Source: USGS Landsat

Apr. 1, 2013 • By the end of May 2013, data from the Landsat 8 satellite will be available to all users. Each day, 400 scenes acquired by the Operational Land Imager (OLI) and Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) will be archived at the USGS EROS Center, and will be processed to be consistent with current standard Landsat data products. Data will be ready to download within 24 hours of reception at that time.
USGS is offering a download of the first image of Colorado’s Front Range collected on March 18, 2013. This sample image is considered Engineering data, which implies that the data do not meet the exact specification as when the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) is declared operational in May. These data should be used with intention and caution with the following caveats in mind:
+ Because LDCM is not on its correct orbit path, there may be geometric issues to be aware:

• The pixel size is slightly smaller than it will be once maneuvered to the final orbital altitude.
• The width of the swath (side-to-side distance) is slightly narrower than it will be for operational products.
• The position of the entire image will not correspond directly to operational images take once LDCM is on the WRS-2 orbit.

+ The raw data were processed using pre-launch calibration coefficients for both radiometric and geometric corrections. These coefficients are being refined and validated during the on-orbit commissioning phase. The sample data are being provided to help familiarize the community with the format of the data products that will be produced following commissioning with updated calibrations.
+ Get data