How far can a satellite zoom in?

Last year the US government relaxed its restrictions on commercial satellite imagery. Satellite companies can now legally distribute photos at about 25-centimeter resolution — enough to clearly make out a mailbox and four times as detailed as the previous 50-centimeter restriction.

What is the smallest thing a satellite can see?

So the detail visible in a satellite image all depends on the mission of each satellite and the scale of its observations. A few non-military satellites can see objects down to about half the size of a car. Some military satellites can still see even smaller things.

Can satellites see into your house?

NOAA satellites have the capability to provide astounding views of the Earth. But many people want to know if these satellites can see their house, or even through their roofs and walls to the people inside. The answer is: no.

How close can satellites see Earth?

They have an imaging resolution of 5-6 inches, which means they can see something 5 inches or larger on the ground.

How powerful is a satellite camera?

DigitalGlobe, the leader in satellite imagery, offers public images that display detail at 30 centimeters-per-pixel. The Vexcel images are clearer than that. Thirty centimeters per pixel, incidentally, is 90 centimeters for three pixels — or about three feet.

Spy Satellites - Imaging

Can satellites see your face?

Satellite technology has taken a creepy turn, with high-resolution images becoming so clear that they will soon be able to zoom in on your face and smartphone from outer space. The rapid advancement of the technology has refined the measurements of satellite image resolution from meters to mere centimeters.

Can a satellite see a golf ball?

Massive 3,200MP Space Camera Can Snap A Golf Ball 15 Miles Away.

Can military satellites see through clouds?

Clouds can hide the ground in visible light, but satellites can penetrate them using synthetic aperture radar, which emits a signal that bounces off the sensed object and back to the satellite.

How fast can satellites travel?

They complete an orbit in about 90 minutes because they are close to the Earth and gravity causes them to move very quickly at around 17,000 miles per hour. Many satellites need to be used for communication relay because the area they cover on Earth's surface is small and they are moving so quickly.

How fast do satellites move across the sky?

The speed a satellite must travel to stay in orbit is about 17,500 mph (28,200 km/h) at an altitude of 150 miles (242 kilometers.) However, in order to maintain an orbit that is 22,223 miles (35,786 kilometers) above Earth, a satellite orbits at a speed of about 7,000 mph (11,300 km/h).

Can satellites listen to conversations?

US satellites are, in principle, able to listen in to the billions of conversations and messages coming from or going to cell phones but the scale of doing so is daunting because of the huge numbers of phones in use. Before the eavesdroppers can decide if a conversation is worth listening to they have to decrypt it.

Are satellites spying on US?

Each of us is being spied on from space. The reconnaissance satellites of a growing number of nations orbit the planet, collecting troves of information about what humans are doing down on earth.

Can satellites see license plates?

While satellites cannot read license plates, they can tell if a car has one. While they cannot tell a mullah by the length of his beard, they can help analysts figure out how many people are chanting along with him at a street demonstration.

What would happen if all satellites were destroyed?

There would be no more satellite data showing the health of crops, illegal logging in the Amazon or Arctic ice cover. Satellites used to produce images and maps for rescue workers responding to disasters would be missed, as would the satellites producing long-term records of climate.

What is the zoom capability of a spy satellite?

The newest US spy satellites, meanwhile, can distinguish objects less than 10 centimeters across, the BBC reports. This is less than the length of some smartphones and sharp enough to zoom in on someone's head. (Although images of either would appear blobby at that resolution.)

What is the fastest thing orbiting Earth?

At about 10:54 p.m. EDT, Parker Solar Probe surpassed 153,454 miles per hour — as calculated by the mission team — making it the fastest-ever human-made object relative to the Sun. This breaks the record set by the German-American Helios 2 mission in April 1976.

Can you see satellites with naked eyes?

Only some satellites are large enough, reflective enough, and on low enough orbits to be seen by the naked eye, but on a good night I have seen between five and 10 of them in a few hours of watching. A typical satellite can be visible for several minutes.

Can satellites see at night?

Satellites are visible in the night sky when sunlight reflects off of their solar panels.

Can satellites see through smoke?

However, satellites with special infrared sensors can essentially see through the smoke to the fire, and a new satellite launched last month can do this at the highest resolution yet.

Do satellites have cameras?

Satellites are capable of taking photographs from space, but most of the thousands of cameras in orbit are unconcerned with your house, experts say.

Can satellites take video?

Pictures from high above Earth's surface, on display at a New York City press conference in June, were startling not just because of their high definition but because they added a new dimension to satellite imagery—time.

What does a satellite look like to the naked eye?

To identify a satellite you are looking for a star that looks like it is slowly moving across the night sky. On average they are visible for several minutes although some can be present for longer.

Can you hit a golf ball into orbit on the moon?

No, you cannot hit a golf ball into orbit on the moon.

What happens if you hit a golf ball on the moon?

There is no air resistance on the moon to slow the ball's travel. The faster one hits a golf ball, the farther it moves as no fluid resists it. As for making a ball leaving the moon altogether, well, a human truly couldn't. The moon's gravity is weaker than Earth's, but still quite strong.