TIROS-1

The Philippines is one of the most affected areas in the world in terms of natural disasters, including earthquakes, typhoons, volcanic eruptions, and floods.

- Words by Jose Alvarez

The catastrophic effects of anthropogenic climate change often manifest in the country in the form of typhoons. Readers may remember Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) in 2013, one of the most powerful typhoons in recorded history and (as of this writing) the deadliest typhoon in Philippine history.

One of the ways we track typhoons today is through weather satellites, which bring some form of predictability to weather patterns and allow us to plan accordingly to reduce damage and casualties caused by typhoons. The Philippines, on average, experiences approximately 20 typhoons per year. But who made this possible, and what did it take to accomplish this? My research led me to the Television Infrared Observation Satellite (TIROS-1), also known as TIROS-A, which was the first weather satellite in existence.