Synthetic aperture radar allows satellites to bounce radar signals off the ground and interpret the echo - and it can even peer through clouds.
Clouds cover around two-thirds of the world at any one time, preventing conventional satellites from seeing much of the planet.
Previously used to equip only a relatively small number of large commercial satellites, this technology is now being combined with constellations of inexpensive nanosatellites in low-Earth orbit by start-ups such as Iceye and Capella Space.
In 2022, SAR satellites like these were used to reveal the scale of the Russian invasion of Ukraine as it was happening; the following year, to track the spread of the Hawaii wildfires and assess the damage they were causing almost in real-time.
She has used the technology to understand the reasons for sink hole formation in coastal areas like New Orleans.
SAR may have an important part to play in the clear-up afterwards.
Oil will cause a surface to look flatter and darker on the image.
By precisely analysing the signals bounced back, a highly detailed radar image of the area is produced.
Frequent passes over the same area means that SAR is particularly good at identifying change on the ground down to the size of a fingernail.
These images look very different from those we see on Google Earth.
The technology is really about collecting data, rather than images.
Much of the interest around SAR dates back to a patent awarded in 1954.
The now declassified Project Quill satellite launched by the United States 10 years later in 1964 is believed to be the first equipped with the revolutionary technology.
Seventy years from the first patent, the falling price of components have spurred this latest stage in its development.
The future of SAR may depend on solving the tricky engineering conundrum of increasing the size of the satellite, particularly the antennae and the solar panels used to power it, but at the same time keeping them as small possible so they're easier to launch.
In the end, its supporters say SAR will directly impact society simply by the smoother running of supply chains, the more predictable yields of agriculture, or - more importantly perhaps - being kept out of harm's way during floods or wildfires.
George-Samuels believes SAR will deliver more effective environmental monitoring.
Some are worried about the dangers of the technology.
Its potential to intrude on individual privacy, its use for corporate espionage, and even if it could be used to plan terrorist attacks.
In January 2022, everybody could see that the Russians were massing on the Ukraine border, but nobody could see inside Russian leader Vladimir Putin's head to know if there was going to be a war or not.
This Cyber News was published on packetstormsecurity.com. Publication date: Tue, 28 May 2024 17:13:06 +0000