This archive documents and analyses military base infrastructure changes detected through commercial satellite imagery, following the methodology established by open-source intelligence organisations including CSIS AMTI, 38 North, Bellingcat, and Planet Labs partner research programmes.
Multi-Domain Infrastructure Tracking
Research covers the full spectrum of military facility types: airfields and aviation infrastructure, naval bases and shipyards, ballistic missile sites and underground facilities, logistics hubs, and electronic warfare installations — across Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea.
Research-Grade Analytical Output
Each entry applies structured analytical methodology: multi-temporal imagery comparison, facility function assessment, order-of-battle context, and strategic implication analysis. Assessments follow open-source intelligence standards with appropriate confidence levels.
Public reporting and released Maxar imagery documented Engels-2 as a major Russian strategic bomber base before and after the December 2022 drone strikes. Russian official statements and international reporting confirmed damage to aircraft and casualties at the Engels/Dyagilevo airfields. This case file tracks the public-source indicators that matter for follow-on monitoring: bomber dispersal, fuel/facility repair, revetment construction, and visible changes in apron usage.
FAS Nuclear Information Project analysis of Planet commercial satellite imagery identified a second large Chinese ICBM silo field near Hami in July 2021. FAS assessed that the Hami field spans roughly 800 square kilometres and could eventually include about 110 silos. Alongside Yumen and Jilantai, the site is a core public indicator of the rapid expansion of China's silo-based nuclear force posture.
CSIS ChinaPower imagery analysis describes Yulin Navy Base on Hainan as one of China's most important naval facilities and identifies it as a home area for Type 094/Jin-class ballistic missile submarines. Defense News reporting using Maxar imagery documented two new piers under construction in 2022, adding to the existing submarine berthing area and highlighting the base's continuing expansion.
🇰🇵 North KoreaMissile / StrategicActive Monitoring
Sohae Launch Facility: Infrastructure Expansion and Perimeter Clearance 2022-2026
Engine test stand, assembly building expansion, seaport work, and March 2026 village demolition
North Pyongan Province, DPRK·2024-02·updated 2026-04-02
38 North imagery analysis documents continuing modernization and expansion at Sohae, including a coastal launch pad, horizontal engine test stand, new road/tunnel connections, assembly-building work, seaport/jetty construction, and March 2026 demolition of two villages bordering the facility. The public evidence supports treating Sohae as an active launch and launch-support modernization site rather than a dormant historical facility.
Commercial Satellite AnalysisChronological Site ComparisonFacility Functional AnalysisCritical
Sohae launch complex showing gantry tower, engine test stand, and assembly building in ESRI World ImagerySOURCE-BACKED CASE FILE
IRGC Underground Missile City Programme: Surface Indicator Analysis
Hardened facility signatures, ventilation arrays, and access infrastructure
Multiple locations, Islamic Republic of Iran·2023-09
CSIS Missile Threat documented Iranian state-media reporting that the IRGC had established an underground missile base near the Persian Gulf in January 2021, with cruise missiles and launchers visible in state-released images. This case file treats the "missile city" program as a public-source indicator set: tunnel portals, ventilation, hardened access roads, and coastal missile-support infrastructure where independently verifiable.
Khorramabad/Lorestan terrain showing IRGC-associated missile infrastructure area in ESRI World Imagery (approximate, non-operational view)SOURCE-BACKED CASE FILE
Fiery Cross Reef: Operational Tempo and Aviation Presence Analysis
Pattern-of-life assessment of PLA airfield activity in the South China Sea
Spratly Islands, South China Sea·2024-02·updated 2024-03-01
CSIS AMTI's Island Tracker identifies Fiery Cross Reef as a PRC-occupied Spratly feature with 677 acres of reclamation and a long public imagery record. AMTI's later analysis of China's Spratly ISR/EW upgrades reports new antenna arrays, mobile sensing/communications equipment, and radome patterns across the "big three" PRC Spratly outposts, including Fiery Cross, Mischief, and Subi.
Aircraft Type IdentificationPattern-of-Life AnalysisMulti-Temporal ComparisonHigh
Fiery Cross Reef artificial island showing 3km runway, hardened shelters, SAM positions, and pier in ESRI World ImagerySOURCE-BACKED CASE FILE
Public Source Catalogue— 17 entries
Source Links
Assessment
Case Study
Tracker Update
Methodology Note
Event Brief
2022-12
Tracker Update
🇷🇺 RussiaAirfield / Aviation
Ukraine drone attack hits 2 military bases deep inside Russia
ABC News reported on the December 2022 strikes against Russian strategic bomber bases and included Maxar imagery context for Engels-2. This source anchors the Engels case file in named reporting rather than inferred hardening claims.
Engels-2Maxarstrategic aviationdrone strikeUkraine war
China Is Building A Second Nuclear Missile Silo Field
FAS Nuclear Information Project analysis by Matt Korda and Hans Kristensen identified the Hami missile silo field using commercial satellite imagery and assessed that the field could eventually include roughly 110 silos.
FAS summarized the US Department of Defense 2024 China Military Power Report, including the estimate that China had more than 600 nuclear warheads by mid-2024 and continued a rapid nuclear expansion.
DoDChinanuclear warheadsPLARFstrategic forces
SOURCE: Federation of American Scientists / US DoD
CSIS analyzed commercial satellite imagery of Type 094/Jin-class SSBNs and Type 093 SSNs at Yulin Navy Base and placed the base in the context of China's sea-based nuclear deterrent.
Satellite images reveal Chinese expansion of submarine base
Defense News, using Maxar/Google Earth imagery, reported two new piers under construction at Yulin and noted the base's role in the South Sea Fleet and China's nuclear-powered submarine force.
Sohae Satellite Launching Station: Site Expansion and Modernization Efforts Make Significant Strides
38 North documented major modernization at Sohae, including horizontal engine test stand work, a coastal launch pad, a probable assembly/storage facility, and related support infrastructure.
Sohae38 NorthSLVengine test standcoastal launch pad
Sohae Satellite Launching Station: Expansion of Road and Rail Infrastructure Continues
38 North reported continued road, possible rail-bed, assembly-building, VIP observation/control, seaport, and jetty works at Sohae based on March 2025 commercial imagery.
Villages Bordering Sohae Satellite Launching Station Razed
38 North reported that commercial satellite imagery showed North Korea demolished two small communities bordering Sohae in March 2026, while construction and expansion at the launch complex continued.
Sinpho South Shipyard: New Submarine Makes Debut, but With Many Questions To Be Answered
38 North used commercial imagery and state-media material to assess the launch of North Korea's Hero Kim Kun Ok / Sinpo-C ballistic missile submarine at Sinpho South Shipyard.
Sinpho South Shipyard: Indications of New Submarine Construction
38 North reported hull components, jigs, and construction activity at Sinpho South Shipyard suggesting a renewed submarine construction campaign likely related to the Sinpo-C class.
CSIS AMTI's Island Tracker profile records Fiery Cross Reef's claimant names, PRC occupation, legal-status category, coordinates, 677 acres of reclamation, and public imagery archive.
CSIS Missile Threat summarized Iranian state-media reporting that the IRGC had established an underground missile base near the Persian Gulf, with cruise missiles and launchers visible in released images.
CSIS analysis by Anthony Cordesman cautions that open-source estimates of Iranian missile performance and inventories are often contradictory, while still recognizing Iran's broad and consequential missile development program.
Dire Straits: China's Push to Secure Its Energy Interests in the Middle East
CSIS Hidden Reach places China's 2017 Djibouti base in the broader pattern of PRC port, logistics, and overseas military access investments near key maritime chokepoints.
Analysis of IAEA Iran Verification and Monitoring Report - February 2024
The Institute for Science and International Security analyzed the February 2024 IAEA report, including Iran's continued production of uranium enriched up to 60 percent and activity in advanced centrifuge cascades.
IAEANatanzFordow60 percent HEUcentrifuges
SOURCE: Institute for Science and International Security
NATO Allied Land Command describes eFP force posture and notes Germany's 2024 steps to scale the Lithuania battlegroup toward a permanent brigade-sized presence.
▸Confidence levels assigned to each assessment (Low / Medium / High)
▸Open-source corroboration required for all significant findings
Source Caveat: Entries summarize named public reporting and open-source imagery analysis from organisations such as CSIS AMTI, 38 North, FAS, CSIS Missile Threat, NATO, IAEA-linked analysis, and commercial-imagery-backed media reporting. They are non-official research notes, not classified assessments. Facility status should be independently verified against current imagery before citation. All data is open-source; geospatial assessments reflect archival imagery and are for academic and policy research only.