Landsat Missions
The map below shows the locations of ground stations operated by our International Cooperators (ICs) for the direct downlink and distribution of Landsat 7 (L7) and/or Landsat 5 (L5) image data. The circles show the approximate area over which each station has the capability for direct reception of Landsat data. The green circles show the components of the L7 ground station network, the red circles show components of the L5 station network, and the dashed circles show stations with dual (L5 and L7) status. The yellow circles show L5 short-term ("campaign") stations that may contribute to the USGS Landsat archive.
Figure 1. Ground Stations
| International Cooperator | Ground Station Location | Ground Station ID | Landsat 5 | Landsat 7 |
| Argentina | Córdoba, Argentina | COA | x | x |
| Australia | Alice Springs, Australia | ASA, ASN | x | x |
| Australia | Hobart, Australia | HOA | x | x |
| Brazil | Cuíaba, Brazil | CUB | x | |
| Canada | Gatineau, Canada | GNC | x | |
| Canada | Prince Albert, Canada | PAC | x | |
| China | Beijing, China | BJC | x | |
| European Space Agency | Matera, Italy | MTI | x | |
| Indonesia | Parepare, Indonesia | DKI | Inactive | |
| Japan | Hatoyama, Japan | HAJ | x | |
| Japan | Hiroshima, Japan | HIJ | Inactive | |
| Sweden | Kiruna, Sweden | KIS | x | |
| Thailand | Bangkok, Thailand | BKT | x |
In addition to our International Cooperators, there are numerous ground stations around the world that the Landsat Project uses for direct downlink. Campaign stations are short-term stations that collect data and send it to the Landsat archive. Polar ground stations downlink data for the Landsat Project on a more routine basis.
Table 2. The table below provides a list of the campaign or polar receiving stations that have recently collected Landsat data.
| Ground Station Location | Ground Station ID |
|---|---|
| Chetumal, Mexico | CHM |
| Irkutsk, Russia | IKR |
| Magadan, Russia | MGR |
| Malindi, Kenya | MLK |
| Maspalomas, Spain | MPS |
| Moscow, Russia | MOR |
| South Africa | JSA |
| Svalbard, Norway | SGS |
| Poker Flats, Alaska | PFO |
| Unknown * | XXX |
*Data inherited by USGS Landsat from other agencies can lack associated detailed metadata.
Organizations interested in pursuing direct access to L7 or L5 data downlink should contact the Landsat Project Manager.
Comision Nacional de Actividades Espaciales (CONAE)
Web Address: E-mail Address:
The Australian Centre for Remote Sensing (ACRES) is part of the Geospatial & Earth Monitoring Division of Geoscience Australia, Commonwealth Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism.
The goal of Geoscience Australia's remote sensing program is to maintain and periodically refresh a comprehensive archive of satellite remotely sensed data over Australia to help ensure that fundamental geographic information is available for the benefit of the Australian community and to service government needs. Its primary functions are to acquire, catalogue, archive, process, and distribute remotely sensed data acquired from Earth observation satellites for both scientific and operational applications.
Geoscience Australia operates two remote sensing facilities - the Data Acquisition Facility (DAF) in Alice Springs and the Data Processing Facility (DPF) in Canberra. Data over the entire Australian landmass, most of Papua New Guinea, and Eastern Indonesia are recorded, archived and catalogued at Alice Springs. Tape copies of these data are transferred daily to Canberra, where they are available for processing. A high speed data link exists between Alice Springs and Canberra for on-demand near real-time needs.
Geoscience Australia is a member of the Tasmanian Earth Resources Satellite Station consortium (TERSS), which operates a receiving station at Hobart, Tasmania. Geoscience Australia provides satellite scheduling, data archiving, data cataloguing, and product generation services for the consortium. TERSS can acquire data over south-east Australia, New Zealand and a small part of Antarctica as well as a large expanse of the Southern Ocean.
Geoscience Australia offers a range of remote sensing products and services to suit various data analysis applications.
Web Addresses:
DGI - Image Generation Division - of INPE is in charge of the reception, processing and distribution of the images acquired by the LANDSAT and CBERS remote sensing satellites.
Goals:
The Canada Centre for Remote Sensing of Natural Resources Canada (CCRS) operates a remote sensing program coordinated under the Earth Sciences Sector in co-operation with other agencies of the Government of Canada, provincial governments, industry, and Canadian universities. CCRS is responsible for the acquisition and archiving of Earth observation data and for the development of remote sensing applications and related methodologies and systems. CCRS is located in Ottawa and maintains satellite data receiving stations in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, and Gatineau, Quebec.
CCRS has been receiving, archiving and distributing LANDSAT data since 1972.The archive catalogue is available on-line and is interoperable with the USGS catalogue. The catalogue of CCRS LANDSAT and other Earth Observation mission data is available at http://ceocat.ccrs.nrcan.gc.ca/portal/index.html
CCRS engages the private sector in the processing and distribution LANDSAT data products and value-added products and services. This presently includes MDA Geospatial Services (http://www.mdacorporation.com/corporate/index.cfm) and PhotoSat Information Ltd (http://www.photosat.ca/).
CCRS distributes MSS data directly to users.
Web Address:
The Center for Earth Observation and Digital Earth (CEODE), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS),was established on August 23, 2007 through merging three CAS units: the Remote Sensing Satellite Ground Station (RSGS), the Center for Airborne Remote Sensing, and the Laboratory of Digital Earth Sciences. As an institution noted for combination of both scientific research and professional operation services, CEODE is committed to: operation of spaceborne and airborne earth observation system and related data services, as well as the exploration of technologies for earth observation and their application demonstrations.
CEODE is made up of four components: the Satellite Remote Sensing Center, the Airborne Remote Sensing Center, the Spatial Data Center, and the Laboratory of Digital Earth Sciences. Meanwhile, policy-making and supporting departments have also been set up to facilitate the operational activities within the center, such as those in charge of research collaboration, and academic support and consultation.
Satellite Remote Sensing Center
The center is devoted to receiving, archiving and processing remote sensing data acquired from both Chinese and international satellites, and developing the technologies for upgrading the service and operation capacities of its ground systems.
Airborne Remote Sensing Center
The Airborne Remote Sensing Center is devoted to the acquisition, processing and storage of high-quality airborne remote sensing data as well as the development of technologies for their operational capacity improvement.
Spatial Data Center
The Center is to construct a platform capable of carrying out comprehensive processing, distribution and archiving of airborne and spaceborne data and to offer user-oriented services.
Laboratory of Digital Earth Sciences
As a comprehensive research department, the laboratory focuses on the theoretical research of geospatial information science, technological studies of remote sensing, development of a scientific platform for Digital Earth and its nation- and world-wide applications in “hot-spot” regions and fields.
There are three receiving stations belonging to CEODE, MiYun Station(BJC, Beijing), KaShi Station(KHC), and SanYa Station(SNC, in construction). The satellite missions being received now are as following: LANDSAT-5, SPOT-2/4/5, RADARSAT-1/2, ENVISAT-1, RESOURCESAT-1, ERS-2, as well as CBERS-2B and HJ-1A/1B.
Web Address: Data Catalog: Email address (User Services):
European Space Agency (ESA) European Space Research INstitute (ESRIN)
The European Space Agency (ESA) has four stations that have capabilities to acquire Landsat data:
ESRIN, known as the ESA Centre for Earth Observation, is the ESA establishment responsible for managing the operation and exploitation of ESA's Earth Observation satellites. In cooperation with other space agencies, it also manages the acquisition, distribution and exploitation of data from non-ESA satellites. The world’s largest database of environmental data for both Europe and Africa is managed from ESRIN.
In carrying out this work, ESA's Earth Observation Directorate works closely with national space agencies, both in ESA Member States and worldwide, as well as with coordination and standardisation bodies. It also cooperates with many small-and medium-sized enterprises, and with the service industry.
Data from the many instruments on board ESA satellites (ERS1/2, Envisat, Proba) are acquired and processed at the ESA EO 14 facilities in Europe and Canada and then distributed to a worldwide user community that includes several thousand scientists, value companies or application centres. Similar operations are performed for more than 20 non-ESA Earth Observation active and non active satellites like Alos, NOAA 17-18, Orbview, Spot, Scisat, Odin, etc. For the ESA missions ERS-2 and Envisat, ESRIN manages and schedules the satellites' payload data transmission links to a network of worldwide acquisition stations.
Instrument performance and product quality are permanently checked and new products developed in response to evolving user demand. Responsibility for ensuring this is done quickly and efficiently lies with those working in Earth Observation at ESRIN.
Web Addresses:
National Institute of Aeronautics and Space
Remote Sensing Application Center
Web Address:
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) established the Earth Observation Center (EOC) at Hatoyama to develop satellite remote sensing technology. EOC archives the following types of satellite data and processes these data for a variety of applications and research:
EOC distributes data in the form of CD-ROM, DVD. To make maximum use of the data, JAXA has set up the Earth Observation and Information System (EOIS).
Web Address:
The Research Center for Advanced Earth Environmental Information at Hiroshima Institute of Technology is selected for a promotion foothold in the academic frontier project for a private university by the Ministry of Education. It is established within the Graduate Schools of Environmental Information Studies and of Engineering in cooperation with research organizations in Japan and overseas.
Web Address: Data Catalog:
ScanEx Research and Development Center (ScanEx R&D Center) is the leading Russian company on the remote sensing market that offers a complete set of services ranging from acquisition to thematic processing of Earth observation images from space. ScanEx R&D Center has been operating as a private company since 1989.
The main spheres of activity include:
CSIR Satellite Applications Centre
Maximising the benefits of space technology:
Role in local and regional space programmes:
Distribution of imagery:
Department of Science and Technology space initiatives:
Satellite navigation:
The Space Technology Center's Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) operates the Thailand ground receiving station. It is located in the Ladkrabang District, in the suburbs of Eastern Bangkok, Thailand.
GISTDA is a public organization responsible for space technology and geo-informatics. Its mission is to provide remote sensing data and geo-information to the public, and to carry out and participate in the research and development of space technology and geo-informatics both nationally and internationally.
Data Archival:
U.S. Department of the Interior |
U.S. Geological Survey
URL: http://landsat.usgs.gov
Page Contact Information: landsat@usgs.gov
Page Last Modified: August 24, 2009
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