Talk:USA-223

"World record"
I don't own a copy of Guinness World Records 2013, so I don't know whether the citation given for the claim that this is the "largest spy satellite ever launched" checks out or not, however even if the citation checks out I have severe reservations about reproducing that claim in the article.
 * 1) As the technical specifications of such satellites are highly classified, there is no way that the claim can be verified - either by us or by the publishers of the book.
 * 2) "Largest" is quite a subjective term - and could refer to surface area, dimensions or mass
 * 3) That said, the size of spacecraft is typically measured in terms of their mass. For USA-223 this is constrained by the ability to place it into geosynchronous orbit. KH-11 satellites, operated in low Earth orbits, are launched by the same type of rocket, while a payload at the upper end of the Delta IVH's GSO capacity could be placed into LEO with a much smaller rocket
 * 4) USA-237 required an upgraded Delta IV Heavy, to reach the same orbit as USA-223

So with that in mind I would suggest we remove, or at least de-emphasise the claim for the time being. -- W.  D.   Graham  12:18, 13 January 2014 (UTC)