Landsat 9 is an
Earth observation satellite launched on 27 September 2021 from
Space Launch Complex-3E at
Vandenberg Space Force Base on an
Atlas V 401 launch vehicle
A launch vehicle or carrier rocket is a rocket designed to carry a payload ( spacecraft or satellites) from the Earth's surface to outer space. Most launch vehicles operate from a launch pads, supported by a launch control center and sys ...
.
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeedin ...
is in charge of building, launching, and testing the satellite, while the
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...
(USGS) operates the satellite, and manages and distributes the data archive.
[ ] It is the ninth satellite in the
Landsat program, but
Landsat 6 failed to reach orbit. The
Critical Design Review (CDR) was completed by NASA in April 2018, and
Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems (NGIS) was given the go-ahead to manufacture the satellite.
[ ]
Design
The design and construction of Landsat 9 were assigned by NASA, under a delivery order contract to
Orbital ATK, in October 2016. The purchase cost of US$129.9 million is part of a five-year contract between the two entities. The budget that provides for initial work on Landsat 9 also calls for research into less expensive and smaller components for future Landsat hardware.
Landsat 9 will largely replicate the functions of its predecessor
Landsat 8. The former will include near-identical copies of remote sensors: the
Operational Land Imager (OLI) and the Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) instruments – optical and thermal sensors respectively – that will be designated OLI-2 and TIRS-2;
the latter will be upgraded to a risk class B implementation (high priority, high national significance, high complexity) while no changes will be applied to OLI-2.
NASA selected
Ball Aerospace & Technologies
Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. is an American manufacturer of spacecraft, components and instruments for national defense, civil space and commercial space applications. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ball Corporation ( NYSE: BA ...
to provide the OLI-2 instrument through a sole source procurement. OLI-2 will collect data for nine spectral bands with a
ground sample distance (GSD) of 30 m for all bands except the panchromatic band, which has a 15 m GSD.
NASA assigned the TIRS-2 instrument as a directed development to
Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). Design changes to the TIRS-2 are intended to address the
stray light Stray light is light in an optical system, which was not intended in the design. The light may be from the intended source, but follow paths other than intended, or it may be from a source other than the intended source. This light will often set a ...
and Scene Select Mechanism (SSM) encoder problems experienced with the TIRS on Landsat 8.
[ Testing and assessment of the TIRS-2 demonstrate the stray light magnitude has been reduced to 1%.
]
Launch
Landsat 9 was launched on 27 September 2021 at 18:12 UTC.Kennedy Space Center
The John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC, originally known as the NASA Launch Operations Center), located on Merritt Island, Florida, is one of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) ten field centers. Since December 196 ...
(KSC) controlled the launch operations, which was conducted from Vandenberg Space Force Base.COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
on spacecraft work in Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
.
Gallery
Landsat 9 launch - 2021-09-27 - Sarah Stierch.ogg, Landsat 9 launch, as seen from Lompoc, California, on a cloudy day.
See also
* Sentinel-2B, a comparable satellite operated by the European Space Agency
, owners =
, headquarters = Paris, Île-de-France, France
, coordinates =
, spaceport = Guiana Space Centre
, seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png
, seal_size = 130px
, image = Views in the Main Control Room (120 ...
(ESA).
References
External links
USGS Landsat Website
{{Orbital launches in 2021
Landsat program
Spacecraft launched in 2021
Spacecraft launched by Atlas rockets
NASA satellites orbiting Earth
Earth observation satellites of the United States