In the 1960s and 1970s, remote sensing was done from aircraft and mainly for military purposes using thermal infrared scanners (temperature) and radar systems (SLAR: side looking airborne radar). Recognising the potential for civil applications, primarily in agriculture (harvest estimates) and geology (possible presence of oil and gas), the first earth-orbiting satellites were equipped with technology for colour observations of the Earth. The potential of these space observations for meteorology was quickly identified, and the meteorological community launched a successful series of meteorological satellites of increasing complexity and capabilities, which has sustained until the very present.