Landsat Known Issues

Return to Calibration Overview

Landsat data are systematic, geometric, radiometric, and terrain corrected to provide the highest quality data to the user communities. Occasionally, anomalies occur, and artifacts are discovered that require research and monitoring. The Landsat Calibration and Validation (Cal/Val) team investigates and tracks anomalous data and monitors satellite sensors for changes.

For known issues from processing the data into Collection 2, please visit Landsat Collection 2 Known Issues

Banding: Affects Landsat 4-5 Thematic Mapper (TM) data. 

Coherent Noise:  Affects Landsat 5 TM and Landsat 7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) data. 

Coherent Noise Storm: Affected Landsat 7 data on May 29, 2003. 

Data Loss: Affected Landsat 5 and Landsat 7 data mainly until 2006, although data loss can happen at any time. 

Detector Failure:  Affects Landsat 5 TM data, found once in Landsat 7 data. 

Detector Ringing: Affects Landsat 7 data. 

Detector Striping: Can affect data from all sensors. 

Gimbaled X-Band Antenna (GXA): Affected Landsat 7 data from launch to April 2000. 

Impulse Noise: Can affect data from all sensors. 

Internal Calibrator (IC) Intrusion: Affected Landsat 7 data from launch to April 2007. 

Lower Truncation Acquisitions: Affects Landsat 8 data. 

Memory Effect:  Affects Landsat 1-5 Multispectral Scanner (MSS) and Landsat 4-5 Thematic Mapper (TM) data. 

Optical Leak: Affects Landsat 5 and Landsat 7 data. 

Oversaturation: Can affect data from all sensors. 

Scan Correlated Shift: Affected Landsat 4-5 MSS data. 

Scan Mirror Pulse:  Affected Landsat MSS data. 

Shutter Synchronization Anomalies: Has affected Landsat 5 TM and Landsat 7 data. 

Single Event Upsets: Has affected Landsat 7 data. 

Solid State Recorder Bad Block Issue: Affects Landsat 9 data

Thermal Infrared Sensor Scene Select Mechanism Anomaly: Affected Landsat 8 Thermal Infrered Sensor.