Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer

In the 1970s NASA inaugurated the Landsat series of satellites to study the Earth from space. The program demonstrated the practical benefits of research from satellites: for the first time the Earth's natural resources--land, water, and vegetation--could be mapped and studied continuously and on a global basis. Landsat 1 (originally called the Earth Resources Technology Satellite) was launched in 1972.

One of the main instruments used in studying the earth from space on Landsats 1, 2, and 3 was a Return Beam Vidicon (RBV) camera. Essentially a television camera, the RBV provided black and white images of the Earth and also was used to calibrate and intrepret images from a companion instrument on Landsat--a multi-spectral scanner (MSS).

The NASM artifact is a backup for the RBV that flew on Landsat 3, which was launched in 1978.

 Display Status

This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Country of Origin United States of America Type SPACECRAFT-Uncrewed-Instruments & Payloads Manufacturer RCA Astro Electronics
 Dimensions Storage: 201 × 83.8 × 151.1cm (79 1/8 × 33 × 59 1/2 in.)
 Materials Aluminum
Anodized Aluminum
Plastic
Steel
Copper Alloy, Copper Foil,
Paint
Silicone
Teflon
Gold Plating
Velcro
Magnesium
Rubber
Nickel Plating
Glass
Beta Marquisette
Aluminized Mylar
Paper
Ink
Adhesive
Cellophane
Anodized Steel
Foamcore display board
 Inventory Number A19840026000 Credit Line Transferred from General Services Administration Data Source National Air and Space Museum Restrictions & Rights Usage conditions apply
For more information, visit the Smithsonians Terms of Use.