On September 1, 2007, Landsat 5 made its 125,000th orbit of the Earth. Designed to complete only 16,000 orbits, the spacecraft continues to deliver images of our ever-changing planet daily. Through domestic and international ground stations, much of the Earth is imaged by the Thematic Mapper (TM) instrument, the operational imaging sensor aboard Landsat 5.
The satellite has experienced major failures with aging components. One of four reaction wheels, one of three batteries, one of two star trackers, and two of two solar array drives have all been deemed unusable. While the solar array cannot rotate due to the failed drive, the solar array, itself, continues to charge the onboard batteries. Innovative changes to daily operations have allowed the mission to survive and continue to downlink scenes around the world
Further Information:
+ USGS Landsat website
Above the Earth, Below the Surface: Landsat’s Role in Monitoring Water Quality
September 18, 2023
Safeguarding freshwater resources is crucial, and while scientists use a variety of ground-based techniques to gauge water quality, the Landsat program has provided water quality data from orbit for decades.
