


The graphic below compares the OLI spectral bands to Landsat 7′s ETM+ bands. OLI collects data for visible, near infrared, and short wave infrared spectral bands as well as a panchromatic band. OLI is a push-broom sensor with a four-mirror telescope and 12-bit quantization. OLI improves on past Landsat sensors using a technical approach demonstrated by a sensor flown on NASA’s experimental EO-1 satellite. Landsat 8 instruments represent an evolutionary advance in technology. USGS leads post-launch calibration activities, satellite operations, data product generation, and data archiving at the Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) center.

On May 30, 2013, USGS took over routine operations and the satellite became Landsat 8. NASA led the design, construction, launch, and on-orbit calibration phases, during which time the satellite was called the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM). Landsat 8 was developed as a collaboration between NASA and the U.S. These two sensors provide seasonal coverage of the global landmass at a spatial resolution of 30 meters (visible, NIR, SWIR) 100 meters (thermal) and 15 meters (panchromatic). ( The Landsat 8 Launch in Quotes.) The Landsat 8 satellite payload consists of two science instruments-the Operational Land Imager (OLI) and the Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS). Landsat 8 launched on February 11, 2013, from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, on an Atlas-V 401 rocket, with the extended payload fairing (EPF) from United Launch Alliance, LLC.
