3 ms·

You can't task a satelite to monitor for an explosion after the fact...

k-mcgrady 12y ago
Presumably satellites were watching this area due to the conflict and all data will have been recorded.
TheCraiggers 12y ago
You think those imaging satellites aren't constantly recording everything they see and sending it somewhere? Especially in and around such a hot area as the Ukraine, I'm sure there is near-constant surveillance. It would be a waste of resources otherwise.
- zAy0LfpBZLC8mAC 12y ago
  Except there probably aren't quite enough satellites to always have one over that area? Plus, yeah, downlink bandwidth probably wouldn't be sufficient anyway.
  - clarky07 12y ago
    surely Ukraine is a priority right now though, right?
    - zAy0LfpBZLC8mAC 12y ago
      And how does that increase the number of satellites in orbit or the available downlink bandwidth?
dredmorbius 12y ago
Early warning defense systems are configured to look for specific events, particularly missile launch signatures. They would likely be scanning wide areas and automatically record launch signatures, possibly then tasking optical or other sensors on the specific region, in realtime. Some launch areas are well-known (e.g., fixed land-based silos), some aren't (e.g., mobile launchers, submarines). So a wide-area detection capability is almost certain, though whether this includes arbitrary land surface areas is an interesting question. I'd be inclined to think so.
- greedo 12y ago
  They're configured to look for missile launch signatures of ICBMs. SAMs are much smaller. Whether they have the sensitivity to detect an SA-11 launch is unknown, but apples and oranges, folks.
  - dredmorbius 12y ago
    Low-altitude SAMs (a/k/a "MANPADS", Man-portable air-defense systems) can be quite small. But SAMs as a weapons class cover a lot of ground. The Buk missles are ~700 kg (1500 lb), 5.5 m (15.3 ft) solid rocket systems. They're close to a sub-orbital missile system, and might be picked up by an orbital tracking system. That said, I'm not sure what optical or infrared tracking exists. There's some discussion of SLBM/ICBM detection by the 7th Space Warning Squadron, but it seems largely reliant on ground-based PAVE-PAWS radar. There was the 1960s MIDAS orbital infra-red detection system, replaced by the Defense Support System: "The satellites are in geostationary orbits, and are equipped with infrared sensors operating through a wide-angle Schmidt camera. The entire satellite spins so that the linear sensor array in the focal plane scans over the earth six times every minute." So any given spot on Earth is scanned once every 10 seconds. DSS involved 23 launches, I don't see information on presently active satellites. There's also the note: "The DSP constellation may have offered an excellent vantage point for an early warning system against state-centric threats such as missiles, but military analysts warn its ability to collect intelligence on non-state actors is severely limited." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MANPADS http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MANPADS http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buk_missile_system#Missiles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buk_missile_system#Missiles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7th_Space_Warning_Squadron#Mission http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7th_Space_Warning_Squadron#Miss... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missile_Defense_Alarm_System http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missile_Defense_Alarm_System http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_Support_Program http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_Support_Program

Presumably satellites were watching this area due to the conflict and all data will have been recorded.

You think those imaging satellites aren't constantly recording everything they see and sending it somewhere? Especially in and around such a hot area as the Ukraine, I'm sure there is near-constant surveillance. It would be a waste of resources otherwise.

zAy0LfpBZLC8mAC 12y ago
Except there probably aren't quite enough satellites to always have one over that area? Plus, yeah, downlink bandwidth probably wouldn't be sufficient anyway.
- clarky07 12y ago
  surely Ukraine is a priority right now though, right?
  - zAy0LfpBZLC8mAC 12y ago
    And how does that increase the number of satellites in orbit or the available downlink bandwidth?

dredmorbius 12y ago

Early warning defense systems are configured to look for specific events, particularly missile launch signatures. They would likely be scanning wide areas and automatically record launch signatures, possibly then tasking optical or other sensors on the specific region, in realtime. Some launch areas are well-known (e.g., fixed land-based silos), some aren't (e.g., mobile launchers, submarines). So a wide-area detection capability is almost certain, though whether this includes arbitrary land surface areas is an interesting question. I'd be inclined to think so.

greedo 12y ago
They're configured to look for missile launch signatures of ICBMs. SAMs are much smaller. Whether they have the sensitivity to detect an SA-11 launch is unknown, but apples and oranges, folks.
- dredmorbius 12y ago
  Low-altitude SAMs (a/k/a "MANPADS", Man-portable air-defense systems) can be quite small. But SAMs as a weapons class cover a lot of ground. The Buk missles are ~700 kg (1500 lb), 5.5 m (15.3 ft) solid rocket systems. They're close to a sub-orbital missile system, and might be picked up by an orbital tracking system. That said, I'm not sure what optical or infrared tracking exists. There's some discussion of SLBM/ICBM detection by the 7th Space Warning Squadron, but it seems largely reliant on ground-based PAVE-PAWS radar. There was the 1960s MIDAS orbital infra-red detection system, replaced by the Defense Support System: "The satellites are in geostationary orbits, and are equipped with infrared sensors operating through a wide-angle Schmidt camera. The entire satellite spins so that the linear sensor array in the focal plane scans over the earth six times every minute." So any given spot on Earth is scanned once every 10 seconds. DSS involved 23 launches, I don't see information on presently active satellites. There's also the note: "The DSP constellation may have offered an excellent vantage point for an early warning system against state-centric threats such as missiles, but military analysts warn its ability to collect intelligence on non-state actors is severely limited." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MANPADS http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MANPADS http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buk_missile_system#Missiles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buk_missile_system#Missiles http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7th_Space_Warning_Squadron#Mission http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7th_Space_Warning_Squadron#Miss... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missile_Defense_Alarm_System http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missile_Defense_Alarm_System http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_Support_Program http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_Support_Program