Exploring the Unknown - NASA's History Office

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OBSERVING THE EARTH FROM SPACE
security programs.
[7] The spatial resolution achieved with multi-spectral scanning sensor in ERTS-1 is adequate
to produce raw imagery that suggests a wide range of commercial/civil applications.
It is not the case, however, that ERTS-1 and Skylab/Apollo experiments have given us the
experience to permit the design of a remote sensing satellite appropriate to an economically
viable, operational system. This is so primarily because of inadequate experience with
application-specific image processing and interpretation. But even the space segment is in
an early stage of development.
ERTS-1 is deficient in resolution for applications such as land use planning.
Frequency of observation of a given point is not sufficient given the random interruption
of cloud cover, for time-dependent problems in flood control, agricultural monitoring,
iceberg tracking, etc. As a result, turnaround time between observation and analysis is too
long for many purposes. Although technology exists to remedy these deficiencies, we do
not have enough systems experience, with both satellite configurations and image data
processing and analysis, to make the tradeoffs between these functional attributes and systems
costs.
One must remember that ERS applications are in their infancy. Although the technical
capability to acquire images, generate geometric and radiometric corrections, and
extract information by image enhancement have been [8] demonstrated, the majority of
applications research projects to date involve manual (visual) processing of primary
images. These images are available several weeks after data acquisition.
A fully operational system would have to provide digital primary imagery to widely dispersed
customers in approximately real time. This primary imagery is only the first step.
The ground-based image filtering and contrast adjustment, information extraction and
interpretation impose heavy data processing requirements. Correlation with ground truth
data and final interpretation are tasks requiring very high levels [of] professional expertise,
and extensive experience with end-use problems, institutions and customs. Since
these interpretation services are the key to obtaining the benefits from remote sensing
technology[,] decisions on the major international political issues and on the character of
the follow-on space projects must be made with the desired institutional structure for the
service delivery system clearly in mind.
The first step is the study of the economics with a view to evaluating the commercial
potential for developing the services. At this time the institutional structure for exploiting
an operational remote sensing system does not exist. A few commercial companies with
substantial support from government R&D contracts are hoping to create a service business
out of proprietary satellite photo interpretation. Several not-for-profits are developing
experience, also on government contracts.
[9] It would appear that the conditions required to make information services based on
remote sensing technology economically viable call for:
(a) Realistic evaluation of the total costs of processing, interpreting and marketing
information as well as its initial acquisition. On a per-image basis, the space segment of the
system may prove the least expensive.
(b) Identification of applications with very high economic leverage for which remote
sensing from space is more economical than ground or airborne observation and for
which a market can be aggregated.
(c) Determining the extent to which the economic leverage depends on exclusivity
of access to either the raw data or to the processed and interpreted data in order to permit
a proprietary advantage,
(d) Definition of [U.S. government] policies affecting the applications system economics—as
well as international issues—and the establishment of the point of responsi-