I'd add that it would be pointless to try to hide a fair number of them, given that they approach the size of school buses (no joke — the now-retired KH-9 was nicknamed "Big Bird" for good reason) and can be imaged on relatively consumer-ready optics. Some Russians made a nice stink a few years ago by using (IIRC) laser illumination to make some relatively high-res shots of American recce sats.
The interesting aspects of them have to do with how far off-axis they can function. This was the major consequence of loss of the Morison leak of the KH-11 shots of a Soviet carrier to Jane's Defense Weekly — the image revealed how far off-axis it could image and some clues to how it processed imagery.
The interesting aspects of them have to do with how far off-axis they can function. This was the major consequence of loss of the Morison leak of the KH-11 shots of a Soviet carrier to Jane's Defense Weekly — the image revealed how far off-axis it could image and some clues to how it processed imagery.