An American company is preparing to launch a satellite that will map the world in the highest resolution the public has ever seen.
DigitalGlobe expects to send its WorldView-3 satellite into orbit, which will begin sending back images of objects as small as 30 centimeters in size.
It will zoom into space from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, and once in orbit, it will begin taking snapshots of about 420,000 miles (680,000 kilometers) of Earth each day.
The civilian operation is allowed to do this, following Washington's decision to relax the rules governing the maximum resolution of satellite imagery.
The company stated:
The new law will allow DigitalGlobe to sell imagery to all of its customers at up to 0.25m panchromatic and 1.0m multispectral ground separation (GSD) starting six months after the next WorldView-3 satellite becomes operational.
Previously, satellite companies were only allowed to sell images of objects smaller than 50cm to the US government or military.
DigitalGlobe also plans to send another satellite into orbit in 2016, WorldView 4, which will be able to capture objects as small as 25 centimeters.
Fortunately, there's no need to worry. The satellite won't be able to image the average male penis, which the NHS says is around 14-16cm, nor will it be able to distinguish women's genitals, let alone secondary sex characteristics.
DigitalGlobe is known as the company that produced many of the images used in Google Maps.
To watch the launch of WorldView 3, click here.
