Conflict has traditionally been covered from the ground, with war correspondents sent as close as possible to the heart of action. Today, war is monitored from the sky too.
Satellite imagery, once only available to governments and intelligence agencies, is now a powerful source of information accessible to the wider public and has proved crucial to coverage of the crisis in Ukraine.
It has provided daily visual evidence of the buildup of Russian troops on Ukraine’s borders, tracked down forces movements in conflict zones and offered compelling visual evidence of the damage caused to buildings and infrastructure.
The Times is collating satellite imagery, published by Maxar Technologies, to follow the crisis from the skies.
There are two main types of satellite imagery. Maxar Technologies is one of the firms using optical remote sensing, which relies on visible or infrared light from the Sun being reflected by surfaces. Image resolution is down to less than one foot. One downside of this technology is that smoke or clouds can obscure a clear view.
Advertisement
An alternative is radar imaging which involves sending microwave pulses to Earth and translating the backscattered echo, making it possible to see the ground through clouds and even in total darkness.
Aircraft reconnaissance was first used during World War One to assess the enemy’s military capabilities and observe troop movements. The potential of imagery taken from outer space was only recognised in the 1950s.
During the Cold War satellite imaging has been used by both the US and Russia to monitor each other’s territories and to keep track of weapons production. Today, improved resolution and a wider accessibility has made the practice popular among media outlets and non-governmental organisations.
Over the past few years peace-keeping satellites have been used to monitor human rights, assess the scale of destruction in war zones, demarcate international boundaries, check on ceasefires agreements, identify potential threats to civilians in areas that can’t be accessed on the ground.
“There is often a lack of reliable information in conflict zones and satellite evidence can help overcome the gap” Dr Andre Groeger, assistant professor of Economics at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, told the Times. In a recent study published in PNAS, he has investigated how to monitor war destruction through satellite imagery and machine learning. “We hope this type of data and analysis can be of immediate advantage and practical use, especially for humanitarian agencies working in conflict zones.”
Advertisement
As truth is the first casualty in any war, satellite imagery can only be useful to the extent it remains factual and neutral. “There is really just one way these aerial photos can be biased and that’s if they are manipulated. Some governments are willing to go down that route in order to provide false evidence, it’s a poor way of trying to cheat. It’s also easily spotted” Dr Groeger says.
“We also need to remember that commercial companies providing satellite images are often influenced by state-run defence or security agencies: it means there is a chance they are not neutral when it comes to what and when they publish data” he adds.
Images require careful verification, especially when sources are directly involved in the conflict. “The risk is that misleading pictures get misused as propaganda,” remote sensing expert Pierre Markuse told The Times.
“Just because you can see something, that doesn’t mean you know what has happened. Interpretation can be hard, hindered by missing context. Fires can have many causes. A broken dam or bridge could be war damage or intentionally be broken to slow down the enemy. Seeing is not always knowing,” Markuse said.
Design by Anthony Cappaert and Aishat Bello
