Landsat 4 is the fourth satellite of the Landsat program. It was launched on
July 16th, 1982, with the primary goal of providing a global archive of
satellite photos. Although the Landsat Program is managed by NASA, data from
Landsat 4 was collected and distributed by the USGS. Landsat 4 is no longer in
operation, due to technical failure. It finally ceased transmission in 1993,
far beyond its designed life expectancy of five years. The satellite orbit
continues to be maintained by NASA.
Landsat 4 had a maximum transmission bandwidth of 85 Mbit/s, and carried an
updated Multi-Spectral Scanner used on previous Landsats, and a Thematic
Mapper. It had a maximum 30 m resolution. Shortly after launch, the satellite
lost half of its solar power, prompting fears the satellite would fail sooner
than expected. This prompted the early launch of Landsat 5, a satellite
identical in specification to Landsat 4.
[Summary provided by NASA.]
Group: Platform_Details
Entry_ID: LANDSAT-4
Group: Platform_Identification
Platform_Category: Earth Observation Satellites
Platform_Series_or_Entity: LANDSAT
Short_Name: LANDSAT-4
End_Group
Group: Platform_Associated_Instruments
Short_Name: MSS
Short_Name: TM
End_Group
Group: Orbit
Orbit_Altitude: 705 km
Orbit_Inclination: 98.2 degree
Equator_Crossing: 9:45 AM (±15 min.) local time (descending node)
Period: 99 minutes
Repeat_Cycle: 16 days
Orbit_Type: LEO > Low Earth Orbit > Polar Sun-Synchronous
End_Group
Creation_Date: 2007-02-01
Online_Resource: http://landsat.gsfc.nasa.gov/about/L4_td.html
Sample_Image: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/Landsat5.jpg/260px-Landsat5.jpg
Group: Platform_Logistics
Launch_Date: 1982-07-16
Launch_Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, USA
Design_Life: 5 Years
Primary_Sponsor: NASA
Primary_Sponsor: USGS
End_Group
End_Group (en)