Example of Landsat Provisional Surface Temperature over the Yellowstone Lake area. Landsat 5 image acquired on September 11, 2018.
How do I use a scale factor with Landsat Level-2 science products?
Landsat Level-2 products are written as scaled integers to allow us to convert the data from floating point to integer for delivery. In most cases these are written to a 16-bit integer, which saves disk space and provides faster download times.
Each floating point pixel has an offset applied and then multiplied by a gain to bring the value into the 16-bit integer (or unsigned integer) range. These values are referred to as scaled integers. To allow the user to get the data back to its original floating point value, a scale factor and offset are provided for each band. The scale_factor should be applied to each pixel and then the offset added (i.e. Digital Number (DN) * scale_factor + offset).
You can apply a scale factor to the science products via a data script, through manual calculation, or within certain software programs.
Please refer to the Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 Science Product documents on https://www.usgs.gov/landsat-missions/landsat-project-documents to learn more about scale factors applied to Landsat products.
| Science Product | Scale Factor | Additive Offset |
Fill Value | Data Type | Valid Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Collection 2 | |||||
| Surface Reflectance | 0.0000275 | -0.2 | 0 | Unsigned 16-bit integer | 7273-43636 |
| Surface Temperature | 0.00341802 | 149 | 0 | Unsigned 16-bit integer | 293 - 65535 |
| Provisional Aquatic Reflectance |
0.00001 (RHORC layers = 0.0001) |
N/A | -9999 | Signed 16-bit integer | 0-10000 |
| Collection 1 (historic) | Collection 1 information is available here for reference only | ||||
| Surface Reflectance | 0.0001 | N/A | -9999 | Signed 16-bit integer | 0-10000 |
| Provisional Surface Temperature | 0.1 | N/A | -9999 | Signed 16-bit integer | 0-10000 |
Examples for scaling Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 science products
Surface Reflectance
-
Landsat Collection 2 surface reflectance has a scale factor of 0.0000275 and an additional offset of -0.2 per pixel.
-
For example, a pixel value of 18,639 is multiplied by 0.0000275 for the scale factor and then -0.2 is added for the additional offset to get a reflectance value of 0.313 after the scale factor is applied.
Surface Temperature
-
Landsat Collection 2 surface temperature has a scale factor of 0.00341802 and an additional offset of 149.0 per pixel.
-
For example, a pixel value of 44,947 is multiplied by 0.00341802 for the scale factor and 149.0 is added for the additional offset to get 302.6 Kelvin after the scale factor is applied.
Provisional Aquatic Reflectance
-
Landsat 8-9 Collection 2 provisional aquatic reflectance (AR) (bands 1-5) has a scale factor of 0.00001. The intermediate Rayleigh-corrected reflectance (RHORC, bands 1-7) products delivered in the AR package has a scale factor of 0.0001.
-
For example, a pixel value of 3000 in an AR layer is multiplied by the scale factor 0.00001 to get a water-leaving reflectance value of 0.0300. A pixel value of 300 in a RHORC layer is multiplied by the scale factor 0.0001 to get a Rayleigh-corrected reflectance value of 0.0300.
Learn more: Landsat Science Products
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Example of Landsat Provisional Surface Temperature
Example of Landsat Provisional Surface Temperature over the Yellowstone Lake area. Landsat 5 image acquired on September 11, 2018.
Landsat Collections
Landsat Collections: Providing a Stable Environmental Record for Time Series Analysis
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Example of the Landsat 8 Collection 2 products
Left: Landsat 8 Collection 2 level-1 top of atmosphere reflectance image, center: Landsat 8 Collection 2 level-2 atmospherically corrected surface reflectance image, and right: Landsat 8 Collection 2 level-2 surface temperature image for an area over the Sapta Koshi River in Bairawa, Nepal (path 140 row 41) acquired on
Left: Landsat 8 Collection 2 level-1 top of atmosphere reflectance image, center: Landsat 8 Collection 2 level-2 atmospherically corrected surface reflectance image, and right: Landsat 8 Collection 2 level-2 surface temperature image for an area over the Sapta Koshi River in Bairawa, Nepal (path 140 row 41) acquired on
Landsat 8 Surface Reflectance example
Left: Landsat 8 Top of Atmosphere reflectance image (bands 4,3,2) and Right: Landsat 8 atmospherically corrected surface reflectance image for an area in Nepal, path 141 row 40 acquired on May 3, 2013.
Left: Landsat 8 Top of Atmosphere reflectance image (bands 4,3,2) and Right: Landsat 8 atmospherically corrected surface reflectance image for an area in Nepal, path 141 row 40 acquired on May 3, 2013.
Example of the Landsat Collection 2 Surface Reflectance product
Example of the Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 Surface Reflectance science product over Seattle, Washington. Landsat 5 image acquired Oct 6, 2010 (bands 4,3,2)
Example of the Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 Surface Reflectance science product over Seattle, Washington. Landsat 5 image acquired Oct 6, 2010 (bands 4,3,2)
Example of Landsat Collection 2 Surface Temperature
Example of Landsat Collection 2 Surface Temperature over the Tacoma, Washington area. Landsat 5 image aquired on October 6, 2010.
Example of Landsat Collection 2 Surface Temperature over the Tacoma, Washington area. Landsat 5 image aquired on October 6, 2010.
Related Content
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Landsat Level-1 data can be rescaled to the top of atmosphere (TOA) reflectance and/or radiance using radiometric rescaling coefficients provided in the metadata file (MTL.txt) that is delivered with the Landsat Level-1 product. The MTL file also contains the thermal constants needed to convert thermal band data to TOA brightness temperature (BT). Formulas for these conversions are at Using the...
Why are negative values observed over water in some Landsat Surface Reflectance products?
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Why are the fill values and scaling factors of Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 products different from those products in Collection 1?
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How do Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 products compare with products from Collection 1?
Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 Surface Reflectance and Surface Temperature science products are scene-based, produced within the standard processing system, and available to download directly from EarthExplorer . Collection 2 Level-2 products are available for Landsat 4-5 TM, Landsat 7 ETM+, and Landsat 8-9 OLI/TIRS data acquired from 1982 to present. Landsat MSS 1-5 data are not currently available...
How do I search and download Landsat Collection 2 data products?
Search Landsat Collection 2 Level-1 and Level-2 products using EarthExplorer , which is the primary portal used to search all data held in the USGS EROS archives . While Landsat Collection 2 products are processed and stored in the USGS Cloud Hosting Solution (CHS) environment, downloads are managed through EarthExplorer. The USGS Landsat no-cost open data policy remains intact since its inception...
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Example of Landsat Provisional Surface Temperature
Example of Landsat Provisional Surface Temperature over the Yellowstone Lake area. Landsat 5 image acquired on September 11, 2018.
Example of Landsat Provisional Surface Temperature over the Yellowstone Lake area. Landsat 5 image acquired on September 11, 2018.
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Left: Landsat 8 Collection 2 level-1 top of atmosphere reflectance image, center: Landsat 8 Collection 2 level-2 atmospherically corrected surface reflectance image, and right: Landsat 8 Collection 2 level-2 surface temperature image for an area over the Sapta Koshi River in Bairawa, Nepal (path 140 row 41) acquired on
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Example of the Landsat Collection 2 Surface Reflectance productExample of the Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 Surface Reflectance science product over Seattle, Washington. Landsat 5 image acquired Oct 6, 2010 (bands 4,3,2)
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Example of Landsat Collection 2 Surface TemperatureExample of Landsat Collection 2 Surface Temperature over the Tacoma, Washington area. Landsat 5 image aquired on October 6, 2010.
Example of Landsat Collection 2 Surface Temperature over the Tacoma, Washington area. Landsat 5 image aquired on October 6, 2010.
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