Images

These Landsat 9 Level-1, Level-2 Surface Reflectance, and Level-2 Surface Temperature images show the Columbia River in the northwestern United States. 

United States ground stations in South Dakota and Alaska, as well as international ground stations in Norway, Germany, and Australia, serve as the primary data capture and Telemetry, Tracking, and Control (TT&C) facilities for the USGS Landsat satellite missions.

The Landsat satellite dish is housed in a protective radome on the USGS EROS grounds. The dish receives data from the Landsat 8 and Landsat 9 satellites each day. 

Landsat 8 and 9 imagery combined with National Elevation Dataset topography reveals a detailed mosaic of the Grand Canyon, highlighting its dramatic cliffs, deep tributaries, and rugged plateau terrain.

This Landsat image from July 23, 2026, shows agricultural fields surrounding Blythe, California, along the Colorado River. The shortwave infrared, near-infrared, and red band combination (Bands 6,5,4) highlights actively growing vegetation in bright green.

This map shows the Landsat Actual Evapotranspiration (ETa) for the Blythe area on July 23, 2026. Darker blues represent higher amounts of water transferred from the land to the atmosphere through evaporation and plant transpiration, primarily in irrigated fields and along the Colorado River.

This graphic displays the cumulative volume of all operational Landsat products downloaded from the USGS EROS Landsat archive since December 2008 (FY2009). The release of Landsat Collection 2 products in 2020, which improved data quality and accessibility, helped drive downloads upward. 

This graphic displays the number of Landsat Collection 2 Level-2 scene-based science products that are available for download from the USGS Archive. Level-2 science products were first introduced with the Collection 2 release in December, 2020. The Level-2 Science Product includes surface reflection and surface temperature data.

This graph shows the number of Landsat Collection 2 Level-1 scene-based products that are available for download from the USGS Archive. Please note that data from earlier Landsat missions, even those that have ended, continues to be added to the archive through the Landsat Global Archive Consolidation (LGAC) program.

This 2025 Annual National Land Cover Database (NLCD) land cover image shows a portion of western South Dakota. The Black Hills stand out in green, and the urban area of Rapid City in red at its eastern edge. The Badlands show up as gray hues, and vast range and grasslands fill the area leading over to the Missouri River. 

The complete Landsat Portrait of America poster, shown with the front on top and the back below.

Delaware’s low-lying coast makes it especially vulnerable to flooding, erosion, and rising seas. Wetlands like those at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge help protect nearby communities while providing critical habitat for migratory birds.

The Landsat 8 satellite captured an image showing sea ice packed into Roes Welcome Sound, located along the northwestern edge of Southampton Island and around Qikiqtaaluk Island in the uninhabited Canadian Arctic Archipelago. East of Qikiqtaaluk, ice drifts through the Frozen Strait, extending eastward into Foxe Basin. 

Dr. Eric Vermote is a research scientist with NASA. Dr. Vermote is a member of the Landsat Science Team.

Photo credit: NASA

Dr. Jim Irons, Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) project scientist from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, speaks to NASA social media followers at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., prior to the launch of the LDCM satellite, which was later renamed Landsat 8 after reaching orbit.

Photo credit: NASA

The USGS Landsat archive holds over fifty years of Earth-Observing satellite data. This animation displays the cumulative number of Landsat scenes since 1972. The colors on the maps show the density of the number of Landsat Level-1 products. 

Timeline of the Landsat program, beginning with the launch of Landsat 1 in 1972. Landsat 10 is expected to launch in 2031. As the tenth Landsat mission, it will continue the legacy of the Landsat program.

Visit the Landsat Missions webpage to learn more.

This image shows the spectral bandpasses for the sensors on all Landsat satellites. 

A new Worldwide Reference System, WRS-3, was developed for Landsat 10 due to the change in orbital parameters. The WRS-3 will provide a method to acquire, index, and catalog Landsat 10 scenes.

This illustration compares the spectral bands of the sensors onboard Landsat 8 and Landsat 9, compared to the 26 bands that will capture imagery on Landsat 10. Refined and new bands will allow easier merging of data products and support emerging Landsat applications.

In a September 21, 1966 press release, Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall announced that the DOI was launching "Project EROS (Earth Resources Observation Satellites)." Udall's vision was to observe the Earth for the benefit of all.