EO Vista (EOVista.com) has completed the Landsat Next instrument Study for NASA and the US Geological Survey (USGS) and has developed a sensor system architecture that meets the challenging performance objectives of the Landsat Next program. The purpose of the study was to identify Landsat Next’s driving requirements; minimize its size, weight, power, and cost; and outline a low-risk schedule and path to operation. All study objectives were achieved, and a low-risk and affordable program plan for delivery of the Landsat Next Instrument was developed.
Landsat satellites have acquired and made available global, multispectral measurements of land and coastal regions for almost 50 years, providing the longest continuous record of the Earth’s land features from space. Landsat Next will continue this decades-long data record while providing significantly increased performance at reduced cost, through the use of modern instrument components and technology.The objectives of the Landsat Next Program include more than doubling the number of spectral bands and system sensitivity, while tripling the spatial resolution in some bands as compared to current Landsat capabilities. Another objective is to halve the revisit time for every point on Earth from sixteen to eight days. Meeting these enhanced Landsat Next performance objectives will substantially increase our knowledge of the Earth’s evolving terrain, inland and coastal water quality, plant stress, snow cover, soil health, surface temperatures, and more.
EO Vista’s Landsat Next sensor system architecture, designated EOV-LN, meets the newly enhanced performance objectives of the Instrument Study. EOV-LN will image in 25 spectral bands from the visible through thermal infrared wavelengths and deliver significantly improved system sensitivity and spatial resolution compared with Landsat 8/9, at twice the global refresh rate. With the use of existing technologies and a modern system architecture, EOV-LN provides greatly enhanced capabilities at a small fraction of the cost of legacy systems.
Dr. Steven Wein, President and Founder of EO Vista, said, “We are excited to have participated in the Landsat Next Instrument Study. Landsat has provided high-quality land imaging to the science community for almost 50 years and the Landsat program is increasing in importance as the global community works to understand and quantify the impact of climate change on the Earth. We look forward to the opportunity to provide the “Next” link in this unbroken historical record with our modern compact solution which will deliver a substantial increase in performance at dramatically reduced cost.”
About EO Vista
EO Vista, LLC specializes in the development and deployment of innovative, high-performance Electro Optical and Infrared (EO/IR) sensor systems. The company delivers complete space and airborne optical system payloads and instruments that incorporate real-time embedded software and provide extremely high performance at a fraction of the cost of traditional providers. EO Vista’s payloads address spaceborne and airborne applications including high-resolution, multispectral, and hyperspectral imaging, and real-time 3D mapping applications. EO Vista is an employee-owned small business and non-traditional defense contractor recognized for its industry-leading expertise, cost-effectiveness, and fast and reliable service in the design and delivery of some of the nation’s most advanced electro-optical sensor systems. For further information, visit EOVista.com.
