how big are US spy satellites - 6 matching articles

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  space

  'The Martian' author Andy Weir answers your questions about Mars

  His favorite astronaut, his most beloved fictional space explorer, and the discoveries that would have changed the plot of 'The Martian.'

  ... They run all of our spy satellites. They have half of the ... of these.Weir is also a “big thinker” for season 2 of ...

  By Tom McNamara
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  space

  Meet the amateur astronomers who track secretive spy satellites for fun

  If Zuma is still up there, these are the people who might spot it.

  ... Not all observers watch for spy satellites. Many others simply make observations ... themselves are big, fiery, and loud, and in the U.S. happen close ...

  By Mary Beth Griggs
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  space

  China's Race To Space Domination

  To gain an edge here on Earth, China is pushing ahead in space

  ... up sophisticated communications and intelligence satellites, and offered cheap satellite-launch services ... while keeping potential adversaries or spies in the dark. As long ...
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  space

  This Is Where The International Space Station Will Go To Die

  In one of the most isolated places on the globe, the 'Spacecraft Cemetery' provides a watery grave

  ... from rockets' secondary payloads to spy satellites, small Russian space stations, fuel ... this area, but the next big ticket item likely won't make ...

  By Shannon Stirone
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  space

  China's Answer To The Hubble Telescope

  300 times the coverage!

  ... , the World's Most Powerful Geo Spy Satellite, Continues China's Great Leap Forward ... Ever Space Rocket Takes Another Big Step Forward China Show Cases ...

  By Jeffrey Lin and P.W. Singer
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  space

  NASA Gets Serious About Its Next Big Telescope

  With a view 100 times larger than Hubble's, the WFIRST scope could discover thousands of exoplanets and millions of galaxies

  ... in part from a leftover spy satellite. It's about the size of ... could become "the next Hubble." We shall see. Correction, 2/19/2016 at ...

  By Sarah Fecht
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  space

  The proposed Space Force isn't the first time the United States has tried to militarize space

  In 1966, the Air Force sent an uncrewed space station into orbit

  ... possible US military astronaut program was the 1961 SAMOS E-5 spy satellite, which ... new branch. That isn't just spy satellites or other classified activities. That ...

  By John Wenz
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  space

  China launched the Long March 5, its largest-ever rocket

  The 879-ton rocket flew an experimental satellite into space.

  ... after that include launching large spy satellites, and even a possible manned ... Ever Space Rocket Takes Another Big Step Forward Next Generation of ...

  By Jeffrey Lin and P.W. Singer
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  space

  LM-6 Rocket's First Launch Brings 20 Satellites Into Space

  China's most powerful rocket engine makes a successful debut

  ... surveillance and co-orbital anti-satellite satellites to protect spy satellites and space stations launched ... Space Rocket Takes a Another Big Step Forward China Showcases Plan ...

  By Jeffrey Lin and P.W. Singer
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  space

  CIA Wants To Train A.I. To Understand Satellite Photos

  Amazon, NVIDIA, and others on board to automatically map the world

  ... more than half a century, spy satellites have circled the globe, taking ... if satellites did more? What if, instead of just showing us what ...

  By Kelsey D. Atherton
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  space

  The White House is calling for Space Traffic Control

  It's time to stop sending up so much garbage.

  ... to happen overnight. But what we hope to see is that ... to take out, say, a spy satellite along with defunct commercial space ...

  By Mary Beth Griggs
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  space

  Watch A Spy Satellite Launch Into Space

  Rockets away!

  Weather was not kind to United Launch Alliance last Thursday, when the company prepared to launch a mysterious payload into space for the National Reconnaissance Office. Saturday's weather was much nicer, allowing the ...

  By Kelsey D. Atherton
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  space

  U.S. May Continue Riding Russian Rockets To Space

  And the rockets' red glare...

  ... —provided the U.S. Air Force's only way of getting satellites into orbit. ... from launches involving military and spy satellites, after Russia invaded Crimea, adding ...

  By Sarah Fecht
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  space

  The Manned Orbiting Laboratory the Air Force Failed to Launch

  ... , detection and inspection of orbiting satellites, and reconnaissance and surveillance of ... capabilities would be a stunning spy platform. The Air Force would ...

  By Amy Shira Teitel
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  space

  How 3D-Printing Rocket Engines Could Win Back The Space Race

  Rapid manufacturing methods may eliminate dependence on Russian rockets

  ... even the U.S. government's most sensitive national security satellites depended on Russian ... military and spy satellites into orbit. Meanwhile, pressure to break U.S. dependence on ...

  By Clay Dillow
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  space

  NOAA's satellites are on the chopping block. Here's why we need them.

  Our eyes in the sky are facing budget cuts

  ... before a big weather event, you've already seen NOAA's satellites in action. ... bad year.They give us a better perspective. NOAA satellites help us get an ...

  By Mary Beth Griggs
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  space

  In the hunt for aliens, satellites may light the way

  If aliens love satellites as much as we do, we might be able to spot them

  ... , producing a ring of satellites that we might be able to spot ... interstellar distances, and then we will become big brothers.” Since little brothers ...

  By Charlie Wood
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  space

  Tiny license plates could help us steer clear of our space junk

  The identification system blinks for a millionth of a second.

  ... and beyond, many scientists say, we could be in for some ... is to test them on bigger satellites, with the ultimate objective to ...

  By Claire Maldarelli
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  space

  This Is The Tiny Spaceship That Could Take Us To Alpha Centauri

  Now, the KickSat may power Yuri Milner's $100 million Breakthrough Starshot Project

  ... interstellar mission: an extremely small satellite weighing just 1-2 grams, originally ... to do for decades on big satellites, get almost trivially easy when ...

  By Dave Gershgorn
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  space

  The discount airline model is coming to rocket launches

  A slew of new startups are vying to serve the booming market for small satellites by launching small rockets more frequently and cheaply

  ... space on someone else's mission. "We call that hitchhiking to space ... for launches. “The big driver for small satellites is data -- customers ...

  By Andrew Rosenblum
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  space

  Satellite Watchers Find America's Latest Space Secret

  Spying on spies in the skies

  ... the work of amateur astronomers, we have information that's impossible to ... Mentor or Advanced Orion satellite. At a satellite tracking blog, amateur skygazer ...

  By Kelsey D. Atherton
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  space

  Boeing's Satellite Launcher Gives Rockets A 'Butt Boop'

  A cheap, adorable way of getting into space

  ... , giving the hypersonic vehicle a big boop to a second altitude ... system pans out, launching a satellite could become downright cheap, allowing ...

  By Loren Grush
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  space

  Stunning Photos Of Saturday's Mysterious Rocket Launch

  Gaze upon the titanic beauty of a launching rocket

  ... Office, is possibly a spy satellite, though we may not know for years ... what it actually was. What we can do is bask in ...

  By Kelsey D. Atherton
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  space

  Think Tank Report Warns Of Cyberterrorism In Space

  Hack (above) the planet!

  ... likely through benign neglect. More satellites mean more entry points; more ... around encryption open up their satellites for attackers.Once hackers get into ...

  By Kelsey D. Atherton