Images from the Black: Thirty Years of Recollections about Satellite Reconnaissance at Kodak

This is the story of Kodak photographic satellite reconnaissance efforts, from the 1950's to the mid- 1980's. These were a key part of the National Reconnaissance Program. With their ability to image objects as small as a foot, from 100 miles away, these systems helped make the SALT treaties possible. How the technology from these systems helped select the landing sites for the Apollo Program is described. They were some of the very first satellites placed in orbit, and were at the state of the art. The narrative is based upon personal recollections plus a discussion of recently declassified material from the National Reconnaissance Office and the CIA. It is the story of a group of people that significantly contributed to national security, but were never acknowledged to exist until the recent declassification of these efforts. The systems described were instrumental in providing United States leaders the Soviet order of battle, and tracking the Soviet development of ICBM's, troop dispositions, and new ship and submarine development. This capability enabled the verification of treaty compliance. Their data products guided U.S. Presidents for many years in relations with the Soviet Union, China, and other countries which were adversaries of the United States. The accomplishments of these teams, given the relatively primitive state of technology at at the beginning of the projects is remarkable.These systems enabled an uneasy peace to be maintained all during the Cold War, and contributed significantly to a reduction in the number of nuclear weapons in the world.