WHAT ARE SATELLITE IMAGES?
Most meteorological satellite images are taken from satellites which are in geosynchronous orbit, which means they are at a fixed spot high above the earth, usually about 36,000km. METEOSAT takes images of Europe and Africa and is located above the equator and Greenwhich, which gives it a location of 0°N and 0°E. Other geosynchronous satellites include : • GOES for North and South America and the east Pacific and west Atlantic • GMS for Asia and the west Pacific<> • INDOSAT for the Indian Ocean and southern Asia and India There are other types that orbit at lower altitudes and they orbit the earth from a few hours to once or twice a day taking pictures of hurricanes and thunderstorms, etc. Different types of pictures are taken, depending which part of the visible or non-visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum is being used. Visible images show pictures as humans would see them (although most are in black and white). Infra-red pictures are very useful since infra-red pictures are a
