Landsat 9 Launch from Vandenberg: 3 Views

Landsat 9 Launch from Vandenberg: 3 Views

Three views of the Landsat 9 launch on September 27, 2021. Liftoff of the Atlas V rocket took place at 11:12 local time from Vandenberg Space Force Base near Lompoc, California. Mild fog and the "marine layer" of clouds cleared just enough to see the first 10 seconds of flight from 4 miles away at the OS-45 viewing area (also known as the "gravel pit") located to the north of the SLC-3 launch pad.

Since 1972, the joint NASA/ U.S. Geological Survey Landsat series of Earth Observation satellites have continuously acquired images of the Earth’s land surface, providing uninterrupted data to help land managers and policymakers make informed decisions about natural resources and the environment.

Landsat is a part of the USGS National Land Imaging (NLI) Program. Landsat data is processed and hosted at the USGS Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center.

Learn more about Landsat 9 and the Landsat program at https://usgs.gov/landsat