Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP), low, earth-orbiting satellites have provided the military with important environmental information.
Some cool things you can find:
- Nighttime lights of the world – - here’s a KMZ file I downloaded: DMSP_Nighttime_Lights.kmz
- Visible and Infrared imagery
Link to their sensors: http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/dmsp/sensors.html
The DMSP satellites “see” such environmental features as clouds, bodies of water, snow, fire, and pollution in the visual and infrared spectra. Scanning radiometers record information which can help determine cloud type and height, land and surface water temperatures, water currents, ocean surface features, ice, and snow. Communicated to ground-based terminals, the data is processed, interpreted by meteorologists, and ultimately used in planning and conducting U.S. military operations worldwide.
There are a number of open map services available here: I haven’t been able to get them to work yet.
http://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/dmsp/maps.html
For other satellite feeds check this website: http://www.oso.noaa.gov/