Earth Science

Abstract

A few exploratory missions have demonstrated that observations from space provide a unique and tremendously powerful way of looking at our own planet, of measuring the temperatures and wind speeds all through the atmosphere, of mapping the invisible ocean floor, and of providing large-scale views of the slow, persistent ocean currents that govern our climate. A satellite that orbits the earth every ninety minutes can provide a global perspective that simply can’t be had from a network of isolated, individual observing stations, or even high-flying aircraft. Satellite data have opened up a brand-new perspective on the world’s oceans. Orbiting satellites that return pictures of the earth are indispensable to companies and researchers who map urban areas, monitor crops and pests, find new archaeological sites, and discover new geological faults and possible sites for new mines, to name only a few of the more dramatic uses of earth pictures.