Information provided by these early satellites was collected and analyzed in a run down car dealership in Washington, DC. This represented the first use of the technology and capabilities we now know as Geographic Information Systems. Technicians overlaid data such as charts, clarifications, tables, or other renderings onto specific geographic area photos ("Eyes"). The resulting "graphic" displayed in previously unheard of clarity any information desired about the area covered by the photograph.
By the summer of 1961 photo reconnaissance proved conclusively that there was no massive buildup of Strategic Bombers in the Soviet Union and further that Soviet nuclear bombs were far less powerful than intelligence had previously indicated ("Eyes"). These astonishing findings were almost immaterial to the new technology. By this early stage it had taken on a life of its own and had developed a powerful momentum. GIS Technology in its simplest form is about maps. The technology can produce electronic maps that are as unchangeable in their detail as their printed brethren. What sets GIS mapping capability apart is startling; a map for urban & rural planners that used to take one to five years to make is now generated in a matter of hours (Callahan 17). The use of this most simple form of GIS mapping technology has even deeper ramifications. As told by P. Lynn Oliva, the Planning Commissioner for Westchester County, New York, to Tom Callahan in his June 1995 New York Times Article: "This is not a new function but the decades old job of government providing information to citizens, government departments, and municipalities. Before this technology we spent 80% of our time gathering information and mapping and 20% planning. Now, it's reversed (17)."
In its more sophisticated format the technology presents an "entirely new breed of decision making tool" (Environ. 1). This tool contains or may contain a vast array of information beyond the map visible on the surface. This more complex "map" contains database (information), query (the ability to answer user questions), and analysis capability (the capacity to present an analysis of some proposed use of the land within the "spatial database". The areas contained within the database may be as large as Antarctica or as small as a single city block (Environ. 3). The information can be extracted from the system in a variety of ways. There are many applications where simple paper map with all of its identifiable points of reference is sufficient. When there is a demand for more in-depth information, a technician can produce tables, charts, graphs (Itami 47), or high resolution photo graphics with a simple "click."