Landsats 1–5 Multispectral Scanner System Sensors Radiometric Calibration Update

Abstract

First launched in 1972, the Landsat satellite sensors have provided the longest continuous record of high-quality images of the earth’s surface that are used in both civilian and military applications. The Landsat Multispectral Scanner System (MSS) sensor was onboard Landsat-1 through Landsat-5. In fact, the MSS sensors provide the only systematic global multispectral space-based imagery of the earth’s surface from 1972 to 1982. This paper focuses on the radiometric calibration update of the Landsats 1–5 MSS sensors. The radiometric calibration was performed in both radiance- and reflectance-based scales through the cross-calibration approach. Simultaneous or near-simultaneous image collections were available for MSS sensor pairs and used for the cross-calibration. The estimated uncertainties for this calibration update exhibit progressively decreasing calibration accuracy, ranging from 5.1% for MSS-5 to 8.8% for MSS-1 in the green spectral band, for example. Finally, the new radiometric calibration coefficients were validated through the use of pseudo-invariant calibration sites (PICS). The temporal Top of the Atmosphere (TOA) radiance and TOA reflectance over the Sonoran Desert were plotted with the purpose of verifying the lifetime radiometric stability of MSS sensors. With the previous calibration, the agreement between the measurements of TOA reflectance over the Sonoran Desert was around 7.5% for all spectral bands. With the calibration update implemented in this study, the agreement between MSS sensors is 3.6%, 2.9%, 3.5%, and 5.9% for the green, red, near-infrared response (NIR-1), and NIR-2 spectral bands, respectively. This study ties all the Landsat legacy instruments from Landsat-1 MSS through Landsat-8 OLI to a consistent radiometric scale.