GEOS-2 International Optical Beacon Data: 1689 Geodetic Observations from 1968

1689 records of reduced raw geodetic optical observations from the GEOS-2 satellite's optical beacon system. The data were collected by international camera systems between February 20 and October 3, 1968, and used as input for quality control programs. The principal investigator for the experiment was R. E. Williston from APL.

Use Cases

• Studying geometric geodesy based on the optical beacon system described.
• Analyzing satellite flash tube sequencing patterns based on the described five or seven flash series.
• Quality control program development for geodetic observations based on the dataset's stated purpose.
• Historical analysis of early satellite-based Earth science measurements from the 1968 time period.

Strengths

• Contains 1689 data records providing a specific volume of observations.
• Covers a defined time period from 1968-02-20 to 1968-10-03.
• Data originates from a NASA satellite experiment with a named principal investigator.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Data may reflect temporal bias inherent to the single, historical 1968 collection period.
• Row count is known, but specific data types and features per record are not detailed.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Optical observations obtained by various international camera systems from the GEOS-2 satellite's beacon system.

Time Range

1968-02-20 to 1968-10-03

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 02:12:16.023233; freshness should be verified

Geography

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