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Google’s Project Suncatcher to put ML infrastructure in space

233 points · 553 comments · xnx

neuronexmachina · 1790274986 · focus · HN ↗
Whenever I hear about this I can't help but be reminded of the Howard Hughes Glomar Explorer, where a hugely-expensive commercial project was actually part of a secret CIA initiative to recover a Soviet submarine: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glomar_Explorer" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glomar_Explorer
I'm not sure that's truly the case here, but it does seem like the tech Project Suncatcher is working on has at least some overlap with requirements for military SIGINT and in-orbit imagery processing.
1. motionlessveloc · 1790280611 · focus · HN ↗
  Why would the CIA need Google's cover for any of that? The Feds have been flying spy satellites since the 1950s and there's plenty of classified satellite launches.
  1. OkayPhysicist · 1790281215 · focus · HN ↗
    Because anybody near-peer to the US at this point has the capability to shoot down satellites, and anything launched on a classified satellite launch is a prime target.
    motionlessveloc · 1790282419 · focus · HN ↗
    A foreign nation shooting down a US satellite would be an act of war, regardless of whether it's a Google or CIA satellite.
    OkayPhysicist · 1790351181 · focus · HN ↗
    The US has been prepping for a showdown with China over Taiwan for quite a while now. It's the primary focus of US military strategy, and considering a when, not if. When we're sinking their ships (and them ours), shooting down satellites won't even register as an escalation.

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