NASA Launches New Earth Observation Satellite to Continue 40-Year Legacy

Feb. 11, 2013

Steve Cole
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0918
stephen.e.cole@nasa.gov

George Diller
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-867-2468
george.h.diller@nasa.gov

Rani Gran
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
301-286-2483
rani.c.gran@nasa.gov

RELEASE: 13-040

NASA LAUNCHES NEW EARTH OBSERVATION SATELLITE TO CONTINUE 40-YEAR LEGACY

WASHINGTON -- NASA's Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) roared
into space at 1:02 p.m. EST (10:02 a.m. PST) Monday aboard an Atlas V
rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

The LDCM spacecraft separated from the rocket 79 minutes after launch
and the first signal was received 3 minutes later at a ground station
in Svalbard, Norway. The solar arrays deployed 86 minutes after
launch, and the spacecraft is generating power from them. LDCM is on
course to reach its operational, sun-synchronous, polar orbit 438
miles (705 kilometers) above Earth within two months.

"Landsat is a centerpiece of NASA's Earth Science program, and today's
successful launch will extend the longest continuous data record of
Earth's surface as seen from space," NASA Administrator Charles
Bolden said. "This data is a key tool for monitoring climate change
and has led to the improvement of human and biodiversity health,
energy and water management, urban planning, disaster recovery and
agriculture monitoring -- all resulting in incalculable benefits to
the U.S. and world economy."

LDCM will go through a check-out phase for the next three months.
Afterward, operational control will be transferred to NASA's mission
partner, the Department of the Interior's U.S. Geological Survey
(USGS), and the satellite will be renamed Landsat 8. Data will be
archived and distributed free over the Internet from the Earth
Resources and Science (EROS) center in Sioux Falls, S.D. Distribution
of Landsat 8 data from the USGS archive is expected to begin within
100 days of launch.

LDCM is the eighth in the Landsat series of satellites that have been
continuously observing Earth's land surfaces since 1972.

"Landsat has been delivering invaluable scientific information about
our planet for more than forty years," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar
said. "It's an honor to be a part of today's launch to ensure this
critical data will continue to help us better understand our natural
resources and help people like water managers, farmers, and resource
managers make informed decisions."

The use of Landsat data been transformed in recent years by
advancements in computing power and the decision by USGS to allow
free online access to the information. This revolution has allowed
scientists to detect changes over time to our planet and has enabled
a host of applications based on Landsat measurements to be developed
by researchers, the private sector, and state, local, and tribal
governments.

LDCM continues that legacy with more and better observations. The
spacecraft carries two instruments, the Operational Land Imager (OLI)
and Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS). The measurements will be
compatible with data from past Landsat satellites, but the LDCM
instruments use advanced technology to improve reliability,
sensitivity, and data quality.

"LDCM is the best Landsat satellite ever built," said Jim Irons, a
LDCM project scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in
Greenbelt, Md. "The technology will advance and improve the array of
scientific investigations and resource management applications
supported by Landsat images. I anticipate new knowledge and
applications to emerge with an increasing demand for the data."

OLI will continue observations currently made by Landsat 7 in the
visible, near infrared, and shortwave infrared portions of the
electromagnetic spectrum. It also will take measurements in two new
bands, one to observe high-altitude cirrus clouds and another to
observe atmospheric aerosols as well as water quality in lakes and
shallow coastal waters. OLI's new design has fewer moving parts than
instruments on previous Landsat satellites.

TIRS will collect data on heat emitted from Earth's surface in two
thermal bands, as compared with a single thermal band on previous
Landsat satellites. These thermal band observations are becoming
increasingly vital to monitoring water consumption, especially in the
arid western United States.

On Monday afternoon, Bolden will tour Vandenberg's Space Launch
Complex-4, which is home to a new Space Exploration Technologies
(SpaceX) launch pad. The pad is nearing completion to support SpaceX
launches beginning in 2013. NASA's first use will be in 2015 with the
launch of the Jason-3 mission, which will precisely measure sea
surface height on Earth to monitor ocean circulation and sea level.
SpaceX is the newest American company to demonstrate the capability
to launch science missions for NASA and other government agencies.
Jason-3 will be developed and operated as part of an international
effort led by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Bolden also will see the Orbital Sciences Pegasus rocket, being
readied at Vandenberg, for the launch this April of NASA's Interface
Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS) heliophysics mission.

Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. built the OLI instrument in
Boulder, Colo. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center built the TIRS
instrument. Orbital Sciences Corporation built, integrated, and
tested the spacecraft in Gilbert, Ariz. USGS provided the LDCM ground
system. The launch was managed by NASA's Launch Services Program
based at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. United Launch
Alliance provided the Atlas V launch vehicle.

For more information about LDCM, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/landsat

and

http://landsat.usgs.gov


-end-



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