[DoughtyOne]

Good questions. Somehow I doubt that the Air Force would take photos if they didn't expect to get clear crisp detailed results. However, I'm sure some of the contributors to this and a few other threads will explain why they would, momentum being the force of nature that it is.

[SteveH]

I seem to recall there is a limited ability of some military satellites to change into a lower orbit temporarily in order to accomplish a specific short term task. Such a change in orbit could even have been done for the shuttle pics, if they were serious enough. The detail might reveal the level of concern if nothing else. However, a high level of concern in DOD without explicit NASA prompting might cause further public and private fallout...