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Landsat 6

By Landsat Legacy

The only commercial launch of the Landsat program, Landsat 6 never achieved orbit.

Sketch of Landsat 6 satellite in orbit
Sources/Usage: Public Domain. View Media Details
This is a sketch of what the Landsat 6 satellite would have looked like in orbit. The satellite failed to achieve orbit when launched on October 5, 1993. 

Landsat 6 launched on October 5, 1993 on a Titan II rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, but did not achieve orbit.

The satellite carried the Enhanced Thematic Mapper, an improved version of the instruments on Landsats 4 and 5, and included a 15-meter panchromatic band—a feature that would be added to each subsequent Landsat mission.

Martin Marietta Astro Space designed and built the satellite, and Earth Observation Satellite Company (EOSAT) was responsible for development of the spacecraft and ground system under a Commerce Department contract.

Visit the full Landsat 6 page on the Landsat Missions website.