Earth-observing satellites, up close
The camera that maps the land
Landsat 8 has photographed the land of the whole planet since 2013, one 185 km strip at a time. Scroll, and its model turns a full circle for you, part by part.
Exhibit 08 · Landsat 8
- 1Solar arrayOne deployable wing, folded for launch, powers everything on board
- 2Operational Land ImagerNine bands of visible and infrared light, 30 m a pixel, 15 m in black and white
- 3Thermal Infrared SensorTwo thermal bands, 100 m a pixel: the temperature of the ground
- 4X-band antennaSends the pictures down to receiving stations at 384 Mbit/s
Landsat 8 (LDCM) model animation: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Conceptual Image Lab. Public domain. NASA SVS · Wikimedia Commons
The mission
Eleven bands, every sixteen days
On 11 February, on an Atlas V from Vandenberg, as the Landsat Data Continuity Mission.
A sun-synchronous orbit: it crosses the equator at about 10 a.m. local time on every pass.
Fourteen and a half times round the Earth a day, pole to pole.
The same ground track again, so every scene can be compared with the last.
The width of the strip of land each pass photographs.
Nine from the Operational Land Imager and two from the Thermal Infrared Sensor.
Visit
The turntable hall
- Open
- Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 18:00
- Late opening
- Thursdays until 21:00, with a talk at 19:00
- Tickets
- Free for under-18s; the turntable hall is step-free