International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / November 04-07, 1991 / Riviera Hotel and Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada / Recorders conforming to IRIG Standards have served the data recording community well for many years. Initially, most systems were analog in nature, recording data in either direct or FM modes but as the need for digital recording developed, the IRIG recorder was successfully adapted for this purpose by the addition of formatting and coding sub-systems to form the High Density Digital Recorder (HDDR). Today, user requirements for higher speed, higher capacity and more convenient systems have presented equipment designers with new challenges in terms of the correct choice of technology and system architecture. It is not surprising that system designers should turn for inspiration first to the very high speed transverse and helical products which had been developed for the broadcast industry since these technologies possess many of the attributes necessary for a high rate digital data recorder. It is unfortunate that it has now become a truism that the only logical progression from the longitudinal IRIG system is by means of rotary technology. Recent developments in a technology known as micro-track recording now call this assumption into question. Recording systems based on micro-track technology are available and others are in an advanced state of development, and these offer a costeffective, attractive and low risk alternative to rotary systems for both high rate data capture and tape mass storage applications.

International Telemetering Conference Proceedings / October 30-November 02, 1995 / Riviera Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada / Magnetic tape is the primary medium used to capture and store unprocessed data from remote sensing satellites. Recent advances in digital cassette recording technology have resulted in the introduction of a range of data recorders which are equally at home working alongside conventional recorders or as part of more advanced data capture strategies. This paper shows how users are taking advantage of the convenience, economy and efficiency of this new generation of cassette-based equipment in a range of practical applications.