9 billion for missile warning satellites -- C4ISRNet 

Lockheed Receives Up to $4.9 Billion for Next-Gen OPIR Satellites -- Air Force Magazine

Lockheed Martin Wins $4.9B US Space Force Geosynchronous Satellites Contract -- Yahoo News 

U.S. Space Force Will Get Next-Gen Missile-Warning Satellites From Lockheed Martin -- Gizmodo Lockheed Martin nabs $4,9B for three Next Generation Geosynchronous space vehicles -- Defence Blog

The Pentagon Wants 8 Satellites To Track Hypersonic Weapons

Concept art from Northrop Grumman shows a potential architecture for using satellites to track hypersonic missiles. (Northrop Grumman)

C4ISRNet: These eight satellites will track hypersonic weapons

The Space Development Agency wants to put an initial batch of satellites capable of tracking hypersonic weapons on orbit in fiscal 2022, according to a draft request for proposals the agency released May 11.

The draft comes as SDA prepares to launch its first tranche of about 20 satellites in FY22, the first step toward its goal of hundreds of interconnected satellites operating in low Earth orbit. The agency is taking a spiral development approach, launching additional satellites with increasingly advanced capabilities in two-year tranches.

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WNU Editor: Another indication on how dedicated the U.S. is in developing and deploying hypersonic weapons.

U.S. Exploring Ways To Hide Satellites Among Space Junk

ULA’s Atlas V rocket is theNRO’s preferred method for sending satellites into low-Earth orbit. Patrick H. Corkery / United Launch Alliance

Popular Mechanics: Space Junk Could Provide a Perfect Hiding Spot for Tiny Spy Satellites

Han Solo hid the Millennium Falcon in a cloud of trash, and the same method could hide satellites in low-Earth orbit.

As long as we've been launching spy sats into space, we've been trying to find ways to hide them from the enemy. Now, thanks to the small sat revolution—and a growing amount of space junk—America has a new way to mask its spying in orbit.

One of the emerging trends of the 21st century is the shrinking size of space satellites, and the hope of replacing large spacecraft with constellations of smaller ones flying in lower orbits. It’s no secret that the same pattern holds true for spy sats. The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) has not been shy about funding small sat launchers to loft payloads into space—payloads that could hide amid the thousands of objects now in low-Earth orbit.

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WNU Editor: There are thousands of pieces of junk in space. It must be hard to track everything 24/7. A perfect place to hide something.

The U.S. Military Strikes On Syria Was The First Time That U.S. Air Force Space Experts Were Directly Involved In A Military Operation

Lockheed Martin

Popular Mechanics: How a Syrian Airstrike Got Help From Space

A glimpse at the early days of a new kind of space war, where 30-somethings are rewriting the rules from a command center in Qatar.

* On April 14, the U.S. and allies attacked chemical weapons plants in Syria, in retaliation for that country using chemical agents against its own citizens.
* The airstrike was different in one important way: Air Force space experts used satellites in tactical ways to plan and execute the attack, something the military has just started doing.
* This kind of teamwork makes airstrikes more accurate, resulting in more effective targeting with fewer civilian casualties.

It's early April, and the U.S. and its allies at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar are planning an air strike—retaliation against the Bashar al-Assad regime after another chemical attack on Syrian civilians. This particular planning mission will have two unusual participants.

Col. Dewitt Morgan, the director of spaces forces at U.S. Air Force Central Command, tasks two of his officers join the team crafting an attack plan. Space electronic warfare Capt. Andrew "Ghost" Harris and space weapons officer Capt. Ryan "Pippin" Foster have an urgent task—to make sure the coming allied strike takes full advantage of U.S. satellites in orbit.

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WNU Editor: This is where warfare is heading .... and in the event of a war between the major powers, a certainty that space assets will be targeted.

A Converted U.S. ICBM Was Used To Launch A Military Satellite Into Space

Space.com: Converted Missile Launches Military Satellite to Track Spacecraft and Debris

A satellite designed to help the U.S. military keep tabs on the ever-growing population of orbiting objects took to the skies atop a converted missile early this morning (Aug. 26).

The Air Force's Operationally Responsive Space-5 (ORS-5) satellite lifted off from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 2:04 a.m. EDT today (0604 GMT) atop an Orbital ATK Minotaur IV rocket, which carved a fiery orange arc into the sky as it rose.

If everything goes according to plan, ORS-5 will settle into a circular orbit 372 miles (600 kilometers) over the equator. From this vantage point, the 310-lb. (140 kilograms) satellite will scan the geosynchronous belt, a region about 22,300 miles (35,800 km) up that harbors many valuable communications and weather satellites, both government and commercial.

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Update #1: Minotaur rocket launches Air Force tracking satellite (CBS News)
Update #2: Cold-War Era Derived ICBM Blasts Military ORS-5 Surveillance and Space Junk Tracking Satellite to Orbit (Universe Today)

WNU Editor: Smart use of an old missile that is no longer needed.

U.S. Delta 4 Rocket Launches Two Air Force Space Surveillance Satellites

Beautiful capture of @ulalaunch #DeltaIV carrying #AFSPC6 by our photographer @johnkrausphotos 🚀 pic.twitter.com/encuo0xboo

— AmericaSpace (@AmericaSpace) August 19, 2016

IBTimes: Delta IV Launch: 2 Military Space Surveillance Satellites Put In Orbit

The United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Delta IV rocket successfully launched two military space surveillance satellites into orbit early Friday. The rocket came to life at 12:52 a.m. EDT lifting off from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

The two satellites are part of the military’s Geosynchronous Space Situational Awareness Program (GSSAP). The satellites will monitor objects in the geosynchronous orbit keeping an eye out for any object that might threaten the American satellites in the belt. A total of four such satellites, including the two that took off Friday, have been launched so far.

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More News On A U.S. Delta 4 Rocket Launching Two Air Force Space Surveillance Satellites

Delta 4 rocket launches space surveillance satellites -- CBS News
'Neighborhood watch' satellites headed to space -- USA Today
Delta IV thunders off the pad with AFSPC-6 payload -- Space Flight Insider
US Delta IV Rocket With Two Space Awareness Satellites Takes Off in Florida -- Sputnik
Delta 4 lifts off carrying two Air Force space surveillance satellites -- Space News
Delta IV blasts off with threat-detecting military satellites -- Florida Today

Russia Has Positioned 10 Military Satellites Over Syria To Coordinate And Manage Its War Effort

Defence ministry officials sit under screens with satellite images on display during a briefing in Moscow, Russia, December 2, 2015. REUTERS/SERGEI KARPUKHIN

David Axe, Daily Beast: Russia Is Using Space Power in Its Attack on Syria

Vladimir Putin’s military is unveiling a new arsenal in its battle with ISIS and other insurgents in Syria. Much of that new military hardware is hundreds of miles above Earth.

Russia’s two-month-old military intervention in Syria on behalf of the embattled regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has involved dramatic, and highly visible, strikes by high-tech jet fighters, lumbering heavy bombers, powerful ground-based artillery, and even ships and submarines launching missiles over long distances.

Less visible but no less impressive has been Russia’s mobilization in Earth’s orbit. Moscow claimed it has positioned 10 satellites—representing more than 10 percent of Russia’s space arsenal—over Syria to map terrain, spot targets and gather other intelligence, and relay radio signals between far-flung ground, air, and sea forces.

WNU Editor: This is a fascinating read. I also suspect that the U.S. has positioned just as many (if not more) over this war-zone.

Who Is Jamming U.S. Satellites?

Sydney J. Freedberg, Breaking Defense: US Jammed Own Satellites 261 Times; What If Enemy Did?

WASHINGTON: Russia and China are investing heavily in cyber and electronic warfare, but they’re not shutting down US satellite downlinks yet. Instead, we have met the enemy and he is us — we think.

“In 2015 thus far, we have had 261 cases where we have been jammed from getting information from our satellites down to the ground segment,” said Gen. John Hyten, head of Air Force Space Command, at the Association of Old Crows electronic warfare conference.

That’s 23 times a month. “How many were caused by an adversary?” Hyten asked. “I really don’t know. My guess is zero.”

The real cause is “almost always self-jamming” where our own transmissions, radar or radio, unwittingly interfere, Hyten told reporters after his public remarks.

WNU Editor: It is very disturbing to hear the head of U.S. Air Force Space Command admitting that he is unsure on who is jamming U.S. satellites .... but he is hoping that it us.

Why Did A U.S. Military Satellite Explode In Space?

Defense Meteorological Satellite System (DMSP) spacecraft.(US Air Force)

Gizmodo: A Satellite Exploded in Orbit and No One's Quite Sure Why Yet

How many satellites would you say are currently orbiting the Earth? A few hundred? Maybe a thousand? No: There are about 3,700 satellites hurtling through orbit above us—so when one of them "breaks up," it's a big deal.

This week, Space.com reported that a Department of Defense satellite exploded on February 3rd, creating a debris field of 43 objects. The satellite in question? The 13th in a 1990s-era project called the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program, designed to give the Department of Defense weather data and atmospheric conditions in combat zones. For example, DMSP-13 relayed flight conditions for Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, says Space.com.

Previous Post: U.S. Military Satellite Explodes In Space

WNU Editor: The mystery deepens.

Here Comes The Zombie Satellites

Pentagon Pushes For Zombie Satellites By 2016 -- Killer Apps, Foreign Policy

The Pentagon just made its biggest investment yet into a project to build new satellites in space by reusing the parts of dead satellites.

The Defense Department relies on satellites to do everything from passing secret messages around the globe to giving troops navigation information and intelligence. The problem is, getting brand-new satellites into space can be an incredibly expensive and time-consuming effort.

To remedy this, the Pentagon wants to harvest parts from the roughly $300 billion worth of dead satellites that sit in a heavenly "graveyard or disposal orbit" and use their spare parts to build new ones, Frankenstein style, under a project called Phoenix. A roughly $40 million Phoenix contract was handed out earlier this week to a California company called NovaWurks.

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My Comment: The skeptic in me tells me that this is not going to work .... but I am not DARPA.

Watching The Syrian Civil War From Space

Successive images of Aleppo show increasing war damage. Photo: AAAS

Syrian Tanks Pummel Rebel City as Satellites Watch -- David Axe, Danger Room

Three successive overhead snapshots by orbiting civilian satellites provide the best, unclassified, big-picture view to date of the more than two-month-old battle for one of Syria’s key cities. Since late July troops loyal to embattled Syrian president Bashar Al Assad have waged a relentless air and ground campaign against rebels in Aleppo, a city of two million near the border with Turkey.

In the satellite photos, a tank appears then disappears, leaving a ruined building in its wake. Scorch marks, craters and debris chart the progression of brutal urban fighting. Makeshift defensive positions proliferate as the assault escalates.

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My Comment: Talk about providing a "big-picture" view of Syria's civil war.

Who Will Control Commercial Spy Satellites

GeoEye, whose GeoEye-2 satellite (above) is under development for launch next year, is seeking to acquire DigitalGlobe in large part to address potential major cuts in the US government’s EnhancedView imagery contracts. (credit: GeoEye/Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company)

DigitalGlobe Rebuffs GeoEye Bid As Battle Begins For Control Of Commercial Spy Satellites -- Aol Defense

Only one company is likely to survive the coming budget intelligence community budget cuts to commercial imagery purchases. Both GeoEye and DigitalGlobe appear to believe they will be the victor, opening the door on what could become a damaging contest for control of the U.S. commercial imagery market.

DigitalGlobe, a company that says nothing publicly as much as possible, offered a bold rejection of GeoEye's offer on Sunday. Their board of directors looked at GeoEye's bid and "unanimously" rejected it. The company said "it substantially undervalues the Company in relation to DigitalGlobe's standalone business and financial prospects" and "does not adequately recognize DigitalGlobe's superior track record of financial and operating performance as well as its constellation's greater capabilities."

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More News On GeoEye's Bid For DigitalGlobe

GeoEye, DigitalGlobe merger talks reach impasse -- Washington Technology
DigitalGlobe board rejects GeoEye $792M bid -- Bloomberg Businessweek
DigitalGlobe Rejects GeoEye Proposed Acquisition -- Defense Update
DigitalGlobe Rejects GeoEye Bid -- Aviation Week
GeoEye Proposes Acquisition Of DigitalGlobe -- Space Daily
GeoEye mulls options as rival rejects takeover bid -- Reuters
GeoEye Disappointed by DigitalGlobe, Inc.'s Rejection Of the Proposed Acquisition -- Market Watch
DigitalGlobe looks past GeoEye offer -- Deal Pipeline
DigitalGlobe Says Rejected GeoEye Takeover Bid Driven by Desperation -- Space News

This Months Solar Flare 'Likely Knocked' Military Satellites Offline

An M7.9 class flare. A solar flare is an intense burst of radiation coming from the release of magnetic energy associated with sunspots. Flares are our solar system’s largest explosive events.

Solar Flares Likely Knocked Military Satellites Offline -- US News and World Report

Solar storms earlier this month may have caused military satellites to reboot.

Despite being made to withstand radiation emitted from solar flares, a storm caused by the sun earlier this month may have temporarily knocked American military satellites offline, according to General William Shelton, head of the Air Force's Space Command.

The energy particles associated with two solar storms March 9 and 10 may have caused what are called "single event upsets" on military satellites. "The timing is such that we say this was likely due to [solar radiation]," Shelton told reporters at a Defense Writers Group breakfast Thursday. Although it's impossible to tell exactly what caused the events—essentially a temporary reboot of satellite instrumentation software—solar storms are known to wreak havoc on satellites.

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Update: General: Recent solar storm interfered with Air Force satellite -- Stars and Stripes

My Comment: An event like this makes you appreciate on why emp weapons are feared by the military.

The Future Of Satellite Imagery For Google Earth And Future Wars

Google Earth, Foreign Wars, And The Future Of Satellite Imagery -- Fast Company

DigitalGlobe, the firm that provides much of the imagery for Google Earth, is launching a next-generation satellite in 2014. However, the super-sharp images of the WorldView-3 aren't for Google and Bing Maps: They're going straight to the military and intelligence agencies.

DigitalGlobe, the Colorado-based imaging firm responsible for much of Google Earth's, Bing Maps', and Google Maps' content, has a new satellite on the way. The WorldView-3 is a super-high-resolution remote-sensing satellite slated for a 2014 launch. Ball Aerospace & Technologies is building the satellite and ITT will be responsible for the WorldView-3's optical imager. However, the primary audience for Worldview-3 pictures won't be Google. Images from the new satellite are mainly intended to be sold and licensed to the U.S. government.

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Update #1: Lawmakers Push to Save Spy Program for Commercial Satellites -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Update #2: Lawmakers Petition White House to Save GeoEye, DigitalGlobe Satellite Program -- ExecutiveGov
Update #3: Lawmakers Rally Behind NGA’s EnhancedView Imagery Program-- Space News

My Comment: These changes will impact you and me .... I just wish we could get the super enhanced resolutions.

A Look At The 50th Space Wing

A Global Positioning System IIF satellite

50 SW Leaps Onto Fast-Track Tempo -- Schriever Air Force Base

SCHRIEVER AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- When it opened for business in 1985, the installation now known as Schriever Air Force Base didn't operate any satellites at all.

During the following few years, as operations floors were constructed, satellite control operations slowly transferred from Onizuka Air Force Station, Calif.

Falcon AFS was originally planned to be a small, operations focused installation, with most of its support functions coming from the main installation at nearby Peterson AFB. That all had changed by 1992, when Air Force leaders decided neighborhood encroachment wouldn't pose a problem on the rolling foothills east of Colorado Springs -- and the 50th Space Wing took root.

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My Comment: Some info on a part of the US military that we rarely hear about.

The Evolution Of Spy Satellites

Satellite Wars: Endangered Birds -- The Economist

Space technology: Concern over anti-satellite weapons is changing the way satellites are designed, built and launched.

IN JUNE the US Strategic Command, an arm of America’s Department of Defence, began operating a spy satellite called TacSat-3. It can see objects on the ground as small as four metres across, and its “hyperspectral” imaging system (which combines visible with infra-red light) can distinguish between various types of metal, rock and other materials. The results can then be beamed directly to soldiers on the ground, providing detailed information about the terrain and nearby targets. Being able to get precise, timely information from a satellite (or “bird”) in this way is of great military value, and not just to ground troops. America’s forthcoming “Prompt Global Strike” non-nuclear hypersonic missiles will be able to hit almost any spot on earth in less than an hour—provided excellent satellite data is available.

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My Comment: Smaller spy satellites and cheaper to build .... hmmmm .... will this make the cost benefit of an anti-satellite program no longer feasible?

More Satellites Over Afghanistan

Afghanistan's mountains can weaken or block satellite signals that help guide American troops. Moises Saman for The New York Times

More Satellites Will Act as Eyes for Troops -- New York Times

OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. — Across the unforgiving terrain of Afghanistan, American combat forces have come to rely on satellites as well as their rifles and body armor to carry out missions effectively, and to stay alive.

But American units have found that satellite signals are weakened and even blocked outright by the breathtaking peaks and backbreaking valleys of Afghanistan — making it hard to pinpoint the troops’ location, navigate on patrol, identify friend from foe in battle or call in bombs and artillery when under attack.

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My Comment: Another example that illustrates the importance of net-ware in a conflict zone.

Update: Sat-nav systems under growing threat from 'jammers' -- BBC