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Landsat 3 First Light Image of San Jose

By Landsat Missions
Landsat 3 First Light Image of San Jose
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Detailed Description

Landsat 3’s first image features a slice of Northern California on March 7, 1978. 

San Jose sits in Santa Clara Valley touching the southernmost portion of San Francisco. The area is shaken by earthquakes once or twice annually as just east of the city lays the Calaveras Fault. The focused imagery showcases the urbanization of the valley, which exploded in the 1970s as Silicon Valley grew.

Learn more about Landsat 3 at https://www.usgs.gov/landsat-missions/landsat-3

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Public Domain.

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