Landsat系列卫星数据凭借其长期连续、全球覆盖、适中的时间空间分辨率和科学的数据存档与分发策略等优势,逐渐成为地表特征和地球系统科学研究中最有效的遥感数据之一,并广泛应用于生态环境、农林地矿、能源资源、教育科研和政府管理等领域。而第8代陆地卫星--陆地卫星数据连续任务卫星(LDCM)于2013年2月发射升空,该卫星携带了运行性陆地成像仪(OLI)和热红外传感器(TIRS)两种传感器。与Landsat 7/ETM+相比,OLI/TIRS在波段设置、辐射分辨性能和扫描方式上都得到很大改进,其中OLI共包括9个波段,新增海岸带(coastal)监测和卷云(cirrus)识别波段,TIRS则设置了两个热红外波段。如果LDCM能够成功升空运行,它将继续承担起长期连续对地观测的使命。

As one of the most splendid achievements in civilian earth observation history, the Landsat program has launched six successful satellites that have accomplished a 40-year mission of continuous earth observation. Owing to the program's excellent technical characteristics, scientific data archiving and distribution strategy, Landsat data have been widely applied in ecological and environmental monitoring, natural resource surveys, college education and government management. The eighth generation of Landsat series, Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) satellite, is scheduled to launch in February 2013 with two sensor payloads, an Operational Land Imager (OLI), and a Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS). Compared with the previous ETM+, OLI and TIRS have advanced band specifications, radiometric performance and scanning systems. OLI collects image data for nine spectral bands with a new blue band for coastal environment monitoring and a shortwave infrared band for cirrus cloud detection. TIRS is designed with two thermal infrared bands. After a successful launch, LDCM (renamed as Landsat 8) will extend the Landsat data record and carry on the mission of earth observation.