The Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) on Landsat 8: Design Overview and Pre-Launch Characterization

Dennis C. Reuter; Cathleen M. Richardson; Fernando A. Pellerano; James R. Irons; Richard G. Allen; Martha Anderson; Murzy D. Jhabvala; Allen W. Lunsford; Matthew Montanaro; Ramsey L. Smith; Zelalem Tesfaye; Kurtis J. Thome

doi:10.3390/rs70101135

Remote Sensing (Jan 2015)

The Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) on Landsat 8: Design Overview and Pre-Launch Characterization

Dennis C. Reuter,
Cathleen M. Richardson,
Fernando A. Pellerano,
James R. Irons,
Richard G. Allen,
Martha Anderson,
Murzy D. Jhabvala,
Allen W. Lunsford,
Matthew Montanaro,
Ramsey L. Smith,
Zelalem Tesfaye,
Kurtis J. Thome

Affiliations

Dennis C. Reuter: NASA/GSFC, Code 693, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
Cathleen M. Richardson: NASA/GSFC, Code 490, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
Fernando A. Pellerano: NASA/GSFC, Code 590, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
James R. Irons: NASA/GSFC, Code 610, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
Richard G. Allen: Kimberly Research and Extension Center, Kimberly, ID 83341, USA
Martha Anderson: USDA Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA
Murzy D. Jhabvala: NASA/GSFC, Code 550, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
Allen W. Lunsford: NASA/GSFC/CUA, Code 693, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
Matthew Montanaro: NASA/GSFC, Code 614, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
Ramsey L. Smith: NASA/GSFC, Code 693, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
Zelalem Tesfaye: Millenium Engineering and Integration Company, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
Kurtis J. Thome: NASA/GSFC, Code 614, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/rs70101135
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 7, no. 1
pp. 1135 – 1153

Abstract

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The Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) on Landsat 8 is the latest thermal sensor in that series of missions. Unlike the previous single-channel sensors, TIRS uses two channels to cover the 10–12.5 micron band. It is also a pushbroom imager; a departure from the previous whiskbroom approach. Nevertheless, the instrument requirements are defined such that data continuity is maintained. This paper describes the design of the TIRS instrument, the results of pre-launch calibration measurements and shows an example of initial on-orbit science performance compared to Landsat 7.

Published in Remote Sensing

ISSN: 2072-4292 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Science
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/remotesensing/

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