Landsat Analysis Ready Data (ARD)

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has improved Landsat data quality and usability through the creation of Analysis Ready Data (ARD) for the conterminous United States, Alaska, and Hawaii. Landsat ARD greatly reduces the preparatory work currently required to do time-series analysis for understanding landscape change for operational and science users. Landsat Collections Level-1 scenes are the input for generating Landsat ARD. ARD provides users with significant flexibility in how they access Landsat data. For example, users have the ability to tailor data requests according to specific needs in terms of geospatial regions of interest, spectral bands, and collection dates to generate customized data cube stacks for the purposes of data reduction, time series analysis, and interpretation.

The Landsat Program is a series of Earth-observing satellites co-managed by USGS and NASA, and offers the longest continuous space-based record of Earth’s land in existence. Every day, Landsat satellites orbit Earth and provide essential information to help land managers and policymakers make informed decisions about our natural resources and environment. All Landsat data are distributed by the USGS at no charge from EarthExplorer, GloVis, and the LandsatLook Viewer. To learn more about the Landsat Program please visit https://usgs.gov/landsat or follow us on Twitter @USGSLandsat or Facebook @NASA.Landsat.