Organizational and Program Histories
Organizational Program Histories are written as research publications exploring the history of national reconnaissance. The goal is to document the NRO's legacy and to provide a historical framework for policy and programmatic decisions.
The Gambit and Hexagon Programs
The declassification of GAMBIT and HEXAGON was publicly announced on September 17, 2011. Two GAMBIT systems were developed for surveillance of specific targets. GAMBIT 1 initially launched in 1963 and was equipped with the KH-7 camera systems. GAMBIT 3 followed in 1966 and was equipped with the KH-8 camera system. The HEXAGON system was launched in 1971 and was developed for wide-area searches of denied territory. Together these satellites became America's eyes in space.
GAMBIT-HEXAGON Images
| ID | Description | JPG |
| 1 | KH-7 Plesetsk ICBM (low resolution) | View |
| 2 | KH-7 Plesetsk ICBM (high resolution) | View |
| 3 | KH-7 Sary Shagan 10x mag (low resolution) | View |
| 4 | KH-7 Sary Shagan 10x mag (high resolution) | View |
| 5 | KH-7 Sary Shagan 25x mag (low resolution) | View |
| 6 | KH-7 Sary Shagan 25x mag (high resolution) | View |
| 7 | KH-7 US Captial (low resolution) | View |
| 8 | KH-7 US Captial (high resolution) | View |
| 9 | KH-8 Kaspiysk (low resolution) | View |
| 10 | KH-8 Kaspiysk (high resolution) | View |
| 11 | KH-8 Mykolayiv (low resolution) | View |
| 12 | KH-8 Mykolayiv (high resolution) | View |
| 13 | KH-8 Raketa (low resolution) | View |
| 14 | KH-8 Raketa (high resolution) | View |
| 15 | KH-8 Tyuratam (low resolution) | View |
| 16 | KH-8 Tyuratam (high resolution) | View |
| 17 | KH-9 Mapping Kubinka 20x mag (low resolution) | View |
| 18 | KH-9 Mapping Kubinka 20x mag (high resolution) | View |
| 19 | KH-9 Mapping Kubinka 40x mag (low resolution) | View |
| 20 | KH-9 Mapping Kubinka 40x mag (high resolution) | View |
| 21 | KH-9 Mapping Kubinka 150x mag (low resolution) | View |
| 22 | KH-9 Mapping Kubinka 150x mag (high resolution) | View |
| 23 | KH-9 Mapping Moscow (low resolution) | View |
| 24 | KH-9 Mapping Moscow (high resolution) | View |
| 25 | KH-9 Pan Kiev Black Sea (low resolution) | View |
| 26 | KH-9 Pan Kiev Black Sea (high resolution) | View |
| 27 | KH-Pan Severodvinsk (low resolution) | View |
| 28 | KH-Pan Severodvinsk (high resolution) | View |
| 29 | KH-9 Pan Simferopol (low resolution) | View |
| 30 | KH-9 Pan Simferopol (high resolution) | View |
| 31 | KH-9 Pan Tyuratam (low resolution) | View |
| 32 | KH-9 Pan Tyuratam (high resolution) | View |
GAMBIT-HEXAGON Posters
| ID | Description | JPG |
| 1 | GAMBIT and HEXAGON Hand Off Poster 11x17 (low resolution) | View |
| 2 | GAMBIT and HEXAGON Hand Off Poster 11x17 (high resolution) | View |
| 3 | GAMBIT KH-7 Poster 11x17 (low resolution) | View |
| 4 | GAMBIT KH-7 Poster 11x17 (high resolution) | View |
| 5 | GAMBIT KH-8 Poster 11x17 (low resolution) | View |
| 6 | GAMBIT KH-8 Poster 11x17 (high resolution) | View |
| 7 | GAMBIT KH-9 Panoramic Poster 11x17 (low resolution) | View |
| 8 | GAMBIT KH-9 Panoramic Poster 11x17 (high resolution) | View |
| 9 | GAMBIT KH-9 Poster 11x17 (low resolution) | View |
| 10 | GAMBIT KH-9 Poster 11x17 (low resolution) | View |
GAMBIT-HEXAGON Postcards
| ID | Description | JPG |
| 1 | NRO Postcard Retro Gambit 50th Anniversary (low resolution) | View |
| 2 | NRO Postcard Retro Gambit 50th Anniversary (high resolution) | View |
| 3 | NRO Postcard Retro Hexagon 50th Anniversary (low resolution) | View |
| 4 | NRO Postcard Retro Hexagon 50th Anniversary (high resolution) | View |
Additional Information can be found under NRO's FOIA: Declassified Records.
You may also view NRO GAMBIT and HEXAGON satellites at the National Museum of the United States Air Force Virtual Tour. Select the center dot (Cold War – 078) in the Cold War section of the map. GAMBIT 1 and GAMBIT 3 are to the left, HEXAGON to the right. Select each image for more information, or click on the links below:
Photos of GAMBIT and HEXAGON courtesy of the National Museum of the United States Air Force:
NRO Satellite Exhibit Opening
HEXAGON KH-9
GAMBIT KH-7
GAMBIT 1 KH-7
GAMBIT 3 KH-8
D-21 Drone
On March 21, 2019 the Southern Museum of Flight hosted historians from NRO’s Center for the Study of Reconnaissance in a public event about the D-21 drone recently unveiled in the museum’s new Cold War wing. The reconnaissance drone is a long-term loan to the museum from NRO. The event coincided with the release of recently declassified NRO documents about the drone program.The D-21 program foreshadowed the unpiloted aircraft of the 21st century. It was carried and launched from a modified A-12 CIA high-performance reconnaissance aircraft and then later from a modified USAF B-52. Born of the Cold War, the D-21 tested the limits of technology available in the time period as a way of collecting reconnaissance imagery over denied territory.
D-21 Event Presentations
Photos below courtesy of the Southern Museum of Flight:
Drone 21 display
Drone 21 display
Leaders and Pioneers in National Reconnaissance
Pioneers of National Reconnaissance
A Pioneer of National Reconnaissance is an individual who played a unique and pivotal role in national reconnaissance activities, an individual who made innovative, pioneering contributions to the discipline and practice, and those contributions were of such significance that they changed the directions or scope of national reconnaissance. The CSNR manages this heritage recognition program, and has issued a number of publications related to the program. The CSNR also solicits nominations for candidates to be selected as Pioneers:
Call for Nominations for Pioneers of National Reconnaissance
The NRO issues annually, a call for nominations for Pioneers of National Reconnaissance. A Pioneer of National Reconnaissance is an individual who, at any point in the history of national reconnaissance, made an innovative breakthrough that resulted in a lasting and significant contribution that changed the direction or scope of the discipline. Please see the steps below to submit a nominee:
Leaders
NRO 60th Anniversary
In 2021 the National Reconnaissance Office marked its 60th anniversary. Since its inception on Sept. 6, 1961, the NRO has leveraged its unparalleled intelligence collection capabilities to meet new challenges, and it continues to develop intelligence gathering systems to protect the United States and its citizens. For this 60th anniversary celebration, CSNR conducted major declassifications, articles, and exhibits, highlighting the NRO’s legacy of innovation and the innovators who paved the way for today’s achievements. To learn more about the National Reconnaissance Office please contact the Center for the Study of National Reconnaissance Office at csnr@nro.mil.
Publications: NRO By the Numbers (December 2021)(PDF 9Mb)
NRO 50th Anniversary
In the 1950s, President Dwight D. Eisenhower approved reconnaissance systems that included high-altitude balloons, airplanes, and satellites to gain strategic intelligence on the Soviet Union, China, and other potential threats to the United States. On August 31, 1960, Secretary of the Air Force Dudley C. Sharp established the Office of Missile and Satellite Systems to direct the Air Force satellite reconnaissance program. On September 6, 1961, Acting Director of Central Intelligence General Charles P. Cabell and Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell L. Gilpatric officially established management arrangements for the National Reconnaissance Program. These arrangements consolidated many of America’s national space and aerial reconnaissance projects under a covert, highly compartmented National Reconnaissance Office.
Anniversary Fact Cards and Wallpapers
NRO 50th Anniversary Fact Cards
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NRO 50th Anniversary Wallpaper
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NRO 50th Anniversary Launch "Postcard"
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Contact the Center for the Study of National Reconnaissance by phone at 703-227-9368 or email CSNR@nro.mil
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