When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
theatlantic.com
When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
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Re: When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
#2Re: When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
#3There are enough space radars so that you can passively listen to the reflections of almost every satellite.
Just pointing to the Graves Radar in France whose frequency and beam pattern is precisely known to the public.
Re: When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
#4And people sound incredulous when they hear the likes of Shellenberger’s Public substack asserting that Uncle Sam has been sequestering UAP imagery away from scientific study.
We’re going to be learning what a joke the past century of government transparency has been, and it’s not going to be a pleasant feeling.
Re: When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
#5Some of the language in this article is a bit odd, and appears to reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of satellites and orbital mechanics. The orbits of spy satellites are hardly "irregular", nor can they "shift direction often". Orbits are exactly regular, by definition. Orbital parameter changes do happen but are rare. Even the largest spy satellites have only very limited ΔV capability. And there are no stealth satellites: it's impossible to hide any large object in orbit. Amateur astronomers have identified the orbital parameters of all spy satellites.
The secret part about spy satellites is not their location but rather their payload. I suspect the reason the government wants to censor images is that a high-resolution picture could allow an adversary to infer a lot about payloads including imaging resolution, communications frequencies, power budget, and possibly even defensive systems.
Re: When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
#6Some of the language in this article is a bit odd, and appears to reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of satellites and orbital mechanics. The orbits of spy satellites are hardly "irregular", nor can they "shift direction often". Orbits are exactly regular, by definition. Orbital parameter changes do happen but are rare. Even the largest spy satellites have only very limited ΔV capability. And there are no stealth…
Well put.
Re: When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
#7Some of the language in this article is a bit odd, and appears to reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of satellites and orbital mechanics. The orbits of spy satellites are hardly "irregular", nor can they "shift direction often". Orbits are exactly regular, by definition. Orbital parameter changes do happen but are rare. Even the largest spy satellites have only very limited ΔV capability. And there are no stealth…
> Orbits are exactly regular, by definition. Orbital parameter changes do happen but are rare.
How does that match up with [0]?
"... a satellite that stalks other satellites, started another relocation move on July 22, leaving its position near ASTRA 4A at longitude 4.8 E and drifting west at 0.9 degrees per day."
Do they make this up, or do you and I have a vastly different understanding of "irregular"?
[0] https://sattrackcam.blogspot.com/2024/07/the-russian-sigint-...
Re: When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
#8Some of the language in this article is a bit odd, and appears to reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of satellites and orbital mechanics. The orbits of spy satellites are hardly "irregular", nor can they "shift direction often". Orbits are exactly regular, by definition. Orbital parameter changes do happen but are rare. Even the largest spy satellites have only very limited ΔV capability. And there are no stealth…
So that’s part of the article is just wrong?
It basically says the telescope can take high res pictures of secret satellites, but they have to wait 3 days to release them.
It claims after 3 days, nobody will know where they are “now.”
That seems to suggest the concern is location, not appearance. It also suggests the locations aren’t predictable.
Re: When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
#9Some of the language in this article is a bit odd, and appears to reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of satellites and orbital mechanics. The orbits of spy satellites are hardly "irregular", nor can they "shift direction often". Orbits are exactly regular, by definition. Orbital parameter changes do happen but are rare. Even the largest spy satellites have only very limited ΔV capability. And there are no stealth…
So that’s part of the article is just wrong? It basically says the telescope can take high res pictures of secret satellites, but they have to wait 3 days to release them. It claims after 3 days, nobody will know where they are “now.” That seems to suggest the concern is location, not appearance. It also suggests the locations aren’t predictable.
I think that part of the article may be confused, the result of a misunderstanding or a translation error. We're getting secondhand information from an astronomer who isn't a native English speaker filtered through some random journalist.
Re: When a Telescope Is a National-Security Risk
#10Some of the language in this article is a bit odd, and appears to reflect a fundamental misunderstanding of satellites and orbital mechanics. The orbits of spy satellites are hardly "irregular", nor can they "shift direction often". Orbits are exactly regular, by definition. Orbital parameter changes do happen but are rare. Even the largest spy satellites have only very limited ΔV capability. And there are no stealth…
> Orbits are exactly regular, by definition. Orbital parameter changes do happen but are rare. How does that match up with [0]? "... a satellite that stalks other satellites, started another relocation move on July 22, leaving its position near ASTRA 4A at longitude 4.8 E and drifting west at 0.9 degrees per day." Do they make this up, or do you and I have a vastly different understanding of "irregular"? [0] https://…
It's not made up. The satellite made some minor orbital parameter changes but at all times it was in a regular orbit. It wasn't making irregular course changes in the way that an airplane might.