Zirconic was aNational Reconnaissance Office (NRO) codename for a program established under thePresidency of Ronald Reagan to developreconnaissance satellites equipped withstealth technology. Zirconic operated as asensitive compartmented information program and included theMisty andProwler spacecraft, which were designed to reduce radar, visible, infrared, and laser signatures. Access to related classified material required a dedicated "Zirconic clearance," and the program's development effort was internally codenamedNebula.
Misty deployments began in 1990, when Misty 1 launched aboard theSpace Shuttle Atlantis and was deployed "over the side" rather than through a conventional payload bay ejection; amateur observers nevertheless tracked it within months. Misty 2 followed in 1999 on aTitan IV-B rocket, during which observers noted the release of a high-altitude decoy intended to obscure the true payload's orbit. A subsequent classified follow-on,Prowler, remained under strict compartmentalization, and its operational details have never been publicly disclosed.
By the early 2000s, Zirconic had become one of the largest single line items in the U.S. intelligence budget, with Misty's development costs rising from US$5 billion to more than US$9 billion by 2004. The program drew scrutiny from the numerousUnited States Congress committees. Critics argued that extreme secrecy enabled unchecked spending and limited transparency. Supporters maintained that stealth capability provided unique intelligence advantages in situations where adversaries believed no satellites were overhead.
The NRO considered stealth reconnaissance satellites as early as 1963.[1] A 1983 Department of Defense report noted that Soviet anti-satellite systems were operational and capable of targeting U.S. spacecraft in low Earth orbit, reinforcing the rationale for a stealth imaging platform.[2] In 1994,Teledyne Industries received apatent for a "satellite signature suppression shield" designed to reduce a spacecraft's laser, radar, visible, and infrared signatures.[1]
The Zirconic compartment was established under theRonald Reagan within theByeman Control System (BYEMAN).[3] The development effort was internally codenamedNebula, and access to the related information was restricted to individuals granted "Zirconic clearance."[3]
Jeffrey T. Richelson first disclosed the Zirconic program in his 2002 book,The Wizards of Langley: Inside the CIA's Directorate of Science and Technology.[4] The program entered wider public awareness in December 2004, when theWashington Post andNew York Times reported on it.[1] In late 2004, theSenate Intelligence Committee voted to terminate Zirconic,[1] but the program continued due to the support of theHouse Intelligence Committee and both theHouse Appropriations Committee andSenate Appropriations Committee.[1]
SenatorJay Rockefeller made repeated efforts to end the program.[1] After Rockefeller and other Democratic senators hinted at the still-classified program's existence, Senate Republicans questioned whether any congressional rules had been violated.[5] Opposition from both parties was described as intense and sustained behind closed doors for two years.[5] SenatorRon Wyden argued that unmanned aerial vehicles could achieve Misty's objectives at substantially lower cost and risk,[2] whileGeorge J. Tenet andPorter J. Goss were cited as staunch supporters.[4]
According to theWashington Post,Lockheed Martin served as a lead contractor on Zirconic.[4] By 2004, Misty's development costs had risen from US$5 billion to over US$9 billion,[4] with annual spending estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars.[5] The same report stated that Zirconic's stealth satellite line was the largest single line item in an approximately US$40 billion intelligence-related budget.[4] The planned third and final satellite, Misty, followed earlier launches in 1990 and 1999.[4]
Writing forEuropean Security & Defence, Douglas Richardson noted the involvement ofEdward Mills Purcell in Zirconic and earlier Corona programs "to make these vehicles, if not invisible to radar, hard to observe with radar."[6] Analysts also observed that theSpace-Based Infrared System (SBIRS), theAdvanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) communications network, and the optical and radar components of the Future Imagery Architecture experienced comparable cost growth during the same period.[3]
Critics argued that secrecy surrounding programs like Zirconic enabled unchecked spending, as industry lobbyists with the necessary clearances had privileged access while skeptics remained uninformed.[3]
A 1971 patent filed by employees ofTRW Inc. (later acquired byNorthrop Grumman) proposed a satellite design that could mask its radar cross-section, making it appear to remote sensors as a benign spacecraft.[2][7] The patent described a crossed-skirt antiradar screen structure capable of either suppressing a satellite's radar cross-section or imitating the signature of a benign spacecraft.[2][7]
Two decades later, staff of theStrategic Defense Initiative (SDI)—later reorganized as theMissile Defense Agency (MDA)—filed a similar patent.[2][8] The 1990 public patent for a satellite signature suppression shield prompted internal concern within the NRO over potential exposure of classified methods.[2] Because of extreme compartmentalization, Misty's developers did not consult key satellite-tracking experts at agencies such as theNaval Research Laboratory, potentially overlooking alternative assessments.[2] The Misty program was managed under the CIA's Directorate of Science and Technology (DS&T), specifically its Office of Development and Engineering (OD&E).[1] Analysts noted that stealth satellites were less versatile than standard reconnaissance assets and useful only in rare circumstances when adversaries believed no satellites were overhead.[3]
The Misty satellite was designed to take photographs during daylight hours and in clear weather.[5] However, it lacked the capability to capture imagery in all-weather conditions.[2] An early proposal to maintain a satellite in a high parking orbit and deorbit it only when needed was abandoned after it was determined that film would degrade while in storage.[2]
The camouflage space shield described in the SDI patent took the form of an inflatable balloon that could be rapidly deployed and then hardened through exposure to both external and internally generated ultraviolet radiation.[3][8]
The Misty satellite launched from theSpace Shuttle Atlantis in 1990 was deployed "over the side" rather than through the standard payload bay ejection.[3] Following the 1999Titan IV-B launch of Misty 2, amateur satellite trackers concluded that the spacecraft released a high-altitude decoy object.[2] The decoy was intended to obscure the true payload, which operated in a much lower orbit.[2] Despite Misty 2 being operational, U.S. overhead assets failed to detectNorth Koreanuranium enrichment activities; the discovery was instead made by trackingaluminum tube shipments.[2] After the 1990 launch, both U.S. and Soviet sources incorrectly reported that Misty had malfunctioned and would soon reenter the atmosphere.[2] The CIA later confirmed that the satellite remained operational.[2] In its early use, theKH-11 satellite was mistakenly identified by Soviet analysts as a signals intelligence platform.[2] As a result, they reduced their concealment efforts during the satellite's overpasses.[2]
A formal threat assessment by the CIA's Office of Scientific and Weapons Research (OSWR) concluded that Soviet tracking systems were unlikely to detect Misty.[1] Despite its intended stealth, Misty 2 was visually detected by amateur observers within eight months of launch, who tracked it at an altitude of approximately 500 mi (800 km).[2] Misty remained in orbit as late as May 1995, though its location and further intelligence contributions thereafter remained unknown.[1]
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