The National Intelligence is a modernization of the fleet of satellite imagery
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Dennis Blair, the Director of National Intelligence - who coordinates the activities of 16 federal agencies in terms of information - announced Tuesday 7 April a plan to modernize imaging for U.S. reconnaissance satellites.
The strategy is to design a line of "spy satellites" next-generation managed by the NRO (National Reconnaissance Office) to be operational by the end of the next decade while carefully controlling costs and development time. This program replace the "Future Imagery Architecture, which had to be canceled in 2005 after huge cost overruns and deadlines. The control of technological risks and
Dennis Blair, the Director of National Intelligence - who coordinates the activities of 16 federal agencies in terms of information - announced Tuesday 7 April a plan to modernize imaging for U.S. reconnaissance satellites.
The strategy is to design a line of "spy satellites" next-generation managed by the NRO (National Reconnaissance Office) to be operational by the end of the next decade while carefully controlling costs and development time. This program replace the "Future Imagery Architecture, which had to be canceled in 2005 after huge cost overruns and deadlines. The control of technological risks andcaution are called for after this failure.
In addition to these high-tech satellites, Blair also announced that the government would make use of the commercial imaging businesses to fill the "gap" between current satellites and the next generation. These satellites more rudimentary but available quickly - within a few years - would respond to needs in the short term pending future technological jewels of the NRO are operational. The government relies on the private sector that offers the necessary flexibility in its overall modernization strategy.
The companies GeoEye, based in Dulles, Virginia and Digital Globe, based in Colorado, welcomed the news with satisfaction as it could bring to one of 2 firms about $ 750 million over 5 years. Their satellites may be less complex than those of the NRO, the instruments of GeoEye-1 launched in September last year-still have a resolution of 41cm (this is the best performance for a commercial satellite and used by Google to power the "Google Earth" and "Google Maps" data).
This is the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, which the Department of Defense will continue to ensure the integration of the recognition and imaging to provide data to military, intelligence services, services of foreign policy and civilians. The Congress will nevertheless approve the plan in the coming weeks before it can materialize.
In addition, the Director of the NRO Large Scott tendered his resignation last Wednesday to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, saying in agreement with him and Dennis Blair with a change in leadership was necessary. These events are the beginning of a new era for the U.S. Agency for recognition, and a break from politics in recent years.
Posted by admin
on Jul 15th, 2009 and filed under Military.
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