| Acronym | Meaning |
| AURA | Association Of Universities For Research In Astronomy |
| FEM | Flight-Engineering Model |
| EDO | Extended Duration Orbiter |
| DMSP | Defense Meteorological Satellite Program |
| NASA | National Aeronautics And Space Administration |
| WFPC | Wide Field/Planetary Camera |
| INTELSAT | International Telecommunications Satellite |
| WIYN | Wisconsin/Indiana/Yale/NOAO Telescope |
| PSF | Point Spread Function |
| AVHRR | Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer |