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I was under the impression that spy satellites are put into much higher orbits to increase their lifespan but necessitating larger optical systems. One of the

by Teever 5y ago

I was under the impression that spy satellites are put into much higher orbits to increase their lifespan but necessitating larger optical systems. One of the advantages of a LEO based surveillance system is that the optics could be smaller at the cost of requiring more satellites with shorter life span.

Retric 5y ago
~500km is still a common NRO orbit, and presumably that’s to take the highest resolution images possible. The earliest spy satellites where under 150km and had extremely short lifespans. By comparison the commercial KOMPSAT-3 can provide 0.7m b/w images and 2.8m multispectral images from a 980kg satellite at 685 km and a multi year lifespan, I doubt classified satellites are that much better than that. Some NRO satellites are sent to geostationary orbit, presumably for other missions. So, it really depends on the goals as not all satellites are designed for ground imaging.