Earth
ID: 14187
For fifty years Landsat satellites have been collecting images of our planet from space, chronicling five-decades of planetary change. This video shares the story of how it all started.
Inspired by images of Earth taken during the Moon missions of the 1960s, the director of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), William T. Pecora, intuitively grasped that images of Earth’s landmasses from space could help agencies like his better manage land resources.
But how to do it? Weather satellites were in their infancy and satellite-based imaging of Earth’s land surface had never been tried before.
Virginia T. Norwood, known as the person who could solve impossible problems, played a crucial role in the development of the first space-based multispectral scanner instrument that flew on Landsat 1 and made the mission a success. Working together with NASA, USGS, university researchers, and her team at Hughes, Norwood successfully yoked the pioneering technology that made regular digital imagery of Earth from space possible.
Find out more about the challenges and triumphs of Landsat 1’s development and see how Norwood and her little scanner that could proved that the future of space-based land imaging was multispectral.
The Landsat Program is a series of Earth-observing satellite missions jointly managed by NASA and USGS. Landsat satellites have been consistently gathering data about our planet since 1972. With the launch of Landsat 9 in September 2021, the program continues to improve and expand its unparalleled record of Earth's changing landscapes for the benefit of all.
Virginia Norwood and the Little Scanner that Could
Inspired by images of Earth taken during the Moon missions of the 1960s, the director of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), William T. Pecora, intuitively grasped that images of Earth’s landmasses from space could help agencies like his better manage land resources.
But how to do it? Weather satellites were in their infancy and satellite-based imaging of Earth’s land surface had never been tried before.
Virginia T. Norwood, known as the person who could solve impossible problems, played a crucial role in the development of the first space-based multispectral scanner instrument that flew on Landsat 1 and made the mission a success. Working together with NASA, USGS, university researchers, and her team at Hughes, Norwood successfully yoked the pioneering technology that made regular digital imagery of Earth from space possible.
Find out more about the challenges and triumphs of Landsat 1’s development and see how Norwood and her little scanner that could proved that the future of space-based land imaging was multispectral.
The Landsat Program is a series of Earth-observing satellite missions jointly managed by NASA and USGS. Landsat satellites have been consistently gathering data about our planet since 1972. With the launch of Landsat 9 in September 2021, the program continues to improve and expand its unparalleled record of Earth's changing landscapes for the benefit of all.
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Credits
Lead Producers:
Evangeline Koonce (GSFC Interns)
Ashley Lobao (NASA/GSFC Intern)
Producer:
Matthew Radcliff (KBRwyle)
Narrator:
Ginger Butcher (SSAI)
Project Support:
LK Ward (KBR Wyle Services, LLC)
Elizabeth C. Wilk (KBR Wyle Services, LLC)
Jacob Richmond (NASA/GSFC)
Writers:
Ginger Butcher (SSAI)
Laura Rocchio (SSAI)
Interviewee:
Naomi Norwood
Scientist:
Virginia Norwood
Animator:
Ross K. Walter (Hexagon US Federal)
Evangeline Koonce (GSFC Interns)
Ashley Lobao (NASA/GSFC Intern)
Producer:
Matthew Radcliff (KBRwyle)
Narrator:
Ginger Butcher (SSAI)
Project Support:
LK Ward (KBR Wyle Services, LLC)
Elizabeth C. Wilk (KBR Wyle Services, LLC)
Jacob Richmond (NASA/GSFC)
Writers:
Ginger Butcher (SSAI)
Laura Rocchio (SSAI)
Interviewee:
Naomi Norwood
Scientist:
Virginia Norwood
Animator:
Ross K. Walter (Hexagon US Federal)
Please give credit for this item to:
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
Additional footage and imagery courtesy of the US Geological Survey, Laboratory for Applications of Remote Sensing (LARS), Purdue University, and WLWI-TV Indianapolis
MSS animations courtesy of Ross Walter
Additional interviews are shared from the Landsat Legacy Collection
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
Additional footage and imagery courtesy of the US Geological Survey, Laboratory for Applications of Remote Sensing (LARS), Purdue University, and WLWI-TV Indianapolis
MSS animations courtesy of Ross Walter
Additional interviews are shared from the Landsat Legacy Collection
Short URL to share this page:
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14187
Mission:
Landsat
Keywords:
SVS >> HDTV
SVS >> Landsat
NASA Science >> Earth
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14187
Mission:
Landsat
Keywords:
SVS >> HDTV
SVS >> Landsat
NASA Science >> Earth
