[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 891 Engrossed in House (EH)]


                In the House of Representatives, U. S.,

                                                        April 22, 2008.
Whereas the year 2007 represents 35 years of continuous collection of space-
        based observations of the Earth's land cover by the United States 
        Landsat satellites, which have enabled increased scientific 
        understanding of the interrelationships of the Earth's land cover, 
        energy balance, and biogeochemical processes as well as the realization 
        of numerous societal benefits from the applied uses of the data;
Whereas on July 23, 1972, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration 
        launched Landsat 1, originally called the Earth Resources Technology 
        Satellite, as the first civilian Earth observation satellite to study 
        the Earth's land cover and monitor natural resources;
Whereas since 1972, the United States Geological Survey has led the data 
        archiving and distribution efforts for the Landsat program, which has 
        continued to collect data without interruption through the successful 
        launches of Landsats 2, 3, 4, 5, and 7, and has established the longest 
        and most comprehensive record of global land surface data ever 
        collected;
Whereas the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the United States 
        Geological Survey, the Department of Commerce, the Department of 
        Defense, and the private sector have all played a role in Landsat's 
        history;
Whereas Landsat greatly enhanced remote sensing science, helped give rise to a 
        global change research plan and international initiatives to study the 
        Earth system, and led to new types of careers in engineering and natural 
        sciences;
Whereas Landsat data have been used for multiple scientific and applied purposes 
        including cartography, land surveys and land use planning, agricultural 
        forecasting, water resource management, forest management, mapping of 
        sea ice movement, assessment of tropical deforestation, food security, 
        mineral and oil exploration, and global change research;
Whereas Landsat data are being widely used by Federal, local, county, and State 
        governments, and by foreign nations, nongovernmental organizations, 
        private industry, and universities;
Whereas Landsat data are collected at a scale that enables the study of both 
        natural and human-induced changes in land cover over time and their 
        impacts on the Earth's ecosystems;
Whereas Landsat data illuminated for the first time how human decisions, such as 
        the expansion of cities, led to large-scale impacts on the environment;
Whereas the U.S. Climate Change Science Program has recognized Landsat and its 
        long-term data record as instrumental to the study of climate and 
        environmental change, noting that ``Landsat data are invaluable for 
        studying the land surface and how it affects and is affected by 
        climate''; and
Whereas the scientific and societal benefits of the Landsat program and its 35-
        year data record illustrate the significant return on the public 
        investment in Earth observations and the need for continued support for 
        this critical national asset: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) expresses its appreciation to all of the dedicated scientists, 
        engineers, and program personnel who have contributed to the successful 
        development and operation of the Landsat program over the past 35 years;
            (2) looks forward to another 35 years of continuous Landsat-like 
        observations of the Earth;
            (3) urges the continuation of the Landsat program and data record so 
        as to sustain Landsat's value to scientific research, especially the 
        study of global and climate change, and to the myriad applied uses of 
        the data for societal benefit; and
            (4) believes that the Nation should continue to support the 
        research, technological improvements, educational outreach, and 
        development of decision making tools required to expand the use of 
        Landsat data separately and as integrated with other Earth observations 
        data.
            Attest:

                                                                          Clerk.