The diurnal variation in the albedo of natural surfaces has been well established from close-to-ground observations. To document similar variation from satellite observations is more complicated because of a lack of relevant information. In this study a unique data base, obtained from an experiment in 1977 over the Great Plains, was utilized. Images from the visible channel (0.55--0.75 μm) of the GOES-E/VISSR radiometer averaged over 50¿50 km2 target areas were collected and screened for 'clear sky' cases. This subset of clear brightness radiances was used over 33 targets in the Great Plains to document the solar zenith dependence of the planetary albedo from the geostationary satellite. This information is also indicative of the surface albedo zenith dependence.