Abstract:Since making its debut as an emerging S&T field in the 1960s, remote sensing has arrested close attention from the international S&T community and governments across the world, and rapidly become a popular research realm. Its knowledge found wide application after 1972 when the United States launched its Earth observation satellite Landsat. At present, a comprehensive Earth observation network consisting of a variety of platforms, ranging from satellites to airplanes to balloons, continuously obtains different Earth observation data, deepening people’s understanding of our planet and its environment and resources, and broadening our perception of nature.