The chronological development or history of the use of remote sensing from platforms that fly or orbit above the Earth s surface is introduced on this page.
Brief mention is given to aerial photography.
Links are provided to three Tables, each outlining some aspect of the history of remote sensing. In the Beginning Remote sensing as a technology started with the first photographs in the early nineteenth century. Many significant events led to the launch of the Landsat satellites, which are the main focus of this tutorial. That review ends with events in 1979. We present major highlights subsequent to 1979 both within this Introduction and throughout the Tutorial.