New York (USA) | Jagran News Desk: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States of America (USA) on Monday launched Landsat 9, a satellite to monitor the Earth’s land surface and coastal regions, from its Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The Landsat 9 satellite was launched with support from the US Geological Survey (USGS).

In a statement, NASA said that Landsat 9, which will join its sister satellite Landsat 8, will collect images and pictures from the Earth’s surface every eight days which will help in monitoring the planet’s health. It said that this mission is important as it will help in tracking “things like crop growth and helping decision-makers monitor the overall health of Earth and its natural resources”.

“With a 50-year data bank to build on, Landsat 9 will take this historic and invaluable global program to the next level. We look forward to working with our partners at the U.S. Geological Survey and the Department of the Interior again on Landsat Next because we never stop advancing our work to understand our planet,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.

NASA had launched the first Landsat satellite in 1972 “to collect images of the physical material” covering the Earth’s surface. It said that these images and pictures have helped in monitoring agricultural productivity, forest activity, coral reef habitat health and glacier dynamics.

“For nearly 50 years, Landsat satellites observed our home planet, providing an unparalleled record of how its surface has changed over timescales from days to decades. Through this partnership with USGS, we’ve been able to provide continuous and timely data for users ranging from farmers to resource managers and scientists. This data can help us understand, predict, and plan for the future in a changing climate,” said NASA’s Karen St Germain.

Posted By:
Aalok Sensharma