Imagery From Commercial and Government Sattellites

choi

(1) Space: How Google Killed The KH-12. Strategy Page, Feb 16, 2015
strategypage.com/htmw/htspace/articles/20150216.aspx

Quote:

"their [ie, of civilian or commercial photo satellites] military counterparts (which first appeared in the 1960s) * * * the 2005 appearance of Google Earth (earth.google.com). This easy-to-use web-based app revolutionized military intelligence * * * [prior to 2005] the troops always seem to get leftovers [of satellite photos], if anything and usually too late to be of any use.

"the availability of high resolution satellite photos that could be of use to combat troops. This began in the 1960s with the first appearance of the KH (Key Hole) series of photo satellites. The first film camera satellite, KH 1, went up in 1959 but the first successful one was in 1960. Thus until the 1970s the film-using satellites supplied coverage of hostile nations. The KH 1 through 9 series satellites sent film back in canisters (for high resolution pictures), to be developed.

"The age of film began to fade when the first digital satellite, the KH 11, was launched in 1976. These birds were large, nearly 15 tons, and the digital cameras could obtain better resolution and broadcast the photos back to earth. The resolution was such that objects 70mm (a few inches) in size could be identified from 200 kilometers. Digital cameras were more flexible than film and eventually surpassed film in all categories. The KH-11 telescopic cameras operated like a high resolution TV camera. Images were captured continuously and transmitted to earth stations. Computers were used to finish the process and produce photos identical to those taken by a conventional film camera. You could even have motion pictures, as well as indications of heat and the nature of the various items. KH-11 could often tell what kind of metal an object on the ground was made of.

"The next generation, the KH-12 [with 'a new design'], was supposed to have been launched in 1987 [but has not] and that's partly because commercial photo satellites have become cheaper and more convenient for military use. Many KH-12 features were simply added to subsequent KH-11 models.

Note: National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Geospatial-Intelligence_Agency
(is both a combat support agency, under the United States Department of Defense, and an intelligence agency of the United States Intelligence Community, with the primary mission of collecting, analyzing, and distributing geospatial intelligence [qv] (GEOINT) in support of national security)


(2) Amy Butler, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency Eyes Role for Small Satellites; NGA is exploring ways to work with burgeoning imagery service providers. Aviation Week, Jan 26, 2015.
haviationweek.com/technology/national-geospatial-intelligence-agency-eyes-role-small-satellites

Quote:

"Though not offering the high-resolution products provided by the National Reconnaissance Office’s (NRO) secret satellites or DigitalGlobe’s commercial fleet, the types of spacecraft being developed by providers such as Skybox, UrtheCast and Planet Labs are intended to 'darken' the skies with sensors

"DigitalGlobe’s model is split about 50/50. Roughly 50% is devoted to US government business; the remainder encompasses commercial and foreign government customers, says Walter Scott, founder and chief technology officer. The company is the only data services provider of its kind in the US, now that it has subsumed many of its competitors. Imagery providers using small satellites, however, are varied and it is unclear whether they will all survive.

Note:
(a) DigitalGlobe
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DigitalGlobe
(section 1 Origins: In "2001, EarthWatch became DigitalGlobe[, Inc]; Headquarters  Longmont, Colorado [a suburb of City of Boulder])
(b) Google Earth is not not mentioned in this report.