Vamien McKalin email: v.mckalin@mobilenapps.com
An era is coming to an end for Landsat 5, the longest running Earth observing satellite. The satellite, which has been operating above Earth since 1984, has done all that has been asked of it and now it is set to retire and go down in history.
Landsat 5, which is expected to go offline in the next three months, has managed to circle the Earth 150,000 times in its nearly 30 years in space. The satellite also managed to capture 2.5 million images of the planet's surface in its time, a remarkable achievement in what is considered a prolific career.
"Any major event since 1984 that left a mark on this Earth larger than a football field was likely recorded by Landsat 5, whether it was a hurricane, a tsunami, a wildfire, deforestation, or an oil spill," noted U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Director Marcia McNutt in a statement. "We look forward to a long and productive continuation of the Landsat program, but it is unlikely there will ever be another satellite that matches the outstanding longevity of Landsat 5."
The USGS says Landsat 5 captured images of the aftermath of Sept. 11, and when Barrack Obama became President of the U.S. in 2009.
All is not lost for the Landsat project, as NASA is preparing to launch Landsat 8 called the Landsat Data Continuity Mission in Feb. 2013. The satellite is currently at its launch site at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California and is being prepped for its Feb. 2013 launch into space.
To celebrate Landsat 5 achievements, it would be cool if many of the images it took of Earth were released for public consumption. However, it is unlikely that will ever happen but one can always hope.
more stories from What's Hot
Rockstar Games has acknowledged the most common GTA Online launch issues and detailed the bug fix status for each problem it's currently working on.
ernest hamiltonTarget has announced its new prepaid mobile service, Brightspot, which will debut on Sunday, Oct. 6.
ernest hamiltonHulu has added support for Google's Chromecast streaming dongle, allowing Hulu Plus users to 'cast' video directly to Chromecast.
ernest hamiltonThe much-awaited Grand Theft Auto (GTA) Online mode has finally gone live, unfolding a whole interconnected universe.
ernest hamiltonBlackBerry has posted its Q2 fiscal results and blames a $935 million hit on 'Z10 Inventory Charge'
ernest hamiltonThe KitKat contest has now reached India, bringing promotional packages with the chance to win a new Nexus 7 (2013).
ernest hamiltonGoogle Talk has been sending messages to the wrong recipients, raising some serious privacy concerns.
ernest hamiltonGrand Theft Auto V publisher Take-Two has announced that the new GTA 5 made a whopping $800 million on launch day, breaking the record previously set by Call of Duty: Black Ops 2.
ernest hamilton