A History of Civilian Weather Satellites

Abstract

A new era in meterological observation and forecasting was ushered in with the launching of the Television and InfraRed Observation Satellite (TIROS-1) on April 1, 1960 (Figure I-2-1). TIROS, the world’s first meteorological satellite, demonstrated the ability to acquire images of the Earth’s cloud cover over much of the planet. Although TIROS-1 was experimental, the early results were welcomd by meteorologists who used them to supplement conventional observations. The impact of these initial space-acquired observations led to the evolution of a series of weather satellites that routinely monitor the Earth’s atmosphere, land masses, and oceans.