DARPA recently released a statement detailing a project called MOIRE. Sounding a little bit like the kiss of death, DARPA assures us the project is just a simple telescope. It may or may not also have lasers and/or look like a giant laser cannon.

To meet national security requirements around the world, it would be optimal to have real-time images and video of any place on earth at any time—a capability that doesn’t currently exist. Today, aircraft are used to meet much of the military’s imagery requirements. However, because of the quantity of aircraft needed, and because aircraft do not fly high enough to see into denied territories, spacecraft also play a vital role in providing the imagery data needed for successful military planning and operations.