In raid on bin Laden, little-known geospatial agency played vital role

By Marc Ambinder
May 5, 2011
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Any number of officials and agencies have been in the limelight since the raid on Osama bin Laden, including the CIA and the Defense Department. But the little-known and little-heralded work of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, often called the NGA, was central to the demise of the terrorist leader.

The NGA integrates several core intelligence functions. It makes maps and interprets imagery from satellites and drones; it also exploits the electromagnetic spectrum to track terrorists and decipher signatures off of enemy radar. And notably, the NGA is the first intel agency to be headed by a woman: Letitia Long, an intelligence veteran.

Senior U.S. policymakers who do not work for the agency described to National Journal NGA's substantial contributions to the mission.

Read the whole story at NationalJournal.com.

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