4 ms·

Interesting! Why do meteors become classified and then not?

• jcrawfordor 4y ago
  The issue in these cases is typically not the actual information but the methods of collection. When astronomical or other information is collected by an intelligence system, it can be time-consuming or even theoretically difficult to "sanitize" the data so that it does not reveal information about the design, capabilities, and specifications of that system. For example, imagery collected by intelligence satellites for purposes like wilderness firefighting is usually kept classified and distilled into summary maps instead, because the images themselves could be analyzed to reveal the resolution, sensitivity, and wavelength filtering of the sensor used... Valuable information to an adversary designing countermeasures.
  • xp84 4y ago
    Sometimes you run across a comment that contains more insightful knowledge than entire articles. Thanks for this! I would never have considered this but it makes perfect sense!
  • bagels 4y ago
    You could also reveal the location or number of sensors as well, which they may not want to reveal.
  • aceazzameen 4y ago
    This was very insightful and something I have to keep in mind! Thank you!