That mysterious spy satellite program

Many Washington policy circles have been abuzz the last few days about comments made on the Senate floor Wednesday by Sens. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) about a classified intelligence program many people speculate to be a satellite system of some kind. The program was included in the intelligence reform bill and both senators were very critical of the program. Wyden’s comments, published in the Congressional Record, are perhaps the most interesting:

The Senate Intelligence Committee has determined that this program should not be funded based on firm policy judgments. Numerous independent reviews have concluded that the program does not fulfill a major intelligence gap or shortfall, and the original justification for developing this technology has eroded in importance due to the changed practices and capabilities of our adversaries. There are a number of other programs in existence and in development whose capabilities can match those envisioned for this program at far less cost and technological risk. Like almost all other acquisition programs of its size, initial budget estimates have drastically underestimated the true costs of this acquisition and independent cost estimates have shown that this program will exceed its proposed budgets by enormous amounts of money. The Senate Intelligence Committee has also in the past expressed its concern about how this program was to be awarded to the prime contractor.

Because the program is classified, no specifics about the program were discussed; Rockefeller said that if the program is funded next year he will ask the Senate “to go into closed session so the Senators can understand, fully debate, become informed upon, and then vote on termination of this very wasteful acquisition program.”

There has been plenty of speculation about the nature of this program, with most believing that it is a satellite system. NBC News reported that the program may be an “offensive counterspace” system, to use the DOD parlance: a spacecraft that could disable other nations’ spy satellites. An AP article also suggested the spacecraft might contain weapons, but instead to defend itself from attacking satellites: “defensive counterspace”.

Others have argued that the spacecraft might be a more familiar system: the Future Imagery Architecture (FIA) program of next-generation reconnaissance satellites. That program fits some aspects of Wyden’s description: it has suffered a number of cost overruns, and the selection of Boeing as prime contractor has been subject of recent scrutiny. However, Saturday’s Washington Post offers another alternative: a “stealth” spy satellite that is the third in a series called “Misty” designed to elude detection from the ground. The projected cost of the program, the Post reported, has increased from $5 to $9.5 billion. The satellite, being built by Lockheed Martin, is scheduled for launch within the next five years.