Declassified satellite photos provide first views of Southern Transantarctic Mountains

Abstract

Recent declassification of an extensive database of U.S. intelligence satellite photographs is providing the first detailed spaceborne views of the Antarctic interior, including much of the Transantarctic Mountains. The declassified intelligence satellite photographs (DISP) were collected by reconnaissance satellites. Data acquisition started in 1959, lasted for 12 years, and involved three programs code‐named Corona, Argon, and Lanyard, which differed in mission objectives and system characteristics, such as camera type and film “Wheelon, 1997]. Image collection concentrated on Eastern Europe and Asia, but substantial imagery was also collected from other parts of the Earth, including Antarctica.