The newly launched WorldView-3 satellite by US-based company DigitalGlobe is packing a shortwave infrared imager that takes smoke-piercing photographs with a ground sample distance of 0.3m.

It means super high resolution, with pixels recording details only about 30cm apart from each other at ground level.

The first images have been radioed back and the clarity is stunning.

Not only are individual cars visible from space, you can tell when their doors are open. The big yellow words on airport runways are legible – from space.

By now, we’re conditioned to be unimpressed by the voyeuristic shots of rooftops and backyards on Google Earth – but those pictures are thanks to conventional aerial photography. WorldView is 617km up.

Also, satellites covering remote land areas for the resources industry and the likes of Google Earth typically only record at a resolution of about 15m per pixel, versus WorldView’s 0.3m.

Due to regulatory restrictions, DigitalGlobe can’t publish its 30cm resolution imagery yet, so the example displayed with this article is only precise to 40cm.

Outside of government snooping, the most interesting aspect of this evolution in high-definition orbital imaging could be an enhanced capacity to keep an eye on industry-relevant trends.

While explorers will doubtlessly take advantage of WorldView’s impressive spectral diversity to identify mineralised areas, the satellite’s ability to update construction and shipping patterns may also offer a strategic edge to exporters and producers.

“WorldView-3 can more accurately monitor the rate of development and investment at a regional or global scale,” DigitalGlobe said.

“This includes the rate of construction as well as finer details like building materials, rooftop reflectance, road networks and population density, which is valuable to governments, industry and location-based service customers.

“Individual shipping containers can easily be counted and measured, which is valuable information for monitoring economic activity and trends at various marine ports, airports, rail yards and other logistics hubs.”

In an age when analysts still pore over anecdotal evidence from traders or unreliable government data from China, a clearer picture of what’s really going on with port stockpiles and building trends could be a valuable tool.

Add to this a better-than-average kit of mineral searching goodies billed as the first multi-payload, super-spectral, high-resolution commercial orbiter, tipped to reduce exploration costs by establishing targets in difficult-to-access areas without permit delays or expensive flyovers and groundwork.

This service follows in the jet stream of Japan’s ASTER imaging instrument, already a favourite among mining companies for its mapping applications, which were specifically designed with economic minerals in mind.

ASTER’s picture-taking mission, however, ended in 2008.

So while its geological revelations may still be relevant, no useful updates on changing business factors can be gleaned from the blotchy old images.

WorldView-3, meanwhile, is expected to operate for 10-12 years with a capacity to collect images covering up to 680,000sq.km per day and an average revisit time of less than a day.

Its successor, WorldView-4, is expected to expand capacity even further by adding another set of eyes to DigitalGlobe’s satellite network in mid-2016.

The company says it accepts rush orders for image data and that files can be provided within 24 hours of the initial photos being taken.

Basically, we’ve entered an era when miners can access up to date and uncannily detailed images of any place in the world within days.

It may not be the biggest technological game-changer in the industry’s history but it doesn’t take high-resolution vision to see the strategic potential.