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OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR 

13 October 1969 

MEMORANDUM FOR: Dr. John L. McLucas 

SUBJECT: Guidelines for NASA Earth-Sensing Activity 

1. Bob Naka has sent me your paper dated 7 October 1969, 

subject as above. 

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2. This Agency has no substantive problems with the contents 

of the memorandum,. We would., however, like to raise two points for 

your consideration: 

a) The actions already taken have been between 

DOD and NASA. Since the NSAM 156 committee was charged 

with reviewing this matter on a government-wide basis, 

it would seem appropriate for this proposal to be referred to that committee for final action. We do not 

feel strongly about the necessity for this, but it is 

clearly a subject of interest to more than these two 

organizations. 

b) The memorandum says that there would be no 

further limitation on the type of optical systems 

used by NASA as long as they were pointed upward for 

astronomical r,urposes and not used to photograph the 

earth. That still leaves open the question of making 

available in unclassified form detailed design data 

on optical sy::t.ems which could be readily adapted for 

re connaissanc ,:, Y.1rposes • 

Richard Helms 

Director 

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)BfNATIONAL RECONNAISSANCE OFFICE 

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THE NRO STAFF October 15, 1969 

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MEMORANDUM FOR DR. McLUCAS 

SUBJECT: Guidelines for NASA Earth-Sensing Activity 

Mr. Helms has responded to our note which asked his review 

and comments on the guidelines paper you are preparing to send 

to the ExCom. Although he sees no major difficulty with the contents, he has raised two points for your consideration. 

1. He suggests it might be appropriate to ref er our proposal 

to the NSAM 156 Committee for final action. 

Comment. We agree with Mr. Helms that this subject is of 

interest to agencies other than DOD and NASA. On the other hand, 

we do not feel that our proposal need be acted upon by the NSAM 

156 Committee. In its earlier review of NASA activity in this area, 

the Committee concluded that NASA should develop with the concurrence of the NRO a detailed set of rules to facilitate the application of the approved general guidelines. This set of rules was 

developed by the NRO and NASA, and has served as the basis for 

the continuing review by SACC of all NASA activity in this area. 

Our current proposal is essentially an updating of those rules. It 

is consistent with the established guidelines and with the Committee's 

guidance and recommendations, as agreed to by the several agencies 

involved. 

This is not to imply that the effort NASA is currently planning 

will not need to be reviewed at some particular point by the Committee. 

Should NASA decide that it needs to proceed with the actual development 

of a system which would deliver products exceeding in quality of ground 

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resolution the currently approved 20 meters, we would need a policy 

consideration by the Committee for any relaxation of the restrictions. 

2. He suggests that the removal of any limitation on NASA's 

use of optical systems for astronomical purposes would still leave 

open the question of making available, in unclassified form, detailed 

design data on optical systems. 

Comment. As noted in our proposal, we have for some time 

recognized astronomical experiments as intrinsically non-provocative 

to other nations, and consequently have considered the restrictions 

imposed on these experiments to be somewhat unrealistic. Our proposal would merely except such experiments from a SACC review as 

non-earth-looking efforts. It does not remove the existing requirement for a review of these efforts by SACC to insure that there is no 

adverse impact on the NRP. Specifically, it is intended that the SACC 

would continue to review NASA space flight astronomy projects, prior 

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to iniHa.tion a.nd sfter s definition of the h~:rdware to b@ procur@d o:r used, 

for possible relation to NRP or military hardware and techniques. It 

is also a function of the SACC to develop security protection recommendations for potentially sensitive instrumentation and data which may be 

used in astronomical systems. We feel that these reviews would insure 

the protection of potentially sensitive optical system design data and 

instrumentation. 

In summary, our proposal is consistent with the NSAM 156 

Committee guidance and recommendations. We do not consider it 

necessary that the revised rules for implementing the Committee's 

guidance be referred to the Committee for final action. 

The procedures for implementing these guidelines recognize the 

potential sensitivity of detailed optical system design data and its 

adaptation for reconnaissance purposes; and provide the means for 

insuring its protection within the appropriate security system. 

I have attached, for your signatu:r:e, a response to Mr. Helms' 

memorandum. Since Mr. Helms does not feel strongly about the 

necessity of referring the proposal to the NSAM 156 Committee, 

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and since we have the means for insuring that potentially sensitive 

data is not made available in an unclassified form, I recommend 

proceeding, as planned, to obtain MSFPC approval of the revised 

guidelines for an early implementation by SACC. 

WILLIAM R. YOST 

Colonel, USAF 

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TOR SEGR~"f 

DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE' 

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY 

MEMORANDUM· 

October 7, 1969 

NOTE FOR MR. HELMS 

Attached is a paper which discusses 

the guidelines for NASA earth sensing 

activity. 

Dr. McLucas is ready to distribute 

the attached paper to the members of the 

Ex~cutive Committee, but before doing so 

has asked for any comments you might have. 

F. ROBERT NAKA 

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