Satellite imagery is a valuable tool for environmental monitoring of natural and man-made events. Analysis of imagery within a few hours is vital if these data are to be used to respond to rapidly changing conditions. Since April of 1982 Landsat imagery from the Quick-Look Project at the Geophysical Institute has been available for real-time applications. The system provides near real-time Landsat MSS imagery for applications including monitoring flood hazards, sea ice motion, forest fires and agricultural development. In the 1990s additional satellites with new sensors are being launched which will provide more opportunities for near real-time use. To take advantage of the sensors, additional facilities are needed to receive, process and deliver the data in a timely fashion. Candidate sensors and spacecraft include Enhanced Thematic Mapper (ETM) on Landsat-6; Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) on the NOAA polar orbiting satellites; SPOT; Japan`s Meteorological Observation Satellite (MOS); OPS (Optical Sensor) on the Japanese Earth Resources Satellite-1 (JERS-1) and the Advanced Earth Observing Satellite (ADEOS). Ongoing projects, such as the Alaska SAR Facility, can provide some components of a multiple satellite receiving system. Such a capability will provide a valuable source of data to study global change in the Arctic. The authors will describe the capabilities required to use satellite data for environmental monitoring.