USGS (U.S. Geological Survey) EROS, Sioux Falls, SD

Multispectral Scanner (MSS)

Contents:

Product Description
Prices (Digital Source)
Prices (Film Source)
Bulk Discount
Search & Order
Image Previews
Sample Data

MSS image from Landsat
(Los Angeles, California)

Product Description

The Landsat Multispectral Scanner (MSS) was a sensor onboard Landsats 1 through 5 and acquired images of the Earth nearly continuously from July 1972 to October 1992, with an 18-day repeat cycle for Landsats 1 through 3 and a 16-day repeat cycle for Landsats 4 and 5.

Landsat MSS image data consist of four spectral bands (band designations), although the specific band designations changed between Landsats 1-3 and Landsats 4-5. The resolution for all bands of 79 m, and approximate scene size is 170 km north-south by 185 km east-west (106 mi by 115 miles).

Most Landsat MSS data are available as digital products, but for some MSS scenes, data are only available as high resolution scans of film separates, one for each band. Scanned digital products are distributed as individual GeoTIFF files for each band.

For digital source products, the following levels of correction are available to the general public.
- Systematic Correction (Level 1G) includes both radiometric and geometric correction. The scene will be rotated aligned, and georeferenced to a user-specified map projection.
The distribution of Landsat 1-5 MSS Precision Terrain correction data is restricted to U. S. Government and its affiliated users. Please contact USGS EROS Customer Services if you have questions regarding this policy.
- Precision Correction (Level 1P) includes radiometric and geometric correction, as well as the use of ground control points (GCPs) to improve accuracy. For locations outside the United States, accuracy of the precision corrected product will depend on the availability of local GCPs.
- Terrain Correction (Level 1T) includes radiometric, geometric, and precision correction, as well as the use of a digital elevation model (DEM) to improve the satellite model and to correct for relief displacement caused by local terrain. For locations outside the United States, the accuracy of a terrain-corrected product will depend on the availability of local ground control points (GCPs), as well as the quality of the best available DEM.

For all levels of digital correction, the following processing parameters are customer-defined:

Processing Parameters	Available options
Map projection	UTM Space Oblique Mercator Albers Equal-Area other*
Horizontal datum	WGS84 NAD83 NAD27 other*
Resampling method	cubic convolution (CC) nearest neighbor (NN) other*
Image orientation	Map (north up) Path (satellite; not recommended for UTM projection)
Pixel size	standard (57 meters) other*
Format	NDF (NLAPS Data Format)
Media Type	CD DVD FTP
Delivery Times	FTP: 1 to 3 days Media: 5 to 10 days The above are average delivery times and are not guaranteed. The actual delivery time may vary, depending on the workload at the time an order is placed. Delivery time may also be longer if shipping to a location outside the United States.

*Other options may be available upon request.

Additional Information

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Prices (Digital Source)

Digital Product	Price
Systematic Correction	$200 per scene
Precision Correction	$300 per scene
Terrain Correction	$375 per scene

Prices (Film Source)

Pricing and information apply only to MSS data created by scanning film separates.

Digital File Sizes

High resolution Scanned:

Film Size	Micron Size	Black and white (B/W)
70mm	21 Micron	15 MB
	14 Micron	30 MB
	7 Micron	105 MB
9 x 9 in	21 Micron	117 MB
	14 Micron	262 MB
	7 Micron	1.3 GB

Actual image size will generally be larger than the sizes listed above because reference data on the film are scanned along with the image, and a USGS logo is added. Scanning at 21 microns is equivalent to 1200 dpi, 14 microns is equivalent to 1800 dpi, and 7 microns is equivalent to 3600 dpi.

High Resolution Scanned: $30.00 per frame

Media Type
CD
DVD
FTP

Maximum stacking limits (the number of frames that can fit on a particular CD or DVD media).

Film Size	Micron Size	B/W Stacking limits
Film Size	Micron Size	CD	DVD
70 mm	21 Micron (recommended)	30	100
	14 Micron	15	50
	7 Micron	3	30
9 x 9 inch	21 Micron (recommended)	3	30
	14 Micron	1	15
	7 Micron	Unavailable	3

Bulk Discount

A bulk discount of 20 percent off the standard product price will be applied to orders containing 25 or more single Landsat scenes (any combination of MSS, Thematic Mapper, and Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) Scan Line Corrector (SLC)-on digital products are allowed).

No discounts are available for film products, Landsat 7 ETM+ SLC-off, or ETM+ Gap-filled products.

Search & Order

All Landsat MSS scenes from both digital and film sources in the USGS archive can be searched by geographic location using Earth Explorer or the USGS Global Visualization Viewer (GloVis). Only scenes with browse capability can be searched and ordered on GloVis.

Landsat MSS data from satellites 1 through 3 are referenced to the Landsat Worldwide Reference System of paths and rows - WRS-1; Landsat MSS data from satellites 4 and 5 are referenced to WRS-2.

There are several commercial firms that can provide printed images from USGS digital data.

Image Previews

Landsat MSS images should always be previewed prior to purchase. Browse images of available scenes may be viewed by searching on Earth Explorer or GloVis.

Each Landsat MSS browse image is a resampled JPEG of the actual image data. The browse image will be displayed as a 4,2,1 (RGB) composite.

Sample Data

Landsat MSS product samples are available for download at the Landsat Sample Products Web page.

Accessibility FOIA Privacy Policies and Notices
U.S. Department of the Interior \| U.S. Geological Survey URL: http://eros.usgs.gov/ Page Contact Information: custserv@usgs.gov Page Last Modified: August 22, 2006