Seawifs Ocean Color Temperature view of the coast of New York, May 5, 1997.
NASA
Apollo 10 Satellite.
NASA
 
For example, Landsat satellite photos have made us aware of:
  • the warming ocean temperatures in the Pacific Ocean  which contributed to this year's El Niño effects
  • timber loss patterns (deforestation) in the U.S.  Pacific Northwest
  • snow accumulations and melts associated with  fresh-water reservoir replenishment, and
  • water quality

    Access to these kinds of data enable scientists, conservationists and legal experts to inform the public about key environmental issues such as biodiversity loss.

    How Landsat Evolved
    When the first man-made satellites were put into orbit in the late 50's and early 60's, the scientific focus was on planets, stars, galaxies, and other extraterrestrial objects.

    Then, in the late 60's, satellites began to be used to map weather patterns and global climate changes. Observing land from space was a whole new idea, and scientists quickly discovered that these images revealed a great deal about our planet and our effect upon it.

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