NSSDCA ID: 1966-008A-01
Mission Name: ESSA 1The ESSA 1 vidicon camera subsystem was a combination camera, tape recorder, and transmitter that could record and store a series of remote daytime cloudcover pictures for subsequent playback to a ground data acquisition facility. The system was identical to those flown on previous TIROS missions, consisting of two redundant 500-scan-line TV cameras with 1.27-cm vidicons. However, on ESSA 1 the cameras were mounted 180 deg apart on the side of the spacecraft and were canted 75 deg from the spacecraft spin axis. The cameras were triggered into action only when they came into view of the earth. Each tape recorder had two separate channels, one for storing video signals and one for sun-angle data, which served as a time reference. Up to 32 pictures consisting of five levels of gray could be stored for subsequent playback. At nominal attitude and altitude (approximately 1450 km), the cameras covered a 1200- by 1200-km square with a spatial resolution of about 3.0 km at nadir. The experiment was a success, with over 100,000 usable pictures transmitted. Data from this experiment are available from the National Climatic Center, Asheville, NC. For a complete index of available data, see parts 1 and 2 of the 'Catalog of Meterological Satellite Data - ESSA 1 Television Cloud Photography' for sale from the U.S. superintendent of documents -- or see data set 66-008A-01A.
Questions and comments about this experiment can be directed to: Coordinated Request and User Support Office
Name | Role | Original Affiliation | |
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Principal Investigator | NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service |