The National Reconnaissance Office, responsible for managing the United States government's network of spy satellites, has declassified a program from decades ago known as 'Jumpseat.' This initiative was used for eavesdropping on the military communication signals of the Soviet Union.
While the existence of Jumpseat was already known through leaks and media coverage at the time, the NRO has now provided new details, including its purpose, development insights, and images of the satellites involved.
According to a statement from the NRO, Jumpseat was described as “the United States’ first-generation, highly elliptical orbit (HEO) signals-collection satellite.”
Scooping Up Signals
From 1971 to 1987, eight Jumpseat satellites were launched at a time when even the NRO's existence was a tightly held government secret. The Jumpseat program operated until 2006, primarily targeting the Soviet Union. Its mission was centered on “monitoring adversarial offensive and defensive weapon system development,” as stated by the NRO. These satellites collected electronic emissions, communication intelligence, and foreign instrumentation intelligence.
The intercepted data from these satellites fed into the Department of Defense, the National Security Agency, and other national security entities.
Jumpseat satellites orbited Earth in highly elliptical paths ranging from a few hundred miles to 24,000 miles (39,000 kilometers) above the planet. They reached their highest orbital points, or apogees, over the far northern hemisphere. This trajectory allowed the satellites to linger over the Arctic, Russia, Canada, and Greenland for the majority of their 12-hour orbit cycles, offering persistent coverage over these regions.
The Soviets had realized the tactical value of this orbit, referred to as Molniya, the Russian word for 'lightning,' years before the first Jumpseat satellite went up in 1971. The Molniya orbit was used by the Soviets for communication and early-warning satellites.
The codename Jumpseat was first revealed to the public in 1986, in a book by investigative journalist Seymour Hersh. He discussed how these satellites could “intercept all kinds of communications,” including voice exchanges between Soviet ground personnel and pilots.