New Yorkers know the products they purchase are not always as durable as the warranty implies and returning to the store can be a hassle. Imagine NASA’s dilemma when one of their purchases fails.
Here’s some good news:
The Landsat earth mapping satellite program has been a resounding success.
NASA
Designed and built by the HUGHES Corporation, seven satellites have been launched since 1972. We rely on satellite imagery for global warming research, agriculture and map making, geology and forestry, urban planning, education, surveillance and national security.
NASA
Landsats #1 through #4 all launched correctly, completed their mission as planned and were terminated in orbit on schedule.
#6 failed to reach orbit in 1993.
#7 launched in 1999 and is still functioning, but with expected equipment failure over time.
NASA
But the intrepid Landsat5 is just amazing. Launched March 1, 1984, Landsat5 remains in orbit 438 miles above the earth and is still functioning an amazing 27 years later.
Not bad for a product that originally came with a three year warranty.
NASA
From the LandSAT homepage:
“The quarter-century in space, however, has been rough on the satellite and its instruments. "If you created a cartoon of Landsat 5, it would look like a mummy wrapped in bandages," said Darrel Williams, Landsat project scientist at NASA, "with only a small hole for the instrument's 'eye' to look down at Earth."
NASA
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