America’s Secret Space Arsenal: (Good-bye Shuttle but there is hope!)

After 30 years and 135 missions, it's curtains for NASA's Space Shuttle. The Shuttle Atlantis blasted off on Friday for one last rendezvous with the International Space Station, bringing to an end the current era of impressive -- but pricey and dangerous -- manned spaceflight. But never fear! America's space arsenal might be down four giant Shuttles, but there's still plenty of U.S. government hardware orbiting the Earth, much of it top secret.

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Counting commercial satellites with government missions, Washington has access to around 400 spacecraft -- four times as many as the number-two space power, Moscow. U.S. spacecraft include communications satellites, orbital cameras and other sensors, craft designed to eavesdrop on radio traffic and at least one secretive, robotic space plane similar to in shape to the retiring Shuttle. Here's a sampling of some of the "blackest" of America's secret space fleet.

Lacrosse
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Radar in space. That, in a nutshell, is the function of the Lacrosse family of giant satellites, orbiting 400 miles over Earth since the late 1980s. Along with the equally-huge camera-equipped Keyholes, the Lacrosses provide most of America's day-to-day space-based intel. Keyholes are for good weather. Lacrosses, with the ability to see through clouds, are for overcast days. Working in a team, Keyholes and Lacrosses probably helped the CIA plan the May raid that killed Osama Bin Laden in Pakistan. How many of the billion-dollar Lacrosses are there? Probably three. Every few years the secretive National Reconnaissance updates the design and sends a fresh one into orbit, most recently in September, according to some sources. One recent version spotted by amateur sat-tracker John Locker might even come equipped with a sensor dish for gathering up radio signals, essentially mapping a target's electromagnetic signature while also painting a picture of its physical surroundings.

Keyhole
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The fair-weather partner of the Lacrosse, Keyhole is what people are actually visualizing when they think "spy satellite." Keyholes are basically telescopes pointed toward Earth instead space. In fact, it seems that NASA modeled the Hubble Space Telescope on the Keyhole's design. There are probably around five 20-ton, $2-billion Keyholes in 150-mile orbit, the latest placed there in January by a Delta IV Heavy rocket launched from California. (That blast-off was so loud that Air Force officials had to tell local inhabitants it wasn't an earthquake.) Washington loves its Keyholes so much it has been building them nonstop since the mid-1970s

Misty
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It could be a figment of the collective imagination of the world's amateur satellite trackers. It could be hype by an author hoping to sell books. Or it could be the world's most secretive spy satellite, an ostensibly undetectable version of the old-school Keyhole orbital camera. "Misty," as it's known by space enthusiasts, was allegedly an attempt by the CIA's Office of Development and Engineering to develop a spacecraft that couldn't be tracked by Soviet trackers, or attacked by Moscow's anti-satellite weapons.

Naval Ocean Surveillance System

Today, the so-called Naval Ocean Surveillance System is in its third generation. Each $800-million constellation of two or three satellites is launched by a single rocket into low orbit -- low enough that they're frequently mistaken for alien spaceships by panicked Earthlings (see above). These low-fliers don't last last long: just a few years, meaning the Navy is constantly updating them and boosting more into orbit -- quietly, of course. NOSS is one of the Navy's huge but unheralded advantages over rival navies. It's not for no reason that some of China's first modern military satellites were basically copies of the Navy system. Beijing needed some way to spot American aircraft carriers so it could target them with DF-21 ballistic missiles

Mentor
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Some spy satellites watch with cameras or radars. Others listen. The five Mentor satellites, possibly built by TRW, are what's known as "SIGINT" craft -- that stands for "signals intelligence." The geosynchronous Mentors are the latest in a long line of SIGINT birds dating back to the '80s. Originally built to suck up communications from Soviet missiles tests, today they can eavesdrop on radios, radars and pretty much any device that broadcasts a strong enough signal.

The key to this sensitivity is one monster set of ears. The Mentors aren't heavy -- just three tons or so. But their receiver dishes are huge. A modified Mentor launched in November boasts the biggest receptor of them all: roughly the size of the football field, making it "the largest satellite in the world," according to NRO director Bruce Carlson.

Others to read about. Have more... add to the list:
Rapid Pathfinder Program
Space Tracking and Surveillance System
X-37B

Source: www.wired.com...

Well, I have to say that this article put me in a little better mood about the topic of ending the Shuttle program. I know the USA has other things going on. They have to. It wouldn't surprise me if they come out and say they have craft that can leave the earth without the big rockets!

The problem is that it appears all this stuff is Spy Related. Not Space Related.... in the sense that it isn't the James Webb or Hubble. I assume these things are peering out into space. Wouldn't you. Or, at least be able to direct them to do as you need when needed.

Any ATS member(s) have experience with this stuff. I wonder what China has gotten up their sleeve!!

The Future... it's scary. Hopefully Man will control himself to kill each other and focus on better things.

I'm afraid I will have to place this thread as a dis/misinformation attempt.
While it may be true in everything is presents, it leaves a gaping gap about the lack of manned spaceflight efforts by the US.

Surely, surely anyone that has half a brain can connect the dots between the mysterious black triangles as being our hidden space efforts to replace the shuttle and ISS.

It is inconceivable to believe that after thirty years of actual use of the shuttle that we never thought to have a replacement. The only explanation is that our replacement is so fantastic that it must be kept secret.

But kept secret from whom? Our possible adversaries would have some inkling of our efforts. So the only logical explanation is that these top-secret craft that can fly low, slow and silently besides jumping into space are the outgrowth of acquired alien technology and thus, must be kept secret from the public for as long as possible. And their operational use is why we have the reall reason for the hoopla over a possible upcoming Disclosure. By accident or intention, they are destined to be revealed at some point in the near future.

I know that conventionalist get weary of me singing this same song time after time, but I get weary of threads that parrot what we can easily see is the official government propandga. I have seen a triangle at close range and know they exist.

Originally posted by Aliensun
I'm afraid I will have to place this thread as a dis/misinformation attempt.

You are just joking around.

You aren't being serious right?

You didn't really just slander an ATS member.

Haha, you're so funny. What a jokester.

reply to post by Aliensun

Surely, surely anyone that has half a brain can connect the dots between the mysterious black triangles as being our hidden space efforts to replace the shuttle and ISS.

I didn't put the Black Triangles in as I assumed what you stated was pretty much a given....

I was just reading today that ... well here you go. It's official-Russia is on the path to surpass the USA (unless the USA has some secret tech). Let me go grab it.

Garbage Collector to go into Space

Russia’s Energia Space Corporation is developing a Manned Spacecraft to Repair Satellites IN Orbit and sweep up satellite debris from space around the Earth. The spacecraft will be launched from the Vostochny cosmodrome in 2015.

The spacecraft will take a two-man crew who will make space walks and replace blocks of the satellites or use a mechanical hand to do so. The cosmonauts will fly for two weeks, says a consultant to the president of the Energia Corporation, Victor Sinyavsky. The defunct satellites pose great danger. They should be collected into a special vehicle and drowned them in the ocean on earth. This method will help to clean up the space from debris.

Source: english.ruvr.ru...

Think about it. Russia, China, the Euros, India.... they are all planning manned missions to the moon.... USA...
Russia will make BILLIONS riding around cleaning up space junk or fixing things. Thing about it:

Boris, we just rec'd a message from the old NASA folks that their SAT 21 SXR-3 is having a problem. They would like for us to pick it up and bring it back next trip.....

Okay,,,, 50 Million. If they bulk... go 55 million and tell them we bumped them from the next ride up to ISS> That should cool their heals. Can you believe they got themselves into this mess!!! JaJaJaJa....

Toss in the Obama/Muslim Space Out-Reach Program and.... well I am sure we'll get a ride from someone-eventually.
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reply to post by Aliensun


Oh cool black triangles. Do you have a post where you talk about your experience with them, even if it was just spotting of them. Yes I am also a firm believer in a secret space program. We had the B2 bomber for a long while before anyone knew it existed, the Chinese finally copied our design, its ready for retirement just like the shuttle. So I wonder what space tech we really have flying up there. If you don't feel like telling everybody about the experience feel free to pm me

To the OP great post. I didn't know the Hubble was designed after a spy satellite, figures the american Good Old boys have all the cool toys first.

We've been shooting at each other in space.

There's no way the US would go without some manned spaceflight platform.

My guess is the Navy's new degaussing system for their ships using superconducting ceramics actually makes their ships defy gravity....

And the US Navy already has had the ability to put people into Space. Imagine them taking the new Ford Class Aircraft Carrier into low earth orbit...maybe that's why everything is automated on it....

Wouldn't that be neat?

Originally posted by Pervius
We've been shooting at each other in space.

There's no way the US would go without some manned spaceflight platform.

My guess is the Navy's new degaussing system for their ships using superconducting ceramics actually makes their ships defy gravity....

And the US Navy already has had the ability to put people into Space. Imagine them taking the new Ford Class Aircraft Carrier into low earth orbit...maybe that's why everything is automated on it....

Wouldn't that be neat?

Would? It IS neat... its called battlestar galactica... stop watching it.

Cheers

I have never seen the traingle/Naval Ocean Surveillance System video before, worth a watch if you have just arrived at this thread (see first post by op). "its a triangle"...... "its a triangle!"

Definitely more going on up above than we are led to believe.

reply to post by 11I11


That video is one of the first ones I ever saw that showed "movers" (I call them).

I look for them every night (movers). But, thanks to ATS I know know that what I see are Sats.

Most likely some of the ones I put in the thread.

As I say now. IF there are UFO/Aliens.... they will have one hell of a time getting through the 30,000 obiting Sats and other items. They may have to wait for a Clear Window. lol