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BAMOS
Sep 2019
Into the Future—TIROS 1 References
Both the Explorer Balloon flight and the V‑2 Rocket Series
paved the way for the next step up—a full orbital flight with
cameras—and this was first achieved by the US TIROS1 in April
1960. TIROS 1 (Television Infrared Observational Satellite) was
the first successful low orbital meteorological satellite and
reached an operational altitude of around 650 km above the
Earth. The content in the above article is based on the following
sources:
It remained in orbit for 78 days and provided a series of
continuous photographs of cloud patterns far below that
proved to be of great use to weather prediction.
This was the forerunner of a major subdivision in weather
prediction—Satellite Meteorology—that would continue
to improve over time. Today it has become one of the most
important ingredients in weather forecasting.
TIROS 1—first image from space on 1 April 1960.
Source: NASA
Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Explorer_II
Air and Space Magazine, October 24, 2006, https://www.
airspacemag.com/space/the‑first‑photo‑from‑space‑13721411/
Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TIROS‑1
A note from the Editorial Team: Readers may also be
interested in the article 'Earthrise, a photo that changed the
world' published in The Conversation in 2018.