Final answer:
The first application of remote sensing technology was conducted by Grote Reber in 1936 with the construction of the first antenna designed to receive cosmic radio waves, marking the beginning of radio astronomy. Subsequent developments included aerial infrared observations and the UV imaging spectrograph that photographed Earth from the moon.
Step-by-step explanation:
The First Remote Sensing Based Application
The first application of remote sensing technology can be traced back to the work of Grote Reber in the field of radio astronomy in 1936. Reber constructed the first antenna designed to receive cosmic radio waves, thus pioneering the field of remote sensing, which captures data about the Earth's surface without direct contact. Since then, various technologies, such as aerial photographs from airplanes and satellite imagery, have advanced the field, allowing geographers to understand and analyze changes on the Earth's surface. Infrared observations using telescopes on airplanes began in the 1960s and have evolved over time with projects like NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). Additionally, a notable application of remote sensing was the UV imaging spectrograph designed by George Robert Carruthers, which captured the Earth in ultraviolet light from the Moon's surface.