[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 64 (Tuesday, April 22, 2008)]
[House]
[Pages H2512-H2513]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 CELEBRATING 35 YEARS OF SPACE-BASED OBSERVATIONS OF THE EARTH BY THE 
                           LANDSAT SPACECRAFT

  Mr. BAIRD. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
resolution (H. Res. 891) celebrating 35 years of space-based 
observations of the Earth by the Landsat spacecraft and looking forward 
to sustaining the longest unbroken record of civil Earth observations 
of the land, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The text of the resolution is as follows:

                              H. Res. 891

       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.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Washington (Mr. Baird) and the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Washington.


                             General Leave

  Mr. BAIRD. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 
5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous material on H. Res. 891, the resolution now under 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Washington?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. BAIRD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise on this occasion, again I mention it is on Earth 
Day, to seek support for House Resolution 891, as amended, celebrating 
35 years of space-based observation of the Earth by the Landsat 
spacecraft.
  This resolution celebrates the world's longest unbroken record of 
civil Earth observations of the land beginning with the launch of the 
first Landsat satellite on July 23, 1972. The data collected from 
Landsat satellites have helped advance our scientific understanding of 
global change and fostered applications that benefit our private 
sector, as well as our State, local, regional and Federal Government 
activities.
  Mr. Speaker, the scientific and applied uses of these space-based 
land observations are vast. Landsat data are used to monitor crop 
patterns, manage natural resources such as water and forests, assist in 
land use and urban growth planning, help protect wildlife habitats and 
support national security objectives, to name just a few examples. 
Landsat's 35 year data record has also been critical in helping to 
understand the interactions between land cover changes and variations 
in the Earth's climate.
  The most recent report of the U.S. Climate Change Science Program 
Report references Landsat as one of two critical satellites. It states, 
``Without these satellite observations, the current pace of discovery 
and innovation in global land use and land cover change climate 
research would not be possible.''
  Mr. Speaker, this celebration of Landsat's continuous 35 years record 
of land observations provides a clear example of the societal benefits 
derived from our Nation's space program. But there is more to be gained 
from Landsat data. Increases in computing and communications 
capabilities are stimulating innovative approaches to using Earth 
observations data such as Landsat. One need only look to the Internet, 
where anyone can access images of neighborhoods, cities and regions to 
see firsthand the ways in which Landsat data are finding their ways 
into our lives.
  Mr. Speaker, in reflecting on the contributions that Landsat has made 
over

[[Page H2513]]

the past 35 years and the growing applications of these data, we must 
remember that the success of Landsat begins and continues with people. 
We owe our gratitude to the many talented and hard-working scientists, 
engineers and other professionals who have been involved in the Landsat 
program.
  I urge my colleagues to support H. Res. 891. As we address the 
implications of climate change and the pressure on our environment and 
resources, it is important that we ensure the continuation of the 
Landsat program and ensure the research, technology and educational 
investments that are required to expand the use of Landsat data and the 
benefits they provide to science and society.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise to join my colleague in support of H.R. 891, 
celebrating 35 years of continuous operation of the Federal 
Government's Earth observing Landsat satellite program. Generations of 
Landsat satellites have taken and continue to take an uninterrupted 
record of images of Earth's oceans and lands, enabling resource 
managers, geologists, climate researchers and scientists to closely 
monitor land use changes, water consumption, forestry, agricultural and 
the effects of climate change through the regular acquisition and 
cataloging of these photographs. This detailed and continuous record of 
observations offers an unambiguous insight into the changes that are 
occurring on a global, regional and local scale.
  Landsat data and the research findings they enable would not be 
possible without the excellent cooperation and joint management between 
NASA, who designs, builds and launches the satellites, and the United 
States Geological Survey and the Department of Interior, who manage the 
archives of Landsat data at the National Satellite Land Remote Sensing 
Data Archives, what a title, located in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. 
Their data records extend back 33 years.
  The early history of Landsat offers a remarkable insight into the 
events, culture, personalities and institutional jealousies of the 
1960s and 1970s. When our earliest astronauts returned from the Mercury 
and Gemini missions with photographs of the Earth taken from their 
spacecraft, scientists and engineers quickly began to envision the 
value of using robotic spacecraft as a means of monitoring land use 
changes.
  However, the Department of Defense initially objected to a space-
based civilian reconnaissance satellite out of concern that it would 
compromise their own spy satellite programs. The Office of Management 
and Budget also objected, arguing that land use data could be more 
cheaply acquired by high-flying aircraft.
  According to NASA historians, then Secretary of the Interior Stewart 
L. Udall, being convinced of the value of space-based civil 
reconnaissance satellites, announced in 1966 that his department was 
initiating its own Earth observing satellite program. His pronouncement 
apparently spurred NASA to take the initiative to proceed in an 
ambitious manner to build Landsat.
  Today, Landsat 5 and Landsat 7 continue to operate in Earth orbit, 
although both are nearing the end of their operational lives and may 
not last long enough to overlap the launch of their successor in 2011, 
called the Landsat Data Continuity Mission. If they both fail, the 35 
year record of continuous Landsat coverage will be interrupted, and 
though it will be disappointing, I am optimistic that other methods of 
data collection will be able to fill in most of the gaps during that 
interim.
  The Landsat program's data records are an invaluable national 
resource. The tenacity and the brilliance of the men and women at NASA, 
at USGS, and the contractors who helped design, build and launch the 
satellites, as well as manage the huge volume of data generated by the 
family of Landsat satellites, have created a legacy that will continue 
to serve our Nation's needs for many, many years to come.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support House Resolution 891.
  With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BAIRD. I want to thank the gentleman from Oklahoma. It is an 
astonishing history, isn't it? The fact that we have now got a 
continuous record of changes at all sorts of levels, changes in ground 
cover, changes in agriculture, changes in the water resources, et 
cetera, is an extraordinary resource for a host of uses. Our 
agriculture community benefits from this, our national parks benefit 
from this, flood control managers benefit from this.
  This Landsat satellite system, which was, as the gentleman from 
Oklahoma pointed out, once rather controversial, is now seen as 
something that would be very difficult to plan without. It has produced 
enormous economic benefits and economic savings.
  Who would have thought many decades ago before the space program that 
one day we would be able to send up remote instruments to look back 
down on Earth, not from the 40,000 foot level, but much higher, to give 
us the broad sweep; but not only the temporary snapshot, but the vast 
look over time, so you can see changes, both constructive changes and 
the losses. Absolutely incredible and important.
  I want to share the gentleman's concern. We need that continuity to 
continue. Let us hope that the good engineers of NASA have produced an 
instrument which can last much longer, as they have in many cases, as 
we see in the Mars rover system, for example. But we need that 
continuity in the data records so scientists can see what changes have 
occurred over time without interruption. We need to continue that not 
only with the proximate, the next Landsat satellite, but future 
generations as well.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the scientists and engineers, and thank the 
gentleman from Oklahoma for his support of this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BAIRD. Again, I want to commend my colleagues for introducing 
this legislation. I think this is absolutely appropriate, particularly 
on Earth Day. But it is helpful for us to remember down here on Earth 
that our lives on Earth are made better by the space program and the 
observing network that we have up in space that help us anticipate all 
kinds of potential disasters and avoid those, and also guide us in 
doing proactive things to improve the health of our great planet.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time and urge a ``yes'' 
vote on this resolution.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Washington (Mr. Baird) that the House suspend the rules 
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 891, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the resolution, as amended, was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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