In intelligence, “tradecraft” refers to the specialized methods and tools used to collect and protect information. From surveillance to secure communications, these skills define how intelligence agencies operate.

Yesterday, NRO & @SpaceX successfully launched NROL-48! 🚀 NRO’s proliferated architecture continues to enhance our persistence, resilience, and speed in space. 📸: SpaceX

MISSION SUCCESS: NROL-48 launched today at 1:38 p.m. EDT on a @SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base. Having hundreds of NRO satellites on orbit is vital to our nation and partners. Press release: https://t.co/3HuiZSShIJ

Watch Falcon 9 launch the @NRO_gov's NROL-48 mission from pad 4E in California

All systems are looking good and propellant load is about to begin for today’s launch of the @NatReconOfc’s NROL-48 mission from California → https://t.co/FBW7tS0Ddw

Yesterday, NRO Director Dr. Chris Scolese joined #IntelSummit25 to discuss strategic space competition, space resilience in a contested domain, and the future of NRO’s architecture and capability needs. Read more about it here: https://t.co/E2MikxV3Be

LAUNCH UPDATE: NROL-48 is scheduled to launch on a @SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base NET September 21. This mission is the 11th overall launch of the NRO’s proliferated architecture!

Happy birthday, @usairforce! 🎉

On this September 11th, we pause to remember all the lives lost 24 years ago. We will never forget.

The Space Race wasn’t just about the Moon. As the world watched the Apollo missions, NRO was launching covert reconnaissance satellites that gathered intelligence on Soviet activity throughout the Cold War.

Since the dawn of the space age, NRO has been at the forefront of innovation. 🛰 Today, NRO celebrates 64 years of keeping America safe through intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance.

It isn’t astronauts at the controls. It's engineers on Earth, working from ground stations to guide satellites and keep missions on track. From adjusting orbits to capturing the right data, their work ensures satellites deliver the data that space missions depend on.

Mission defines the goal. Innovation makes it possible. Betty Sapp, former director of the NRO, showcases the mindset that shapes every launch, every system, every success.

Thank you @NRO_gov for an excellent visit today. Our agencies' close collaboration enables unique intelligence capabilities to address our nation's critical challenges. @CIA looks forward to continuing our invaluable, longstanding partnership.

A satellite is any object that stays in orbit around a larger body. The Moon is Earth’s natural satellite, but planets can also capture asteroids, or even form rings made of small satellites. Others are manmade, designed to power things like communication and navigation.

One satellite can observe. A constellation can change the game. Proliferated architecture means more eyes in more places - faster, safer, smarter.

Before data went digital, it dropped from space. Early spy satellites ejected film capsules back to Earth — and pilots caught them mid-air. Miss the catch? A parachute. And a self-destruct. The mission: don’t let the film fall into the wrong hands.

Happy 235th Birthday, U.S. Coast Guard!

Yesterday, Maj Gen Chris Povak, NRO’s deputy director, opened the 2025 Air and Space Summit with a keynote focusing on NRO’s role in delivering ISR systems with precision and persistence. Read his full remarks here: https://t.co/49hwP5Ueot

Each orbit offers different benefits—from the area covered to how often a satellite passes over a region. Understanding these orbits helps explain how we get the right data at the right time. #NRO #NationalReconnaissanceOffice #OrbitalMechanics #SpaceExplained #IntelinOrbit