I've always been fascinated by space exploration.  While I was only little at the time, I still remember the Apollo 11 landing on the moon in 1969 (to be honest, what I really remember is my parents bringing me to the TV and saying "watch this - this is something you will remember the rest of your life").  I've watched my share of Star Trek on TV over the years (in its various incarnations), and Mission Space at EPCOT is still one of my favorites (but to be honest, I'm more of a green-team kind of guy).  But until recently, I never really understood the extent to which Kodak provided - and still provides today - a lot of the imaging technology used in space.

The space shuttle Discovery is scheduled for launch this Saturday, delivering the largest payload to date for the International Space Station.  While in space, astronauts will be using Kodak DCS cameras - that use Kodak CCD image sensors - to take pictures of their activities.  Before re-entry, the heat tiles on the shuttle will be inspected for damage using the Optical Boom Sensor System - which includes a visual camera that uses a Kodak CCD image sensor.  And earlier this year, astronauts installed the Earth Viewing Camera - based on a Kodak CCD image sensor - onto the International Space Station to capture images of the earth as the Space Station passes overhead.

And that's just for starters.  Kodak CCD image sensors are used today in satellites that orbit not only the Earth, but Mars and Venus as well.  Kodak image sensors were the "eyes" of the Sojourner rover that first explored the surface of Mars in 1997.  When NASA returns to the moon with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter later this year, Kodak image sensors will be imaging the surface at 0.5 meters per pixel.  And when the Jupiter Orbiter launches in 2011 to take the first 3-color images of Jupiter, you can probably guess which sensors will be used to take the pictures.

Even more amazing is the fact that these projects use standard commercial sensors - the same ones Kodak provides for high performance industrial and scientific applications on earth.  Which is a pretty neat testament to the quality and performance that comes off of our CCD manufacturing line every day.

So if you watch the shuttle launch this Saturday, remember that Kodak image sensors will be along for the ride - not only capturing critical images from the mission, but also safeguarding the well-being of shuttle astronauts during re-entry back to earth.

(And before you ask - we don't have a timeline yet for developing image sensors that can be used for Holophotography - but it wouldn't surprise me if someone's already started thinking about it.)

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