Editing Earth observation satellite (section)

== History ==
{{See also|Remote sensing#History}}
[[File:Lednickie Lake (Poland) seen by the American reconnaissance satellite Corona 98 (KH-4A 1023) (1965-08-23).png|thumb|Lednickie Lake (Poland) seen by the American reconnaissance satellite [[CORONA (satellite)|CORONA]] 98, 1965]]
[[Herman Potočnik]] explored the idea of using orbiting spacecraft for detailed peaceful and military observation of the ground in his 1928 book, ''The Problem of Space Travel''. He described how the special conditions of space could be useful for scientific experiments. The book described [[geostationary]] satellites (first put forward by [[Konstantin Tsiolkovsky]]) and discussed communication between them and the ground using radio, but fell short of the idea of using satellites for mass broadcasting and as telecommunications relays.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sasmac.cn/portal/html/fc4f335929b0df0d0129b0e348f90003/_content/10_07/09/1278668367217.html|title=Introduction to satellite|website=www.sasmac.cn|date=2 September 2016|access-date=19 April 2017|archive-date=16 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160916064537/http://www.sasmac.cn/portal/html/fc4f335929b0df0d0129b0e348f90003/_content/10_07/09/1278668367217.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The onset of the [[Cold War]] prompted the rapid development of [[Launch vehicle|Satellite launch systems]] and camera technology capable of sufficient Earth observation to garner intelligence on enemy military infrastructure and evaluate nuclear posture.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cold War in Space: Top Secret Reconnaissance Satellites Revealed |url=https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/195923/cold-war-in-space-top-secret-reconnaissance-satellites-revealed/ |website=nationalmuseum.af.mil}}</ref> Following the U-2 incident in 1960, which highlighted the risks of aerial spying, the U.S. accelerated surveillance satellite programs like [[CORONA (satellite)|CORONA]]. Satellites largely replaced aircraft overflights for surveillance after 1960.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Muszyński-Sulima |first=Wawrzyniec |date=2023-06-30 |title=Cold War in Space: Reconnaissance Satellites and US-Soviet Security Competition |url=https://journals.openedition.org/ejas/20427 |journal=European Journal of American Studies |language=en |volume=18 |issue=2 |doi=10.4000/ejas.20427 |issn=1991-9336|doi-access=free }}</ref>