PROJECT CORONA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP75B00514R000200050014-5
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 5, 2004
• Sequence Number: 14
• Publication Date: April 15, 1958
• Content Type: REPORT

14 00070384D
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COR-0013
Copy No,
15 April 1958
PROJECTET
CORONA
1. Purit e: Project CORONA contemplatescovert development
and subsequent operational use of a short-lived reconnaissance satellite
from which, at the completion of its mission, a recoverable capsule contain-
ing exposed film is separated for return and pick up in a preselected ocean
area. Prior to the initiation of this project, the development of such a system
had been started by the Air Force as a part of Weapons System 117L but was
officially cancelled early in March. Thus, CORONA involves the picking up
and carrying through covertly of a program already undertaken together with
technical modifications therein as indicated below.
Z. Configuration: Taking advantage of arrangements already made by
the Air Force, the basic vehicle for project CORONA will be a two-stage
rocket consisting of the same second stage that is being built by Lockheed
for WS-117L with a Thor booster as the first stage (in place of the Atlas
booster which will be the first stage of the WS417L vehicle). The payload
will be a pod containing a twenty-four inch focal length camera and a recover-
able capsule into which the exposed film feeds as the camera operates.
Either the whole second stage of the vehicle, or possibly only the pod contain-
ing the payload., will be stabilised after it is in orbit and will serve as a plat-
form from which the camera continuously looks downward to the earth and
takes pictures by scanning at right angles to the path. This configuration
is expected to yield a resolution of about twenty feet on the ground which
should be sufficient to permit structures to be distinguished from Met another
and to allow the detection and identification of such major reconnaissance
targets as missile sites under construction, previously unobserved communities.
or other major installations in the areas hitherto inaccessible to reconnaissance
such as the Soviet far north.
3. Program: It is proposed that twelve vehicles n th. above configura-
tion be produced. Although it has not yet been possible to establish a firm
schedule of delivery dates, it appears probable that the first firing can be no
later than June of 1959. It is tentatively planned to schedule firings initially
at the rate a one a month but to achieve a faster rate, perhaps as high as two
per month, as soon as possible. Assuming that this timing can be achieved.
NRO and USAF review(s) completed.
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the twelve firings should be completed in the spring of 1960. It must be
assumed that by no means all of these vehicles will be successfully orbited,
operate without malfunction, and be recovered. At a later date ft may be
desirable to consider whether this program should be extended, with or
without further technological improvement.
4. Modification of Earlier Plans: The configuration briefly described
above differs from that contemplated in the program originally launched by
the Air Force. The earlier plan called for spin stabilization of the pod
containing the payload, a six inch focal length camera without image /notion
compensation, and a very short exposure time. Such a configuration could
be available as much as six months sooner and would involve somewhat less
technological risk (because of its reliance on a proven method of stabilization)
than the one presently proposed. On the other hand, it would require the use
of fast film which results in grainy photography and would yield a resolution
a only sixty feet on the ground. To carry through the development of the
original configuration and at the Barns time to undertake the development of
the modified configuration in parallel would have obvious advantages hut would
add four or five million dollars to the total cost of the program and would
complicate the problem of maintaining cover. On balance it in believed,
(a) that efforts should be concentrated on the development of the more
sophisticated modified version and (b) that the earlier availability date of
the original configuration does not justify the cost in terms of funds and effort
of continuing its development in parallel with the modified configuration.
5. Administration: CORONA is being carried out under the authority
of the Advanced Research Projects Agency and the Central Intelligence
Agency with the support and participation of the U.S. Air Force. ARPA has
authorised, and will exercise general technical supervision over, the develop-
ment of the vehicle. Detailed supervision of vehicle development is being
performed by the Air Force Ballistic Missile Division acting as *goat for
ARPA. The Ballistic Missile Division is responsible also for the provision
of necessary ground facilities, which are in any case required for the W5417L
program. CIA is participating in supervision of the technical development,
especially as applied to the actual reconnaissance equipment, is undertaking
all procurement that must be handled covertly, and has general responsibility
for cover and for the maintenance of security. In the operational phase actual
missile launchings will be carried out at Cooke Air Force Bose by technical
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staffs of the companies concerned. Tracking will be carried out from
statioas being established by the Ballistic Missile Division. Recovery
will be accomplished by a Navy task force. The line a command for
these field activities of launching, tracking, and recovery will be through
the Ballistic Missile Division. Subject to approval by the appropriate
political authorities, the general schedule of launchings will be determined
by the availability of vehicles and launching facilities. Specific timing
within this schedule will be determined as far as possible on the basis of
weather prevailing ever target areas. For both cover and control purposes,
weather will be reported through au already existing CIA channel and firing
date, will be selected by the Central Intelligence Agency.
6. Cver and Security: As noted above the initial step taken to place
this undertaking on a truly covert basis wa,e the cancellation of the program
already started by the Air Force as a part of its WS-1171. development.
The cover and security arrangements already made or contemplated are as
follows:
a, Subsequent to the ostensible cancellation, limited numbers
of individuals in the participating companies were cleared for and
advised of procedures to be employed in CORONA. Compartments-
ties of this project from ether activities is being established in a
satisfactory manner in all of the companies and an internal cover
story is being worked out for use in each company to explain to
unwitting company personnel the nature a the compartmented and
highly classified work which will be going forward. Generally
speaking the personnel actually employed in the design and production
of the classified reconnaissance equipment must be witting of its
true purpose.
b. Since actual missil, firings attract public attsattn, a cover
explanation will be required during rational phase to explain
plaasibly the doses or more launchings t will take place and the
recovery siperations which will be carried out by the Navy aad will
lavolve csasiderable numbers of Naval personnel. A cover story
for certain parts of the developmental work and for some or all of
the firings win surplain thesexebservable events as parts of a program
to conduct experimental space flights with laboratory animals.
Partly in support of this cover, but also for their own inherent
scientific value, a recovery capsule suitable for carrying an animal
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and appropriately
a number of blamed
taken. It is planned t
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ented will actuallybe developed and
unchings and recoveries will be under-
hen reconnaissance equipment is to be
launched, the pod containing it will be substituted for the biomedical
pod just before firing and it is believed knowledge of this substitution
can be limited to a few witting individuals in the launching crews.
As a supplementary cover story it may be possible to explain some
of the firings as events in a program of nose cone re-entry testi.
C. Great technical ingenuity and carefully worked out procedures
will be required to maintain the plausibility of either or both of
these cover stories. Although planning is still at an early .tag.
it
it is believed that this can be accomplished. It would be highly
desirable, however, not only to provide an innocent explanation
of the quite unconcealable firing and recovery activities but also
to conceal the fact that the vehicle ever enters into orbit, since
the suspicion will inevitably arise that any orbiting vehicle, however
described, is in fact being used for reconnaissance. With this
objective in view, the possibility of describing the vehicle as a
missile rather than as a short-lived satellite is being studied. If
this appears feasible the cover stories will be appropriately
modified.
d. The strictest security control is being maintained over all
aspects of CORONA. AU communicntions which reflect the existence
of this project aro handled within Top Secret procedures. A list of
all individual* who are witting of the project is maintained.
Individuals are cleared for and made knowledgeable a the project
only on a strict need-to-know basis. Additional clearances may
be granted only with prior approval from the CIA project office
and this authority will not be delegated to any other organisation
concerned with the project.
7. Procurement: Of the total procureient required for COR ?
as large a proportion as possible wiU be handled relatively overtly as a part
of the WS-117L and other programs. In accordance with this general plan,
both the Thor booeter? which is produced by Douglas for a number of military
application, and the Lockheed second stage vehicle, which (as noted above) is
T
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being developed for WS-I1IL, will be procuredby the Air Force. The Thor
booster* will be allocated from * group of deliver as already earmarked for
certain miscellaneous Air Force programs (including re-entry tests and
biomedical programs). Th. second stage vehicles will be allocated from
production already scheduled for the W$.1 17L program. Only the pods con
taming reconnaissance equipment and the recoverable film cassettes will be
procured covertly by the Central Intelligence Agency. Production a only
the covert items will be compartmented in the several companies. The
responsibility for systems integration and final assembly will rest with
Lockheed. Arrangements are being made which will permit Lockheed's
production, testing, and the bulk of its check...out activities to be compartmented
and securely carried out up to the moment when the reconnaissance pod is
substituted for a biomedical or instrumented nose cone payload.
8. rinencin#: The total cost of the program herein ermined, assum-
ing that it will be limited to twelve vehicles, is estimated at approximately
dollars:
a. Of this amount, covert procurement f the payload would
account for approximately dolls s as follows:
Recoverable Capsules
Cameras
Payload Pod and assembly costa
TOTAL
a58,1
dollars as?1
dollars
dollars
dollar s
It ?proposed that these c*ts be financed by the Central Intelligence
Agency, subject to obtaining the fends from the Agency's reserve.
b. The largest part of thel 'dollar total
represents the cost of the Thor boosters and the Lockheed second
stage vehicles. A rather arbitrary allowance of 'dollars
per completed vehicle has been included for these items which
therefore account for dollars a the fatal.. Since
these will be procured in connection with other programs, as noted
above, they will be financed in the same way as these ether programs.
for the most part they will be financed by ALFA through the Air
Fere. as elements of the WS-117L and biomedical programs. There
is soma question, however, concerning the allocation of the cost of
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Thor booster e. In any case the whole cost of the basic vehicles
will be funded within presently approved programs.
c. In addition to the foregoing costs for development and
procurement of hardware there will be significant operational cos
Moreover certain ground facilities, including especially two new
launching pads at Cooke AFB and certain tracking facilities will
be built sooner than they would otherwise be needed it would be
difficult to make a meaningful estimate of costa of this character
properly chargeable to CORONA and no such estimate has been
attempted. The ground facilities required for COILONA would in
any case be needed ter WS.1171,, Certain operational costs may
properly be treated as developmental cost* for WS-II7L and
certain operational costs (for example part of the coat of search
and recovery) are not truly additional costs since they represent
the use of military resources already in being. These costs must
in any event be charged to other programs for reasons of cover
and will be absorbed by the.. programs.
.BisseH, rf1jm US Apr 58)
P r Directe-br tR1ViEt
:P1 VIjL
itpik -
- Horner
.etz
Chrono
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