GVHRR/ATS-6: Black and White Visible Satellite Images from 1974

The Western Hemisphere was observed from a geosynchronous orbit at 95W by the ATS-6 satellite. This dataset contains black and white visible images (0.55 to 0.75 micrometer wavelength) originally produced on film and later scanned to digital TIFF files. The data was collected by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center from launch until August 15, 1974.

Use Cases

• Analyze historical cloud cover and weather patterns based on visible imagery.
• Study changes in land or ocean surface brightness over time based on the gray scale representing brightness temperatures.
• Develop image processing techniques for digitized historical film archives based on the TIFF scan format.
• Validate or compare early geosynchronous satellite data with modern observations based on the spectral band and footprint information.

Strengths

• Data includes embedded metadata such as satellite ID, date, and spectral band within each image title.
• Images have a defined spatial resolution with a 5.5 km footprint at the sub-satellite point.
• The temporal coverage is explicitly defined from launch until a specific end date of August 15, 1974.

Limitations

• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Data is derived from scanned film, which may introduce artifacts or quality loss compared to original digital sources.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Goddard Space Flight Center.

Collection Method

Images were originally generated on commercial equipment from digital tapes to 70-mm film, then later scanned to digital TIFF files.

Time Range

From satellite launch until August 15, 1974.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 01:46:58.546375; freshness should be verified.

Geography

The Western Hemisphere, as observed from a geosynchronous orbit parked at 95W.