How useful were US reconnaissance satellites in the war in Afghanistan?

During the war in Afghanistan, the satellite system was used by the US military to ensure accurate information about the Taliban’s operational intentions.
In the optical-electronic reconnaissance satellite system, there are six Lacros reconnaissance satellites, which are responsible for providing reflection images of military technical targets, structures and means, observing the area of ​​​​the garrison. of the Taliban forces. These satellites capture high-resolution images and are used in conjunction with the SDS and TDRS relay satellites.

For the purpose of expanding photo reconnaissance capabilities to ensure combat operations, the US National Mapping and Photographic Reconnaissance Service is authorized to use images of the territory of Afghanistan taken by the commercial Ikones satellite, with high resolution. 1m resolution. The US military also has the right to use information received from the satellite system to explore the earth’s natural resources. These are Landsat-7, Terra, Orview satellites. Information from these satellites is used to establish, supplement and clarify topographic maps, to facilitate the assessment of the situation in the area of ​​combat operations. The figure shows the NAVSTAR navigation satellite system. Photo: britannica In this war, the United States decided to extend the use of the experimental satellite for opto-electronic imaging of the earth’s surface EO-1 belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the purpose of ensuring the integrity of the satellite. better for the US military. Thanks to this satellite, the US military has received images of the earth’s surface position with a resolution of 30m, allowing it to be used to assess the damage of the target, on the basis of comparing the multispectral images obtained to take pictures before and after taking the blows and to calm down on the need for repeat attacks. For radio reconnaissance satellites, the US uses 2 Acvakaid satellites (Magnum and Mentor types). These satellites allow the reception of radio communications, relay communications, convection, signals from satellites, signals of ballistic missiles, aircraft and vehicle control signals. unmanned flight. It is said that the Taliban use very modern means of mobile satellite communication. However, the American radio reconnaissance satellite allows to capture the communications between the Taliban commanders, to detect in time the location of the troops and their plans. Military communication satellites work with the greatest intensity, but only guarantee 40-60% of the requirements of the forces participating in the campaign. In the composition of this satellite cluster, there are 6 satellites of the DSCS strategic communication system, 3 satellites connected to the Mistar tactical and strategic communication network, 2 UFO-type satellites of the tactical-operational communication system. of the navy, air force and army, six satellites of the SDS transmission system. In addition, the US also uses satellites belonging to NASA systems to monitor and transmit TDSS information. Due to the sudden increase in the information traffic required to secure the operation, the United States had to make maximum use of space communication systems (compared to Operation Desert Storm, the traffic of information delivery increased by 7 times). Especially the Iridium mobile satellite communication system with 66 satellites operating in low orbit. This system ensures that the US military groups have enough communication channels connecting to the US Department of Defense’s digital information network (DISN) and ensures the communication system of the US state executive agencies, ensuring for the national telephone system and the Internet. The NAVSTAR navigation satellite system includes 24 satellites that ensure real-time navigation for US forces. The shortening of the adjustment time between satellites of the NAVSTAR system by the test measurement complexes of the US Air Force allows to improve the accuracy and determine the target coordinates for the use of technological weapons. high. In planning and conducting air strikes and missile strikes, the US military places particular emphasis on using information received from the satellites of the National Environmental Monitoring System (NPOESS). This system is used for weather forecasting, setting up global and regional meteorological maps for a period of 1 day to 2 weeks, allowing selection of information on cloud status, atmospheric pressure, etc. atmosphere and other parameters of near-Earth space. Meteorological satellites Block-5D2-8 and Block-5D3-1 are used with the highest intensity. The improvement of the operational efficiency of the NPOESS system allows to fully guarantee the US military units with meteorological information. In particular, the forecast of changes in solar activity has provided the ability to promptly correct the functions of communication, reconnaissance and navigation satellites, contributing to improving the efficiency of attacks and the detection of satellites. command the forces. To secure meteorological forecasts for navies, NASA’s Quicksat satellites are used to determine wind speed and direction over the ocean’s surface. Thus, during the war in Afghanistan, US satellite systems were used with high efficiency. At the same time, it also revealed some disadvantages, such as the lack of radar and opto-electronic reconnaissance satellites to timely orient the commander to use tactical forces. As a result, in some cases, commanders did not receive timely reconnaissance information. In addition, the satellite’s unobservable cycle over the combat area disrupted the monitoring of the movements of Taliban forces and vehicles.