What is the difference between Aerial Photographs and Satellite Imagery Data?
Aerial photography is done by aircraft, so (1) there’s a theoretical upper limit to how high the photos can be taken (the current manned altitude record is 69.6 miles, to give you an idea); (2) it necessarily implies atmospheric flight; (3) the trajectory of the craft taking the photos is ultimately suborbital. Satellite Imagery Data is taken from a satellite in orbit around the earth, so (1) the craft taking the photos is in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) or higher–LEO is commonly accepted as beginning at about 100 miles; (2) they are taken above the atmosphere.
