On April 1, 1960, the U.S. launched its first weather satellite into orbit.
The satellite was named TIROS-1, which is short for Television Infrared Observation Satellite. TIROS-1 launched on a Thor-Able rocket from Cape Canaveral and entered a polar orbit, which enabled it to see the entire globe. It watched the Earth from space for 78 days before an electrical power failure cut its mission short. The satellite was equipped with TV cameras and video recorders that transmitted images of Earth's cloud coverage directly to ground stations. This mission enabled the first accurate weather forecasts based on data and images from space. It also showed scientists that satellites could be useful tools for studying the Earth.
The satellite was named TIROS-1, which is short for Television Infrared Observation Satellite. TIROS-1 launched on a Thor-Able rocket from Cape Canaveral and entered a polar orbit, which enabled it to see the entire globe. It watched the Earth from space for 78 days before an electrical power failure cut its mission short. The satellite was equipped with TV cameras and video recorders that transmitted images of Earth's cloud coverage directly to ground stations. This mission enabled the first accurate weather forecasts based on data and images from space. It also showed scientists that satellites could be useful tools for studying the Earth.
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TechTranscript
00:00On this day in space.
00:03On April 1st, 1960, the U.S. launched its first weather satellite into orbit.
00:08The satellite was named TIROS-1, which is short for Television Infrared Observation Satellite.
00:13TIROS-1 launched on a Thor-Abel rocket from Cape Canaveral and entered a polar orbit,
00:18which enabled it to see the entire globe.
00:20It watched the Earth from space for 78 days before an electrical power failure cut its mission short.
00:26The satellite was equipped with TV cameras and video recorders
00:29that transmitted images of Earth's cloud coverage directly to ground stations.
00:33This mission enabled the first accurate weather forecast based on data and images collected from space.
00:38It also showed scientists that satellites could be useful tools for studying the Earth.
00:43And that's what happened on this day in space.
00:46NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology